Cleary refuses to report to Red Wings farm team

In autumn 2005, Daniel Cleary came to Detroit to make the Red Wings. A decade later, his inability to do so has left a mess.

Cleary, a key part of the late aughts playoff success, has refused to report to the minors, where he was assigned after clearing waivers earlier this week. General manager Ken Holland said Friday that Cleary told team executive Kris Draper of the decision to not report to Grand Rapids.

Asked what happens to the $950,000 salary Cleary is under contract to make, Holland replied, "that is between the club and Dan Cleary."

The Wings are not planning to suspend Cleary. Most likely, this will be dealt with quietly, with the Wings still paying Cleary. From a salary cap standpoint it does not matter, as once Cleary was assigned to the minors, his salary is just at the limit of what relief a team gets when sending down a veteran. Cleary's salary no longer counts against the cap.

It is possible the sides find some other role for Cleary, in a non-player capacity.

This is the tail end of a debacle that began in autumn of 2013, when former coach Mike Babcock pushed for Cleary to return just as training camp began. The Wings had made Cleary offers in June of that summer, and when he spurned them, instead signed Stephen Weiss and Daniel Alfredsson.

At the 11th hour, an agreement was reached with Cleary, who had rejected multi-year deals from Florida and Winnipeg, and changed his mind about a three-year verbal agreement with Philadelphia. This past summer's re-signing of Cleary marked the end of the Wings' commitment borne of that 2013 September day.

It was made clear to Cleary when he signed that he would be a considerable long shot to make the Wings, given their tremendous depth. He was put on waivers Wednesday, cleared and assigned Thursday. He then informed the club he would not be reporting.

It is a sorry ending to a story that began with such a Cinderella tone. In 2005, Cleary was a former first-round pick who'd bounced from Chicago to Edmonton to Phoenix by age 27. He turned a tryout in Detroit into a contract, worked his way from grinder to top-six forward, all while endearing himself to teammates with a personality both delightful and devilish. He helped them win the Stanley Cup in 2008, and return to the Final in 2009 when he had nine goals among 15 points in 23 games. He had 10 points as late as the 2013 playoffs - but from then on, his story lost luster.

Contact Helene St. James: hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.

Check out our new Red Wings Xtra app on Apple and Android!