Johan Franzen-4-8-14

The Red Wings' Johan Franzen had only one goal and nine points in his final 23 games, regular season and playoffs.

(AP file photo)

DETROIT – No Detroit Red Wing has been under more scrutiny in recent years than Johan Franzen.

His streaky, inconsistent ways were best illustrated this season, when he had only one goal and eight assists in his final 23 games, regular season and playoffs, following a stretch with 29 points in 23 games.

Many fans have run out of patience. Some want the club to use its final compliance buyout on him. That won't happen, general manager Ken Holland said.

It makes little sense to pay him $11.6 million spread out over the next 12 years (two-thirds of the remaining value of his contract over twice the remaining length) to get rid of him and get nothing in return.

Franzen, 34, still is capable of scoring 25 goals; that would be difficult to replace for his $3.95 million salary-cap hit.

But would the club consider trading him?

M-Live readers asked about that possibility. Some also wonder about defenseman Jakub Kindl's future with the organization and whether former Red Wing Marian Hossa might return.

Q. Do you think the Wings would trade Franzen if approached by another team?

--Damndog

Q. With the Wings' young talent emerging, do you think they will be aggressive in the off-season and would maybe get rid of Franzen for Hossa?

--Matthew

A. The Red Wings aren't going to dump Franzen just for the sake of getting rid of him. If the right deal came along I'm sure they would pull the trigger.

But I don't expect that to happen. The market for Franzen would be limited to a handful of teams that believe they're a goal-scoring winger away from winning the Stanley Cup and wouldn't be as concerned with the length of his deal (six years remaining at a total value of $17.5 million).

Q. Chicago will be trading Hossa to help alleviate their cap issues and allow for room to extend (Patrick) Kane and (Jonathan) Toews next year. Would the Wings want him back? Will it take much to get him with the contract he is signed to?

--bcoop444

A. If the Blackhawks look to move Hossa, I'm sure the Red Wings would be interested. But I'm not sure he is tradable at age 35, with a $5.275 million cap hit for the next seven years (he has $23.8 million remaining in actual salary), unless Chicago picks up a portion of the contract.

The Blackhawks used their two compliance buyouts on Steve Montador and Rostislav Olesz.

Q. With Kindl being paid like a top-four defenseman, do you see him being our final compliance buyout? He's a 5-6 (defenseman) at best in Detroit and watches from the press box too often. Apply his money to (Danny) DeKeyser on a two-year bridge deal.

--Bill

A. Zero chance Kindl will be bought out of the final three years of his contract (at $2.4 million per season). Why pay him to go away when they can trade him (he's only 27 and defensemen are at a premium) if they determine he doesn't fit into their long-term plans?

Jakub Kindl regressed this season after a breakout year in 2013.

Q. Why did the Red Wings rush into signing Jakub Kindl to a long-term deal last year? How disappointed were management and coaches with his play this year and what is his future in the organization?

Do you feel Ken Holland has become too passive in exploring big deals in recent years (trades)?

Why doesn't Johan Franzen play to his potential? Is it all mental? Does he think too much? Why is he so passive so often and only has spurts where he plays hard and physical?

--Steven

A. They signed Kindl following a strong 2013 season, when it appeared as if he had discovered his game and was trending upward. I'm sure they were disappointed he took a step back, appearing to lose confidence and lacking competitiveness. With so many promising young defensemen in the system (Xavier Ouellet, Ryan Sproul, Alexey Marchenko, Mattias Backman, Nick Jensen), Kindl's future with the organization is in doubt.

It's hard to say whether Holland has become passive when you don't know what trades were at his disposal. I'm guessing teams looking to deal with the Red Wings aren't inquiring about fourth-line players and 35-year-olds; they're asking for the likes of Gustav Nyquist, Tomas Tatar, Brendan Smith and some of their high-end prospects. I'd be reluctant to deal those pieces, too.

I'm sure many in the organization have pondered those questions about Franzen and not come up with any answers.

Q. If a trade is made requiring the moving of youth, which would go and why? Smith, Nyquist, Tatar, (Riley) Sheahan, (Tomas) Jurco?

--Talex

A. I don't see any of those players being traded in the near future. Down the road, Smith might be more apt to being moved than the others due to the depth of defensemen in the system. I could see Nyquist being a lifelong Red Wing. Sheahan is a good-sized center who plays a 200-foot game; you hang onto players like that. Jurco has a much-desired combination of skill and physicality. Tatar has terrific open-ice moves and good hands in tight. If, for some reason, they had to move one of them to get what they want, I'd say it would be Tatar because of his size.

Q. Would it be in the Wings' best interest to trade one of (Niklas) Kronwall or (Jonathan) Ericsson given that the potential return would include a top-two right-handed shooting defenseman or right-handed winger?

--w1n9s

A. It's impossible to answer that question without knowing who they would get in return. If it's Shea Weber, then sure it would be in the Red Wings' best interest. But that's not going to happen. If you're asking should they trade one of them just to shake things up I'd say no.

Q. Which teams have interest in our UFAs that won't be back, and how much are they looking at paying? Any offer sheets we need to worry about?

--anonymous

A. David Legwand, Daniel Alfredsson, Kyle Quincey and Jonas Gustavsson certainly would draw interest if they don't return. Some teams might have interest in Todd Bertuzzi or Daniel Cleary. Of that group, I think only Alfredsson and Gustavsson are possibilities to re-sign. It's hard to project which teams would be interested in those who don't return.

I doubt the Red Wings need to worry about an offer sheet to any of their restricted free agents (Danny DeKeyser, Tatar and Sheahan), since it has happened only eight times league-wide since 1998. If it happens, the club could easily match.

Q. I can't help but wonder what the Red Wings will do with (Stephen) Weiss. It seems like they're giving him a second year for redemption. Do you think the Red Wings are exploring options to get rid of Weiss or is he staying for now? With the emergence of younger players, do you see Weiss staying in the same second-line center role he was originally signed for (if he's still with Detroit)?

--Steve

A. Weiss isn't going anywhere. First off, he's not tradable with four years and $19.6 million remaining on his contract and coming off two injury-plagued seasons. He is not eligible for a compliance buyout, having signed after the new CBA was put into place. He's only 31 and the club believes he can regain his 50-point form when healthy. At least, he'll get a chance to prove himself. Playing with skilled wingers on the second line is the best place to utilize his abilities.

Thanks for participating. I received many more questions (an all-time record, I think) that I'll get to later this week and next week.

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