When the Detroit Red Wings took the ice in Toronto Sunday evening it was a little bit more special for one, Trevor Daley would play his 1000th career NHL game in his hometown.
The Detroit Red Wings veteran defenseman had missed 9 games earlier in the season due to injury. Somethings truly happen for a reason, losing the nine games allowed for a pretty unique scene for the defender.
He was able to play his 1000th NHL game in his hometown of Toronto. His family was in attendance, which made for a pretty special evening. These guys although make an excellent living doing something the majority of them love, they do miss out on some of the smaller yet so important day to day activities. Whether it is hanging out with their friends or spending time with their parents, their significant other or children, they miss a lot being on the road.
I am sure it meant a lot to Daley to reach the milestone in his hometown. It would have been surreal being Daley walking thru the tunnel and taking that first step onto the ice Sunday. One-thousand games is exceptional, the majority of NHL players will never make it to that number.
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Daley isn’t the player he once was back in his Dallas Stars days. He was never a big point producing defender even though he could skate like the wind. His high water for single-season total points came in 2014/15 in his last season with the Stars. He notched 38 points. Throughout his career, he’s averaged 21 minutes of ice-time a night.
He is currently 35-years-old, playing 19 minutes a night for the Detroit Red Wings. He is under contract for the remainder of this season and again next season. His nearly 3 million AVV is a very affordable cap number that many teams could work with. In 29 games this season Daley has 2 goals, 4 assists totaling 6 points. His plus minus is currently even.
The Detroit Red Wings may be answering phone calls for the veteran defensive defenseman as the season grows older into the new year. Trevor Daley is a shot blocker who still has the ability to skate the puck out of trouble through traffic in his own zone.
Although he’s played primarily as a top-four defender his entire career, he will be better suited as a penalty killing third pairing defender on a contending team. He’s a guy teams can count on late in a game, protecting a lead. He won’t be rattled by any of the pressure of playing a big game on the road.
Contending teams may be interested in adding a guy like Daley who has “term” for next season, as a two-year rental type player. The Detroit Red Wings have a stockpile of draft choices for the up and coming draft, look for them to add to that or possibly defer for draft choices in the 2020 draft.
Trevor Daley could end up playing for his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs. They will be looking to add a trusted defender and a penalty killing shot blocker for their playoff run. Trevor Daley fits the bill, and he just may be able to end his NHL career where his hockey career as a child started.