Wings add D-depth, sign White
Red Wings become fifth NHL team for young defenseman
Saturday, 07.02.2011 / 5:20 PM
/ News
By Bill Roose
- Managing Editor | DetroitRedWings.com
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DETROIT – The Red Wings added a second free agent defensemen when they agreed to terms Saturday afternoon with former San Jose veteran Ian White.
The 5-foot-10 White joins former Columbus blue liner Mike Commodore to join the Red Wings since the start of the NHL’s annual free agency frenzy, which began at noon Friday.
Selected by Toronto in the sixth round of the 2002 amateur draft, White has logged 401 NHL games with the Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames, Carolina Hurricanes, and Sharks.
His new two-year contact with the Wings will reportedly pay him $2.875 million per season.
White, 27, is what the Wings are looking for in a defenseman. He’s proved to be an offensive puck-moving D-man with an incredible hard shot from the point.
In the last two seasons, White has bounced from Toronto to Calgary to Carolina and then San Jose. Last season, he had four goals and 22 assists in a total of 78 games with the Flames, Hurricanes and Sharks. He also blocked 144 shots and was a plus or even in 44 of the last 53 games of the regular-season.
In his first Stanley Cup playoff season, White scored a goal and added eight assists in 17 games with the Sharks. His first career postseason goal came against the Red Wings in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals series, which the Sharks won in seven games. He finished the playoffs with the sixth-most assists amongst NHL defensemen.
White gives the Red Wings seven NHL defensemen that they’ll take to training camp in September. Besides White and Commodore, the Wings also have defensemen Nicklas Lidstrom, Niklas Kronwall, Brad Stuart, Jonathan Ericsson and Jakub Kindl. Prospect Brendan Smith will also be given every opportunity in camp and during the exhibition season to win a spot in the Wings’ roster.
The Red Wings now have 22 players signed to approximately $57.2 million, which leaves approximately $7 million that the club has to work with under the salary cap.
Follow Bill Roose on Twitter | @RooseBill
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| Ian White |
Selected by Toronto in the sixth round of the 2002 amateur draft, White has logged 401 NHL games with the Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames, Carolina Hurricanes, and Sharks.
His new two-year contact with the Wings will reportedly pay him $2.875 million per season.
White, 27, is what the Wings are looking for in a defenseman. He’s proved to be an offensive puck-moving D-man with an incredible hard shot from the point.
In the last two seasons, White has bounced from Toronto to Calgary to Carolina and then San Jose. Last season, he had four goals and 22 assists in a total of 78 games with the Flames, Hurricanes and Sharks. He also blocked 144 shots and was a plus or even in 44 of the last 53 games of the regular-season.
In his first Stanley Cup playoff season, White scored a goal and added eight assists in 17 games with the Sharks. His first career postseason goal came against the Red Wings in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals series, which the Sharks won in seven games. He finished the playoffs with the sixth-most assists amongst NHL defensemen.
White gives the Red Wings seven NHL defensemen that they’ll take to training camp in September. Besides White and Commodore, the Wings also have defensemen Nicklas Lidstrom, Niklas Kronwall, Brad Stuart, Jonathan Ericsson and Jakub Kindl. Prospect Brendan Smith will also be given every opportunity in camp and during the exhibition season to win a spot in the Wings’ roster.
The Red Wings now have 22 players signed to approximately $57.2 million, which leaves approximately $7 million that the club has to work with under the salary cap.
Follow Bill Roose on Twitter | @RooseBill
