Jack Johnson and 5 Overlooked Defenseman the Detroit Red Wings Could Sign

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The Detroit Red Wings organization and it's fans biggest worry going into the offseason was if Nicklas Lidstrom was going to retire or not.

Well he stayed and everybody could let out a big sigh—although out of nowhere Brian Rafalski retired a year or two before expected with bad back injuries. 

No everyone is buzzing about who will Detroit get next to put on the blue lines of the Joe. Everyone has been in talks of getting Christian Ehrhoff, Shea Weber and Kevin Bieksa. 

Here are some of the others that have been overlooked and would be a good fit for the Red Wings. 

Jack Johnson

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Jack Johnson came into the league in 2006 from the University of Michigan.

After somewhat of a slow start with the Kings, he has shown that he can be an elite Defender in the NHL. Every season he gets faster and stronger and the point totals keep rising.

Granted he probably won't put up the offensive numbers that Brian Rafalski put up but he is turning into a 40-point scorer with some solid in front of the net play.

The biggest reason for Johnson getting moved would be the recent addition of Mike Richards. That will hit the Kings cap hard and might force them to make some moves.  

Drew Doughty

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Drew Doughty is a young 21-year-old defenseman who has already proven he is one of the best defenders in the league. Doughty puts up good offensive numbers which the Red Wings are looking for on the back end. Doughty is also a Restricted Free Agent.

Doughty was up for the Norris Trophy in 2010 but that honor went to the heavily favored Duncan Keith. He would be a good fit in Detroit because he is only 21 and can stay in Detroit long term if they see it fit.

This could be smart for Detroit to sign him going back to the Kings signing of Mike Richards they just might not have enough to throw around for Doughty. 

Joni Pitkanen

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Joni Pitkanen is currently on the Carolina Hurricanes but that seems like that might change... and soon.

Pitkanen just finished his seventh NHL season with his third team. It seems like no one wants to keep him long term which may help Detroit get him.

He will be 28 when the 2011-2012 season starts which means he has some good years ahead of him. That also means Detroit can once again get another long term player if he can show them he can play as a Winged Wheeler. 

However Pitkanen only has had one 10 or more goal seasons but racks up the assists. He could be a good fit to quarterback on Detroit's second Power Play Unit. 

James Wisniewski

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Wisniewski might not be exactly what Detroit is looking for but do you think they new what they were looking for Datsyuk and Zetterberg. Wisniewski has been sort of floating around the league since he has been in it but seemed to break out when he went to the Islanders. 

He had a great season last year with Montreal putting up an unexpected 30 points in 43 games. This improvement he is showing at the age of 27 might actually make Montreal throw him an offer he could accept. 

However Wisniewski is from Canton, Michigan which may help the Red Wings to get him to come back to his home town team. 

Ed Jovanovski

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Ed Jovanovski is an experienced, veteran defenseman—which GM Ken Holland always loves to bring to his team.

Jovanovski has spent the last five season with the Coyotes putting up 47 goals and 118 assists. 

This seems to be the most unlikely of the possible scenarios as all the other candidates are all young and can be signed long term. Jovanovski on the other hand is 35. That may affect the decision in a big way.