Fedorov's Return To Red Wings Should Be Hailed, Not Jeered

The ovation would be thunderous, let there be no question about that. Forget all the warnings of a mixed reaction; these things have a way of fooling you.

If no. 91 stepped onto the ice at Joe Louis Arena, again a Red Wing, then you can plan on the face-off being about a minute or two delayed.

You know that's the way it would be. If Columbus's Sergei Fedorov, rumored to be a potential target for the Red Wings at the trading deadline, returned in the winged wheel after a nearly five-year absence, the greeting would be with open arms. Why not? Fedorov is one of those three-time Stanley Cup winners the Red Wings produced in 1997, '98, and 2002. He angered some by leaving for Anaheim via free agency, and his early returns to Detroit were met with venom, which was expected and probably justified, to a degree. We're a self-conscious bunch in the Motor City. There's still a complex we have here, and part of that means we want to have nothing to do with you if you choose to leave here voluntarily. Good riddance, we usually say.

But that was back in the summer of 2003. The Red Wings have gone Cup-less minus Fedorov, and something tells me that's not necessarily 100% a coincidence. And Fedorov, for his part, hasn't played a playoff game since '03, with the Wings.

Maybe both parties could end their droughts together.


Would the Blue Jackets trade Fedorov within their own division? If they're willing to, then the Red Wings would be smart to listen


He's 38 now, Sergei Fedorov is, and isn't the player he once was. But he's played on some very mediocre clubs since leaving for "greener" pastures. Sometimes your environs hasten some skill erosion -- while at the same time, the cliched "change of scenery" sometimes retards some of the erosion process. In other words, returning to a winner, and in a role in which he wouldn't have to be the main man, might be the tonic.

I was among those who castigated Fedorov when he left, and I wrote with an evil sneer that he should have expected the rude homecoming, a game in which he was booed loudly whenever he touched the puck -- back in fall 2003 as a Duck. But I'm over it now, as we all should be -- and probably mostly are. Hence the safe and sound prediction of JLA rumbling with applause and cheers upon Fedorov's return in a Red Wings sweater.

But this isn't just about how loud we will cheer for him. Fedorov, for all his age and erosion, is still a serviceable NHL player. He'd make a nice addition to a team built around puck possession that needs a little offensive jolt due to injury and suspect production from some of its forwards. A team like Detroit, for instance.

It's funny; usually the talk around trade deadline is about the Red Wings getting grittier and seeking blue line help. This time around, it's the offense that appears to need a little boost. Dan Cleary is out till the playoffs with a broken jaw. Jiri Hudler and Mikael Samuelsson are scuffling along. The second power play unit, which features those guys, is struggling by extension. No Todd Bertuzzis needed this time. Instead, good old-fashioned scorers are wanted.

Then there's Darren McCarty, who I still can't see making the NHL's best team, unless it's strictly for another body during the playoffs. I don't know if Mac has enough left to finagle his way onto a roster as deep as the Red Wings'. Especially if they add to the mix at the deadline, which is an almost certainty.

I hope those still bitter over Fedorov's defection -- and I mean from Detroit to Anaheim -- can get over it and realize how much the Red Wings could use a player like him right about now. I think most folks understand. And they'll totally drown out the few boobirds. Especially when he scores a goal in his first game back -- another prediction.