Ken Holland Quotations

There is going to be some activity around the league, whether there is going to be a lot depends on what happens (in the standings) over the next week. How many teams will fall far back enough out that they'll feel they are out (of the race)?

I know that Mike has talked with Jason this summer and told him he's going to give him every opportunity to play a regular role on this hockey team. The rest is up to Jason. I've got to believe his confidence level is high knowing he's coming in with a clean slate.

If I pay somebody a certain amount of money, ... everybody that walks into my office knows what I've paid. So if you pay too much for one player, you better be prepared to pay too much for seven players.

We've had talks with both and it's an ongoing process.

He's really just coming into the prime of his career. I'd like to think his confidence level, and with the way they're going to call the game, which is going to be an advantage to a skill player ... he's a great addition. A great addition. I think for us, Pavel can make a play or do something that can create a scoring chance in a few moments.

Obviously it's a disappointing loss. We were really counting on him.

Obviously, the sooner the better. But if it means we have to wait to get Pavel in our lineup I'll wait. At this stage of the game I don't think it's going to have any impact as to our eventual roster. We're not going to be able to go out and find a player that's close to Pavel. If you look at the open market, there's lots of players out there that we think could be third- or fourth-line players in the NHL. But he's (Datsyuk) a top six forward.

Obviously my hope is that he ends up in a Red Wings uniform. So however long it takes, hopefully, eventually, we'll get a word saying he's coming back.

This is a big stretch for us. We saw what happened to San Jose last year when they got off to a slow start and what happened to Dallas two years ago. The Western Conference is so close that if you get too far behind the pack ...

We weren't looking to do anything significant. Why do something significant? I think we've got five, six, seven players on our team that can play better. ... I still think as a team and individually, we can raise our game. So, again, why look to make a major overhaul at this stage of the game?