panoo

July 29, 2007
HELENE ST. JAMES

Four weeks into NHL free agency, most of the power names have been snapped up.

But one particularly intriguing free agent remains available and sought by the Red Wings.

Peter Forsberg is recovering from yet another surgery on his right ankle, which has caused him constant grief since 2001. That, though, hasn't stopped him from attracting interest from clubs like the Red Wings, who still recognize him as one of the game's great clutch players.

General manager Ken Holland has told Forsberg's agent, Don Baizley, that the Wings are interested in adding the Swedish superstar to their lineup. Let's examine why it makes sense -- and why it might not happen.

1. They have the money

The Wings have between $4 million-$6 million to spend, certainly enough to make Forsberg (who turned 34 this month) a lucrative offer. Given his injury history (in the past two seasons alone, he has missed time because of ankle, knee, groin, back, wrist and concussion issues), the offer likely would be a relatively low base salary, plus copious bonuses.

2. An attractive surrounding cast

Forsberg isn't going to want to play for a team that might not even make the playoffs (which scuttles the Predators' chances of re-signing him). And he certainly knows what being teammates with Nicklas Lidstrom, Henrik Zetterberg, Niklas Kronwall, Tomas Holmstrom and Mikael Samuelsson can yield: In 2006, they banded together to help Sweden win Olympic gold.

It needs to be noted, however, that having seven compatriots in the locker room (the list also includes Johan Franzen and Andreas Lilja) isn't necessarily going to play a big factor for Forsberg.

Lidstrom, who has played with Forsberg the most on national teams, told me during the playoffs that he isn't particularly close to Forsberg, and neither are the other six.

3. Second-line help

The Wings' entire second line (Robert Lang, Todd Bertuzzi and Kyle Calder) is gone. While there's little question Valtteri Filppula can handle more minutes and prospect Igor Grigorenko will make the team, the Wings could use another top-six forward, and a big one at that.

While Forsberg is a center, a position at which the Wings are deep, that isn't much of a stumbling block because, as we've seen the past two seasons, Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk, both natural centers, play better when they're on the same line. Last season, the two spent the first two months centering different lines to pedestrian effect. But after they were united, they, with Holmstrom, became the hottest line in the league.

Forsberg would make an ideal second-line center and could help Samuelsson recapture his scoring touch.

4. Why it won't happen

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