The Detroit Red Wings were adding another journeyman NHLer late Tuesday when they were inking veteran center Tyler Motte to a one-year pact with a AAV of $800,000.
Detroit will be Motte’s seventh NHL team. Previous seasons saw him suiting up with the Chicago Blackhawks, Vancouver Canucks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Ottawa Senators, New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning.
With the Lightning last season, Motte, 29, was accounting for 6-3-9 digits over 63 games. No NHL season has ever seen him scoring more than nine goals. In 400 NHL games, Motte shows 49-41-90 totals.
This will be a homecoming for Motte. Born in St. Clair, Michigan, Motte was a youth hockey player for Detroit Honeybaked and later was with the Michigan-based USNTDP. He played college hockey for the Michigan Wolverines. Among his teammates at Ann Arbor were Detroit captain Dylan Larkin and Red Wings teammates Andrew Copp and J.T. Compher.
The scouting report on Motte is making him sound like the prototype of a player that Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde will love. Lacking in size at 5-foot-10 and 194 pounds, he’s a speedy skater and energy player, Motte is known for his effectiveness as a penalty killer and his tenacity as a checker.
Red Wings Pick Up Snively
The lesser-known among Detroit’s two latest UFA additions, center Joe Snively is a two-time cup winner. Sure, it’s two wins of the AHL Calder Cup, but considering his destiny figures to see him playing for the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins, Snively can help continue the building of a winning culture within Detroit’s top farm club.
This spring, Snively, 28, accounted for 18 points in 20 games as the Hershey Bears won their second Calder Cup in three years. His pro tenure has seen him spending 27 games in the NHL with the Washington Capitals. Snively shows 6-5-11 numbers in the show.
Snively played college hockey at Yale, where he was a teammate of Red Wings goalie Alex Lyon. Just 5-foot-9 and 176 pounds, Snively makes up for his lack of size by playing a tenacious brand of hockey. He isn’t afraid to go to the hard areas on the ice.
Snively agreed to terms on a one-year, two-way deal. If he’s in the NHL, the pact will be paying him the league minimum of $775,000.
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