There was always talk about him being a “west coast guy”, but as the season has gone on, his quotes have gone from the type that show a guy just saying the right thing, to a guy that really sounds like he wants to stay.

Hope so.

Posted by Nathan from Jonny Ericsson's ice cream truck on 05/27/08 at 08:26 AM ET

His wife wears the pants in that family. He’s a good player but “wifey” makes his decisions. Too bad he could be a great player in the right place

Posted by kevin on 05/27/08 at 08:37 AM ET

I can’t say enough about how we’ve been treated here. Real classy.

How many times have we heard a Wings player say something like that? It makes you proud to be a Wings fan.

As for next year, I think if Kenny offers Stuart $3M/year for four years, he’ll take it...and his wife will adjust to having a stable home life in Rochester Hills.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 05/27/08 at 11:06 AM ET

One other note: If Stuart signs, Cheli is done and Lilja is gone. The Wings have to make room for Meech and Quincy, and Ericcson seems ready for a spot as well. It’s time to start working in the new guys and beginning the transition to the post-Lidstrom era.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 05/27/08 at 11:11 AM ET

If his wife makes all the decisions, she’ll want him to sign with a team where he doesn’t have to move three times every season.  Whatever profession someone has, moving all over the continent with a young family is rough.

Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 05/27/08 at 12:33 PM ET

OTC - Why make room for Quincey?

Meech, sure he’s ready.  Quincey?  Not so much.  I haven’t been impressed by his stints in DET, and I have yet to see anything when I’ve seen him in Grand Rapids even that indicates he’s an NHLer.

Lilja’s gone one way or another.  His embarrassing fall-down at his own blue line just is another reminder of how bad and unreliable he can be.

Chelios?  Meh… I dont’ know.  Depends on how he feels I guess.

Lebda?  In my opinion Lebda’s on the bubble as well.  The emergence of Kronwall has really limited what Lebdas contributes at this point.  Lebda could be gone, especially if they want to keep Chelly for one more year.

Lidstrom-Rafalski, Kronwall-Stuart, Meech-Ericsson/Chelios.

Why the heck not?

Posted by Primis on 05/27/08 at 01:14 PM ET

OTC - Why make room for Quincey?

Because he’s out of options. He either makes the club next year or he has to clear waivers to be sent back here to G.R. And he will not clear waivers.

Lebda could be gone, especially if they want to keep Chelly for one more year.

Lebda is signed for two more years at a very reasonable salary, but if, before the draft, the Wings can make a deal with a team who needs a puck-moving defenseman in exchange for moving up a level, they may well do it. Brett has proven his worth during the playoffs, so some team may see the value in trading “potential” for a proven performer.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 05/27/08 at 05:43 PM ET

Fromw what I understand about Stuart is that his wife may have custody issues, from her previous marriage, that make it so she cant move outside of California.  Which makes signing on a West Coast team attractive for Stuey.  Which stinks, because it makes us signing him tough.  And it makes it seem like he is wanting to sign with a team like Anaheim, LA, San Jose, etc. more likely.  He must have met his wife in his time with San Jose or something.

Posted by Graham from Midland, MI on 06/23/08 at 03:38 PM ET