#RedWings Governor Christopher Ilitch announces that executive vice president and general manager Ken Holland has been signed to a two-year contract extension.
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It’s Official: Ken Holland Will Return as GM
Photo credit: Paul Sancya, AP
Apr 7, 2018, 18:13 EDT
As rumored throughout the last couple of months, Ken Holland will be returning as the General Manager of the Detroit Red Wings.
At a press conference on Saturday evening, Holland and Red Wings Governor Chris Illitch confirmed what everyone already assumed. Holland will be returning for at least another two years as the GM of this team.
Most likely, he is staying with the team for what he has done in the past and some good quotes about the future of this team.
Chris Ilitch: "Ken has been integral part of 4 Stanley Cup championships... He started out as a scout. Many of the players he scouted became integral to our success. .. He is tremendous evaluator of talent at our core."
Chris Ilitch on why Holland stays to rebuild Wings: "When I fly in an airplane, I love doing it with a pilot who has done it before ... Ken has done it before."
Holland is approaching the end of his twentieth season as the General Manager of the Wings, tied with David Poile of the Nashville Predators for the longest-tenured manager with a single team. Winning the Cup four times with the organization, and three times as the GM – Holland is one of the most decorated managers in the entire league, and one of the most successful managers in the hundred years the NHL has existed.
Criticized for his loyalty in contract extensions and most recent playoff failures, Holland’s reputation throughout this fanbase is declining at an extreme rate.
Everyone is ready for a rebuild and a 2-year extension seems weird for a GM beginning a rebuild, right? Assumption can mean that Holland will either move upstairs and into a more Presidential role in the Detroit organization, or as the rumors keep swirling around the Seattle franchise, Holland moving on to the expansion team.
No matter what, the next few months are the most important months in the last decade of this team. Potentially unloading some contracts, hitting on the right draft picks, and signing the young RFAs to future-friendly contracts, are all extremely important areas that can mean success or failure for the Detroit Red Wings.
Regardless of the past, Ken Holland has been saying the right things to install a small amount of hope into a successful rebuild – but then you look at the team’s cap situation and want to fire Holland into the Sun.
Also during the press conference, Holland announced that he will decide the future of Head Coach Jeff Blashill on this coming Tuesday.
Ken Holland said he'll address coach Jeff Blashill's future on Tuesday at clean-out day. Blashill has year left on contract.
There has been expectation that Blashill will be returning with Holland, but with this wording, we aren’t completely sure anymore. Let’s hope for whatever makes the 2018-19 season better than the one that we just had to endure.
So what do you all think about this?
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Detroit Red WingsTeam Cap Summary
Cap Summary
2026-27
2027-28
Projected Cap Hit
$84,427,916
$50,266,250
Projected Cap Space
$19,572,084
$63,233,750
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$19,572,084
$63,233,750
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13/23
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'26
'27
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1
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