SLAM! Sports
SLAM! Hockey
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
COLUMNS
NHL
The Teams
Full Schedule
Monthly Schedule
Standings
Statistics
Rosters
Injury list
Movement
Trades
Hits Gallery
INTERACTIVE
JUNIOR
MORE HOCKEY
ALSO ON SLAM!
Saturday, July 10, 1999
Wregget's a Wing
"Let's just say I'm making more to back up here than I was offered to start in Calgary," said Wregget, the newest Detroit Red Wing, just home from a family vacation in the Bahamas.
"I love pizza," he laughed. "My kids love pizza. If they want us to, we'll eat Little Caesar's morning, noon and night."
There's dough. And then there's dough ...
Wregget -- an unrestricted free agent with a problematical back -- received $850,000 US per season for two years and a third year at the Wings' option. The Flames, he said, were out of the running when his camp pared six initial offers down to three.
On the final year of his old contract, he earned $1.2 million US.
Wregget was a favourite of coach Brian Sutter, who played him down the stretch even though Fred Brathwaite had swept in from the Canadian national team and become the people's choice.
Sutter considered goaltending on a team as young as his to have paramount importance, and relied heavily on Wregget's economy of movement and experience.
So now, for the moment, the Calgary netminding hopes rest on the rather inexperienced shoulders of Brathwaite, Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Tyler Moss.
Much will be expected of Giguere, the anointed one, who, unless the Flames go out and sign a free-agent veteran or trade for one, will have no NHL-tested No. 1-1A to fall back on.
"I feel badly," said Wregget. "I went there hoping to stay a while, play a lot and help the team. There's some good young players in Calgary and they're only going to develop. Everything started out great last year but the back injury" -- sustained ironically enough at his new home rink, Joe Louis Arena, on Nov. 3 -- "obviously set me back.
"It was more frustration, started more questions about my health and my long-term future.
"Coatsey came out here to see me after the season was over and we talked."
Wregget reasoned that a combination of Calgary's uncertainty about his back, the chance to play on another winner, perhaps another champion, and, well, cold hard currency all entered into his decision.
The Wings for their part felt that Wregget's savvy, his experience in winning situations and his easy-going, non-confrontational demeanour put him far in front of the other options for their No. 2 job -- Rick Tabaracci, Manny Legace and Mark Fitzpatrick. Besides, coach Scotty Bowman and Wregget go back to the glory days in Pittsburgh.
For Bowman, those sorts of ties are forged in blood.
"My role in Detroit is different, of course," said Wregget. "It's not a starting position. I'll be there to help (Chris) Osgood, whether that means a week or two if there's an injury or maybe just one night a week. I don't know.
"But this, as everyone knows, is a very good team. It's going to be fun to watch some of the top players. Yzerman. Shanahan. Fedorov. Chelios. And on and on. I remember how special it was to be in Pittsburgh when Mario was there and watch him work his magic.
"In Detroit, I'll get a chance to experience some of that again."
