After spending seven seasons with the Red Wings, Darren Helm is taking his talents back to Detroit for 2016-17 and beyond.
Detroit Red Wings and Darren Helm agree to terms on a 5 year/ $3.85M AAV #DRW
— Aaron Ward (@NHL_AaronWard) July 1, 2016
Helm’s new pact will pay him just over $19 million over five years carrying a cap hit of $3.85 million million per season. This is a significant pay raise from his previous contract he signed with Detroit back in 2012 that paid him $8.5 million over the past four seasons, $2.1 million per campaign.
Darren Helm Re-Signs With Red Wings
Helm is entering a season where he will break 30 years old (Hard to believe, huh?) carrying a trademark to his game that’s been seen ever since he broke in with the Wings during their run to the Final in 2008, speed. Last season, he scored 13 goals and 26 points in 77 games, moving up and down the lineup. He was a mainstay mainly on Pavel Datsyuk‘s wing rather than his natural center position, with Jeff Blashill wanting a speedster to retrieve the puck for the veteran. Helm did not excel when pushed into this duty like he did last season when he scored 15 markers and 33 points, both career highs. This year, it took him 21 games to get his first goal and he was through 34 games with just three, signifying that with his new team he’d be more effective in a checking role at his natural position. Through his young career he’s been a perennial possession player and solid face-off man, averaging a 54.2% CF% in 443 career contests in the Motor City and 51.4% in the dot.
Drafted in the 5th round of the 2005 draft, Helm is a versatile player that can kill penalties, chip in with some offense use his frame to hit opposing players off the puck (6’0″, 196 lbs), and get to the outside using those wheels. He may have been given a tick too much in terms of ice time, getting over 15 minutes per contest for a guy that scored just 26 points. Going back to his natural position could do wonders for him back in Detroit/with his new team. Touching on it earlier, he made his mark in the playoffs in his first two seasons, scoring six goals between the springs of 2008-09 opposed to none in 24 regular season games at the time. He did have some injury troubles not too long ago, starting with a vein laceration on his wrist in 2012 in his first game back against the Predators in the playoffs. This, coupled with back, oblique and concussion injuries caused him to play just 43 games over two seasons. He’s been relatively healthy the past two years, however, suiting up for 75+ games each season.
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