FanHouse Chris Chelios

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. -- You park your car, walk in the side door of the Hoffman Estates Community Center in suburban Chicago, and the first thing you see is some gray-haired, slightly hunched guy standing under a sign that says, "Senior Center. 50+ club."

Chris Chelios is not aging well.

What? Oh, wait, that wasn't Chelios. Chelios was around the corner, a mere 47 years old, still 26 months from 50+ eligibility, not playing checkers, but instead playing in a hockey scrimmage with the Chicago Wolves minor league hockey team.

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The Vancouver Canucks have, arguably, the best goaltender in the NHL in Roberto Luongo, and they now have just under three weeks to sign him to a long-term contract extension or they risk losing him. Luongo is set to become a free agent following the season, and while the two teams have had talks, a deal has yet to be reached. According to the Globe and Mail, Luongo has set a deadline for September 13 for a new contract to be signed as he will not negotiate once training camp begins.

It's officially the offseason, meaning the time is right to look into the future. We'll be running our division-by-division preview of the offseason beginning later in the week, but we wanted to give the two top dogs their own space. Today: the summer outlook for the Red Wings. Tomorrow, the Stanley Cup champion Penguins.

The Red Wings came within one game of repeating as Stanley Cup champions. A goal or two here or there, and their mission – and Marian Hossa's – is accomplished.

Instead, Detroit's first question mark going into the summer months is Hossa. It's widely expected he'll re-sign with the Wings for five years or so, but that will push Detroit essentially to the limit when it comes to the cap, which is projected to be about $57 million again.

For years, Chris Osgood hasn't gotten the respect that he deserves. Despite backstopping the Red Wings to three Stanley Cups -- twice as the starter -- there have always been questions about Osgood's abilities. It's almost unprecedented for a goaltender to win as much as Osgood as and not be given the respect he deserves.

Granted, Osgood has always played behind great defenders in Detroit be it the likes of Nicklas Lidstrom, Larry Murphy or Chris Chelios. Since the Red Wings reached the Finals in 1995, they have perennially been one of the most star studded teams in the NHL. And without a doubt, Osgood is one of those stars.

Surely, NBC executives were grateful for the work of Anaheim Duck Todd Marchant. After all, they were one period of extra-time hockey away from having to pre-empt the start of prime-time programming. Being that this is May, a major ratings period in television, this isn't exactly a wonderful proposition. Even the biggest hockey fan has to admit that there isn't a huge number coming to you when you air a hockey game.

Those who were watching, though, were treated to a classic. The Ducks and Red Wings gave us our first multiple-overtime game of these playoffs, and one can only hope it's a sign of things to come in this hotly-contested series.

The Detroit Red Wings are one of the deepest offensive teams in the NHL. Unfortunately for them, they don't boast similar defensive depth. Instead, they tend to lean on their puck possession and scoring to mask some flaws along the blue line and in goal.

As a result, news that veteran puck-moving defenseman Brian Rafalski will miss Game 1 of the Wings' Western Conference semifinal series against Anaheim is not good. It's not a death blow -- as an injury to Nicklas Lidstrom would be -- but it's not a good way for Detroit to start this series.

In 2000, I had a chance to interview Doug Risebrough on a radio show I hosted in Duluth, Minn. It was an interesting conversation, and it was a bit of an education. Frankly, I didn't know a lot about hockey then, and I certainly didn't know a thing about building an expansion franchise from the ground up.

Nearly nine years later, Risebrough finds himself unemployed, fired as Minnesota Wild president and general manager by club owner Craig Leipold. While I was shocked by the move, it was one that I knew needed to happen. Given multiple chances at redemption, Risebrough could only destroy his chance of returning.

I've been in media scrums before, but I have to admit I haven't been in many as intense as the one I walked into at Wrigley Field while attending the 2009 NHL Winter Classic. Press is here from all over North America, which means space was at a premium today, something that's easy to tell from watching this clip I put together featuring Marian Hossa, Henrik Zetterberg, Chris Chelios and Brian Rafalski. While the first three players all talk about how great it is to play in the Classic, Rafalski strikes a different note when it comes to his concern for ice conditions.

The Grand Rapids Press' Michael Zuidema reports that 46-year-old Detroit Red Wings defenseman Chris Chelios will play two games for the Grand Rapids Griffins this weekend as he seeks to return to game shape after recovering from a broken leg suffered during the pre-season on September 30th. Under the Section 13 of the collective bargaining agreement, he does not have to clear waivers to play in GR for a conditioning stint.

It will be Chelios' first ever appearance in the AHL and, aside from an stretch during the Lockout over which he played in the UHL, it will be his first stint in a league below the NHL since 1983, his last year at the University of Wisconsin. He will join the Griffins in their home matchups with the Toronto Marlies (Friday) and Hamilton Bulldogs (Saturday).

Chelios has not bee completely idle since the injury, having done off-ice workouts from the start and begun on-ice workouts some time ago. He participated in his first full practice with the team yesterday. Given his workout history, it's doubtful his return to game shape will take long.

According to Zuidema, Chelios will likely return to Detroit after the game against Hamilton and may be acitivated in time to appear in the December 10th home game against the Calgary Flames. For that to happen, though, the Wings will have to jump through some cap hoops since they are right up against it. Darren McCarty will be the likely odd man out, though if I read the inpenetrable legalese of the CBA correctly, he'll have to clear waivers again. He was already sent down for a game after the last time he cleared. That shouldn't be much of a problem, though, since he's currently out with a groin injury (not on the IR as far as I know).

I'll be at the game Saturday with my wife. We're definitely looking forward to seeing Chelios on the blueline there, though not to the Hannah Montana Night part.