Red Wings at Columbus Blue Jackets 3-8-16

How many more seasons might Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg play?

(AP file photo)

The World Championship wraps up this week in Russia. Shortly after it concludes, the Detroit Red Wings should have two key questions answered.

Will Pavel Datsyuk leave to finish his career in Russia? All signs point in that direction.

And who will be their new assistant coach in charge of the forwards and the power play? Todd Richards appears to be the favorite.

In the meantime, MLive readers had other topics on their minds:

Q: Has the Wings' reliance on players from Sweden run its course? Does seem they have the best contracts (Franzen, Z, Nyquist, Kronwall, Big E). - Admin

A: Except for Johan Franzen, who appeared in only two games, the other players on that list all had down years. But you could say that about almost everyone on the team.

They've had a lot of success with Swedish players over the years, which I'm sure influenced them to draft and acquire more. Just because these players are showing their age as they near the end of their careers (except for Nyquist) doesn't mean the organization should stop scouting prospective Swedes.

There are no Swedes on the Grand Rapids Griffins but the Red Wings have a couple of Swedish prospects in 2014 draft picks Axel Holmstrom and Christoffer Ehn.

Zetterberg, Kronwall and Franzen probably could have signed for more money (cap hit) elsewhere had they gone to free agency. To lower their cap hits, the Red Wings, at least with Zetterberg and Franzen, signed them to longer deals with much lower salaries the final few years.

Q: Kronwall's minus-21 led the team. Why does he get so many passes? He should be on the third pairing at best. - Bvan

A: His performance dropped off considerably. A knee issue undoubtedly contributed to his struggles. He is expected to get it taken care of in the off-season. He's been a workhorse who plays in all situations. At 35, can he get close to where he was? We'll see next season. But I wouldn't cast him aside following one bad season.

Whether he's on the "first" or "second" pairing depends on what other moves are made. Regardless, his ice time (team-high 22:01) should be reduced. They also should try Mike Green on the first power-play unit.

Q: Do you know the status of Johan Franzen? Is he done or is there a chance to see him back in a Red Wings jersey? - Johannes

A: I think it's safe to assume he's done. I'd expect him to spend the final four seasons of his contract on long-term injured reserve, like Chris Pronger and Marc Savard. Franzen attended Game 5 of the Tampa Bay series and said his condition hasn't changed; he still experiences concussion symptoms on a regular basis whenever he tries to exert himself.

Q: The Red Wings have at least two expendable defensemen who are slow and are generally liabilities. I am speaking of Ericsson and Kronwall (he doesn't "Kronwall" anymore, so the impact is gone.) With a swifter defense, add at least two or three hard forechecking forwards. Trade Nyquist and Zetterberg as part of the deal. Bring up more youth and find another Luke Glendening. This team needs a new identity, that's why I say trade Zetterberg. - Dennis

A: I'm not sure if even your PlayStation could process all those moves.

Let's start with Zetterberg. He's a Red Wing for life. I can't imagine any scenario in which they would look to trade their captain.

I think Kronwall will finish his career in Detroit as well. He has three years remaining at a $4.75 million cap hit, including a full no-trade clause for one more season, when he'll be paid $5.5 million. He has a modified no-trade clause for the final two seasons, when his salary dips to $3.5 million and $1.75 million, making him easier to move, if they opted to do so (and if he wants to continue to play).

They might consider dealing Ericsson, who has a modified no-trade clause. But coming off a bad season and with four years remaining at a cap hit of $4.25 million, that might be difficult.

Nyquist would be one of their top trading chips. But coming off a 17-goal season, his stock is low, which could affect the return. He has one more season before a no-trade clause kicks in; overall, he has three years left at a cap hit of $4.75 million.

Q: Die-hard Wings fan but saw this coming two or three years ago. Was fooled by (Tomas) Tatar and Nyquist into thinking they could be the cogs of an ongoing Wings' Cup contention, but their true colors showed in the past playoff and finally in the regular season. One or both can go. Package one with (Jimmy) Howard. Calgary could be a good trade partner, maybe get (T.J.) Brodie or (Dougie) Hamilton. ... If Pav (Datsyuk) leaves as expected, what do you think of the prospect of Z also retiring? - Tony

A: Zetterberg isn't retiring this year. But I don't think he'll finish out his contract, which has five years remaining at a cap hit of $6.083 million. He'll be 36 on Oct. 9 and has a lot of hard miles on him and a history of back trouble, though he played all 82 games this past season.

I think he'll play two more years for sure (his salary is $7.5 million and $7 million). Might he retire before 2018-19, when his salary dips to $3.5 million? I'd be surprised if he plays the final two years, when he'll earn just $1 million per season.

Calgary might have interest in Howard, though there will be other options, through free agency (Cam Ward, James Reimer, Chad Johnson, Al Montoya, to name a few) and trade (Kari Lehtonen or Antti Niemi, Jaroslav Halak, others). But I can't imagine why in the world the Flames would consider dealing one of those defensemen in the package you proposed. Dennis Wideman would be a more realistic return.

Also, I wouldn't dismiss Tatar and Nyquist's ability to bounce back next season. Almost every Red Wing experienced a decline in production.

Q: Since the Flames don't have a goaltender signed for next year, what do you think the chances are of us being able to trade Howard to them for a good defenseman? Also, who would you think we would acquire from them; I know they have big names like Mark Giordano, T.J. Brodie, and Dougie Hamilton. -- Geek Freak

A: See above regarding unrealistic trade proposals involving the Calgary Flames.

Q: I am concerned that the under-production by the Wings is caused more by staff than the actual players. We have talented players, what we don't have is consistency and a power play. Both of those weaknesses seem to be more staff-related than player-related. Why was Tatar's 'squeezing the stick' not nailed by a coach and addressed? Why was the power play not improved upon? In fact, I thought it actually got worse as the season progressed. Jeff Blashill is wonderful at what he does. What I'd like to see is more attention to those he has on his staff. Consistency is basically motivation, so how can that be improved upon, and the same with the power play? I am hoping he drops the current coach working on their power play. Other teams can beat us up at will because they're not afraid of our power play in the least, not even a five-on-three. - Penny

A: Coaches and players are to blame for the overall inconsistency and the power play struggles. Who gets most of the blame? I pin it on players.

As you know by now, Pat Ferschweiler, the assistant coach in charge of the power play, was reassigned. His replacement will work with the forwards and the power play.

Q: Why is Adam Oates not being looked at by the Wings (as an assistant coach)? He fits all the criteria I would think; been a head coach, is innovative in offense and power play, and should have the respect of the players. He was a pretty good player for a long time. I live outside Columbus, and Todd Richards is a good coach, but I would be way more excited about Oates. - Mike

A: I haven't seen Oates linked to any coaching vacancy. He is probably content working as a consultant, to teams and individual players.

I think the Red Wings will hire Richards following the World Championship, where he is an assistant for Team USA.

Thanks for participating. If you have a Red Wings-related question, email me at akhan1@mlive.com.

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