Report: Brendan Shanahan re-signed by Detroit

UPDATE (7/21/2004): Ken Holland has since denied the reports by ESPN and some radio stations that said his team had re-signed Brendan Shanahan.

"That's premature. Rick Curran (Shanahan's agent) and I are exchanging faxes and we still have some work to do. Rick is on vacation this week. We're getting closer, and I expect us to keep working at it until we have a deal. But we're not there yet."

The two sides are apparently looking at a two-year, $7 to $8 million deal, not the one-year, $4 million deal reported yesterday. Some Wings fans may thing $3.5 to $4 million a year straight up a bit much and would like to see them offer him a lower base salary with incentives to bring it up higher. I personally don't mind Shanny getting so much, especially since he's been around for so long and has contributed so much. For his loyalty, the Wings should give him something rather than ask him to take an even bigger pay cut. As long as a deal gets done, I'll be happy. END UPDATE

The Red Wings have signed fan-favorite/scapegoat forward Brendan Shanahan to a one-year, $4 million deal (a $2 million pay cut), according to a report by ESPN, and will bring him back for a 9th season. Since the team has not made an official announcement, this is not official-official yet but they are expected to make it so sometime soon. Even if this specific case turns out to be untrue, there is still a good chance that a deal very similar to this one will end up being what the Wings and Shanahan go with. There were some who, after Shanny did little in the playoffs this past season, thought he should be cut loose from the team during the off-season. I had some leanings that way myself but I have since changed my mind. After I got over my intial emotions, I realized that Shanahan put in a good effort defensively and worked noticeably hard at breaking his slump. I still believe he is capable of being an effective weapon, despite his age (35) and apparent decline. Brendan Shanahan's reaction after being eliminated by Calgary in Game 6 of the Western Conference Semifinals says it all. He still has some fire left and his leadership will be worth $4 million for another year. If Shanahan truly has re-signed, the Wings now have 15 players comitted to next season and a payroll of around $45 million. That's a considerable amount over the projected salary cap level that the NHL office and owners apparently want. So is the $61 million or so that the Wings' full roster is expected to cost, despite all their efforts to bring that number down.