When word got out that Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson would consider trading star forward Rick Nash within the Central Division "if the deal was right," there was a concern that Nash could wind up playing for the Detroit Red Wings. That concern only grew when Detroit turned up on Nash's list of "approved" destinations that could get him to waive his no-trade clause.
Columbus Dispatch columnist appealed to Howson to send Nash "anywhere but Detroit," and Columbus fans have been dreading the idea of Nash donning the Winged Wheel and facing the Blue Jackets six times a year. They should all rest easy, though, because the reality is that there's little possibility that the Red Wings make a deal for Nash.
Here's the thing with Detroit: this summer was supposed to be a time for the Red Wings to reload. The retirement of Nicklas Lidstrom had the Red Wings in the hunt for Ryan Suter, with Zach Parise also on their wish list to boost the forward corps. With their sights set on the big-ticket free agents, the Wings allowed Jiri Hudler to leave as a free agent, signing with the Calgary Flames. However, both Parise and Suter wound up in Minnesota as the newest members of the Wild, and the Red Wings were left looking for Plan B. With players like Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk, Johan Franzen and Niklas Kronwall still in the fold, Detroit should still be competitive in 2012-13, but this is not a rejuvenated team that needs one big acquisition like Nash to go for the Stanley Cup. This is a team that finished fifth in the Western Conference last year, bowed out to the Nashville Predators in the first round, and hasn't gotten any better this summer.
There are some promising prospects in the pipeline - most notably Brendan Smith, who should be a full-time NHLer this season - but this is not the time to mortgage the future in a deal for Nash. With the price that Howson is asking for Nash, there isn't a deal that makes sense for the Red Wings, either right now or in the long term, and Red Wings general manager Ken Holland didn't get to where he is by making moves that don't make sense.
The news that Howson would consider trading Nash within the division and the presence of Detroit on Nash's wish list shook things up in Columbus, and rightly so. In reality, though, the fans and pundits in Columbus have little to worry about. Detroit is one of the last places you should expect to see Rick Nash in 2011-12.
