Well. 
Jeez, Cheli.

If that’s the way you feel, maybe you should follow Bowman to Chi-town and make room on the Wings for Ericsson, Meech, Quincey et al.

Posted by w2j2 on 08/22/08 at 09:46 PM ET

Eh, can’t blame the guy. Chicago is his home, and I don’t think he’s asking to leave Detroit. It would’ve been nice if he were a bit less blunt about it however.

Still, the Cubs and Sox both lost pretty big today. They wont want the cup now. Move over Curse of the Billy Goat. Say hello to Lord Stanley’s curse.

Posted by Nate A from Dark side of the moon on 08/22/08 at 10:40 PM ET

“...wrong team,” he says.

His career got a second wind with the “wrong team” and two more Cups were added to his resume courtesy of the “wrong team.”

In a hurry to leave the “wrong team,” Cheli?  Why sign another one-year contract with the “wrong team” to begin with?

Posted by SYF from Las Vegas, NV on 08/22/08 at 11:58 PM ET

I for one, am sick of Cheli’s open flirtations with teams like the Rangers (a few years ago) and Chicago.  He would have never had any success with those two teams on both a personal and team level.  This city and “wrong team” has given him 2 cups, 4 restaurants, and has filled his bank account with millions, when his former team, and conventional wisdom was that Chelios was done.  He should be more thoughtful when getting caught up in the moment.

Posted by bababooey on 08/23/08 at 10:22 AM ET

Wow! That was a shocker!

In the past, Cheli has indicated he’d stay in Detroit and play with the Mechanics when his NHL career was over. But “I intend on coming back and spending the rest of my days here, whether as a player or somehow being involved with the Blackhawks” sure sounds like a guy who’s ready to leave, if not already looking for a way to leave.

Maybe that minimum-wage contract that Kenny is offering isn’t sitting well with Cheli. Or maybe sitting out half the games so Meech can get some ice time is the problem. Either way, it’ll be Cheli who loses if he leaves. I love the guy, but the Wings will get along just fine without him.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 08/23/08 at 10:59 AM ET

Telling, indeed. 

But lets face it, Chelie will have to battle with 2 up and comers this camp.  Kenny had an extended conversaton which pretty much amounted to “two way contract or nothing, buddy, but we love ya”.  Don’t get me wrong, I hated the guy when he was a blackhawk.  It took me two full years to accept him as a teammate.  But let’s face it, the man’s a workout warrior with a heart of gold.  He has a sense of humor and an understanding of the business of the game like no other.

I’d love to see him as Leage Commissioner, or head of the Player’s Union. 

He embodies what’s good about hockey, right now.

If he feels his ties are with the Blackawks, he’d be a great GM, or coach.  I personally as a Wings fan would love to see this rivalry grow.  And damnit, we all know it will.

I had seats against the sharks last year on the third row by the wings bench, so it was the bench, ozzie, hudler, cheli, then us.  The man dropped trow in front of everyone to regroup the troops and then jumped over the boards and played another solid shift.

This guy is the Gordie Howe of Defensemen in our time. 

More power to him, whatever he does.

-Dave

Posted by Hippy Dave from San Francisco by way of Detroit on 08/25/08 at 03:38 AM ET