Summer Report: Red Wings

Monday, July 31, 2006 | Feedback | Print Entry

Red Wings GM Ken Holland spent the first half of the summer pondering his goaltending situation. He decided last year's starter, Manny Legace, just wasn't good enough despite his having put up some pretty good regular-season numbers (37 wins, 2.19 goals-against average and a .915 save percentage).

In Hockeytown, of course, it's not about the regular season. It's about the playoffs. And this past spring, there weren't a lot playoff games. The Presidents' Trophy-winning Wings were clipped in the first round by the upstart Edmonton Oilers. Legace wasn't terrible, but he wasn't a difference maker, either.

So, bye-bye, Manny ... and hello (again), Dominik Hasek.  
 

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  • E.J. Hradek E.J. Hradek

    E.J. Hradek is a senior writer at ESPN The Magazine, joining the staff prior to its launch in 1998. He began covering hockey as a writer/editor for Hockey Illustrated in 1989. The following year, he beat the Stars to Dallas (by three years), taking over as the editor of Beckett Hockey Monthly. When the Stars finally did arrive in Big D, he hosted a weekly hockey radio show and tried (unsuccessfully) to convert ESPN's Skip Bayless to the greatest game on ice.

    In 1996, Hradek left Dallas, but not the Stars. Relocating back to the New York area, he became a part-time pro scout for the club, seeing more than 100 NHL/AHL games for each of the next two seasons. The scouting gig was a great learning experience, offering a different view of the game.

    Hradek grew up in Tuckahoe, N.Y., about a 40-minute train ride from New York City. Despite the proximity to the Rangers, Hradek embraced the Islanders when the expansion franchise debuted in 1972. Eight years later, he was part of the sellout crowd at the Nassau Coliseum that witnessed the Islanders' first Stanley Cup championship.


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