NHL Rumors: Ray Emery to Detroit Red Wings? It Makes More Sense Than You'd Think

As TSN's Darren Dreger recently reported, at least two teams have confirmed their interest in signing former Philadelphia Flyers netminder Ray Emery.

The Flyers are very interested in bringing Emery back into the mix, and the Anaheim Ducks, no doubt seeking a solid No. 2 option to spell overworked starter Jonas Hiller, are the other team mentioned.

Beyond that, there may be one or two other teams, heretofore unnamed, who are also eying Emery, and Dreger speculates that one of those might be the Detroit Red Wings.

Now, on the face of it, the Wings going after Emery may seem far-fetched.

For one thing, Emery is a proven starter and took the Ottawa Senators to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2007. 

Those kinds of goalies aren't easy to come by, so if the Wings do have an interest in Emery, they're going to have to engage in some kind of bidding war to get him.

With the Wings' severely limited cap-space, which is to say, $0, adding anyone to the roster means shipping someone else out.

The other issue that may make Emery less than ideal for the Wings is his injury history.

Emery was off to a solid start for the Flyers last season (16-11-1) prior to suffering a severe hip injury which required major surgery and has sidelined him for over a year.

Considering that the reason the Wings may look at Emery at all is that their own backup goalie, Chris Osgood, is recovering from sports-hernia surgery himself, adding a rehabbing goalie who's been out of the game for 14 months may not be a more appealing option than current backup, AHL goalie Joey MacDonald.

Lastly, there's the issue of Emery's, ahem, "personality."

The 28-year-old has had his share of off-ice issues ranging from partying too hard, to mouthing off to the media. Additionally, Emery has had problems with his own teammates, some of which resulted in fights during practice while in Ottawa.

The idea of a boisterous, cocky, somewhat unpredictable goalie coming into the utterly professional, zero-ego calm that exists in the Detroit dressing room doesn't exactly strike one as a match made in heaven.

Still, cap issues, injury history and wonky personality aside, Ray Emery could be a great fit in Detroit.

The Wings clearly see the need for goaltending help as evidenced by their predictably unsuccessful attempt to land Evgeni Nabokov.

Some think their motivation to acquire another goalie is to push Jimmy Howard to be better, others think they have their doubts about Chris Osgood's ability to return this season (I personally believe it to be the latter).

Whatever the reasoning, Ray Emery may be as good, or better, of a fit as anyone in Detroit, and here's why:

• He has the playoff experience and success a team like Detroit is going to need heading into the postseason.

• Emery's personality issues would likely be a non-issue in Detroit's no-nonsense locker room full of veterans (I mean, they had Sean Avery in there for God's sake).

• Though he's likely to command significant salary offers from other teams, the prospect of playing for a team like Detroit could make him decide to take less than he would normally consider, which, when pro-rated, could turn out to be a mere pittance as far as the cap hit was concerned.

• Lastly, even if Chris Osgood can return, the likelihood he'd be in Detroit next season is low, as either retirement or the lack of an offer to stay are highly likely scenarios. Getting Ray Emery on board, even if it's a one-year deal, could go a long way towards securing his services long-term.

Whether the Wings are truly interested in Emery or not has yet to be confirmed.  However, if they're still in the market for a goalie, they'd be well-served by going after him as he figures to help somebody in the NHL this season.

It might as well be the Wings.

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