Detroit looking for a defenseman? Hatcher out

[Disgruntled70sHab]

No doubt Detroit is now in the hunt for a veteran defensman. Unless they have some defensive prospects in the system.

Red Wings lose Hatcher for four months


TSN.ca Staff

10/17/2003

The Detroit Red Wings have lost defenceman Derian Hatcher for the next four months with a knee injury.

TSN has learned that Hatcher will undergo surgery to repair a torn ACL in his knee.

Hatcher was injured after just three shifts when he got tangled up with Vancouver's Markus Naslund and Bryan Allen in the first period of last night's 3-2 win by the Red Wings.

The Norris Trophy runner-up signed a five year, $30-million deal with the Red Wings in the off-season after 12 years as a member of the Dallas Stars.

Cheers.

[MPLABBE]

OUCH huge blow for the wings..although they may still go with Lidstrom-Chelios-Schneider-Fischer-Dandeneault-Wooley...

[blny]

It hurts that for sure. However, with Chelios, Schneider, Lidstrom, Fischer, and Woolley they should be okay.

[M. Beaux-Eaux]

Plus they have Kronwall, Rivers and Myrvold in the AHL (Grand Rapids).

Losing Hatcher is painful, but probably not as painful as picking up and playing either Dykhuis or Traverse would be.

[Disgruntled70sHab]

I wonder how much of his salary the Wings are committed to at this point.

I know that teams take out insurance policies on their players and I wonder just how much money still stands to make. Some policies state that the player must play a specific amount of games in order to qualify. Still, I've heard of some policies costing upwards of $1 million a pop.

If the Wings are committed to paying him for the remainder of the season that's one whack of money for a player who isn't contributing.

Cheers.