Red Wings Rumors

With the regular season now upon us, the bulk of the heavy lifting has been done from a roster perspective.  Most unrestricted free agents have found new homes, the arbitration period has come and gone, and the trade market has cooled.  Accordingly, it’s a good time to take a look at what each team accomplished over the offseason.  Next up is a look at the Detroit Red Wings

The Red Wings’ rebuild has not gone as planned, at least not yet. Given their summer and the progress of their division rivals, it’s hard to see this being the year they break their playoff drought. The once-proud franchise is approaching a full decade without playoff action, and it seemed poised to turn the corner on its rebuild, but it has stalled and now appears stuck in mediocrity. Detroit isn’t a terrible team, but they’ve finished just outside the playoffs for a few years and haven’t been bad enough to secure top picks. Fans and media alike are questioning the direction GM Steve Yzerman has taken the team, and it’s hard to say Detroit made any progress this offseason.

Draft

1-13 – F Carter Bear, Everett (WHL)
2-44 – F Eddie Genborg, Linköping HC (SHL)
3-75 – G Michal Pradel, Tri-City (USHL)
4-109 – RW Brent Solomon, Champlin Park High School (USHS-MN)
4-119 – F Michal Svrcek, Brynäs IF J20 (J20 Nationell)
5-140 – D Nikita Tyurin, Moscow Spartak Jr. (MHL)
6-172 – D Will Murphy, Cape Breton (QMJHL)
7-204 – F Grayden Robertson-Palmer, Phillips Academy Andover (USHS-Prep)

The Red Wings had a full slate of draft picks this past summer, enabling them to make eight selections across seven rounds. Their top pick, Bear, is a two-way forward with abundant offensive talent that could become a top-six player with some improvement in his skating and consistency. At the very least, he seems destined to be a top-nine forward, but it will take some time for him to reach that level. Bear has a lot of pace in his game and plays a high-energy style that can frustrate his opponents. He won’t shy away from contact and is relentless in his effort to get to the front of the net. He dealt with a serious injury last season, but it shouldn’t hinder his development moving forward.

Genborg has all the physical tools to develop into a power forward. He is strong on the forecheck and can make life miserable for opposing defensemen in his pursuit of the puck. He isn’t afraid to battle for position in front of the net and has good puck skills in tight spaces. At the very least, he should be able to develop into a checking line forward, but if he continues to develop his offensive tools, he might become more of a scorer than an energy guy.

Picking Pradel in the third round could prove to be a real steal, especially if he fills out his 6’5” frame. Pradel reads the play well and moves smoothly in the crease without scrambling as he dodges screens and traffic in front of him. He doesn’t seem to panic or get overly tense in the crease, which bodes well for the Red Wings if they reach the playoffs and need a big-game goalie. Pradel has some flaws, like rebound control, but if he improves that, he could develop into a top-notch netminder.

With their first pick in the fourth round, Detroit selected Solomon, who posted impressive goal-scoring numbers in high school and scored six points in eight USHL games. He is on the smaller side and will need to fill out significantly, but despite that, he has no trouble battling to the front of the net and isn’t afraid to take a hit if it means a scoring chance. He has a good shot and instincts for shooting, getting to the soft areas of the ice for open looks or the gritty areas when needed. He will need to adapt to faster levels of hockey, but at this stage, he looks ready to score goals at any level.

Trade Acquisitions

G John Gibson (from Anaheim)

Gibson was finally traded to the Red Wings at the NHL Entry Draft after years of speculation. Detroit was directly linked to Anaheim in all those trade rumours, with whispers following Gibson for most of the past five seasons. Gibson had a bit of a bounce-back last season in limited action, which prompted the Ducks to finally make a move while his value was at its peak.

Gibson was a force early in his career, posting elite numbers from 2015 to 2019 and signing an eight-year, $51.2MM contract extension in August 2018 that almost immediately turned into a disaster for the Ducks. Gibson produced below-average results from 2019 to 2024 before his rebound last season, when he played 28 games, registered a .911 SV%, and a 2.77 GAA. Those numbers don’t exactly stand out or scream ’starter,’ which makes the move for Gibson a risky one for Detroit, especially given the revolving door they’ve had in the crease over the past decade.

Detroit didn’t give up much for Gibson, but they’re also betting on a return to the playoffs with a veteran goalie who hasn’t played well for seven years and has only one average season since the start of the decade. There’s a chance Gibson regains his form when given a fresh start, but there’s also a chance that last year was a fluke and the Gibson from 2019-2024 was the real version traded to Detroit. If that’s the case, the Red Wings’ playoff drought will likely hit the ten-year mark.

UFA Signings

F Mason Appleton (two years, $5.8MM)
D Jacob Bernard-Docker (one year, $875K)
D Travis Hamonic (one year, $1MM)
F John Leonard (one year, $775K)
D Ian Mitchell (one year, $775K)
F James van Riemsdyk (one year, $1MM)

*-denotes two-way contract

Despite having plenty of cap space for a big addition, the Red Wings were relatively modest in free agency this summer. Reports later in the offseason indicated that Detroit was ready to make a sizeable offer to defenseman Aaron Ekblad, although he eventually re-signed with the Florida Panthers. Instead, the Red Wings added around the fringes of their lineup.

Appleton turned out to be the biggest fish Detroit brought in this offseason, and the reasoning is two-fold. Outside of J.T. Compher, the Red Wings didn’t have another right-handed forward to put in the bottom-six, and Yzerman has historically appreciated a balanced handedness across the lineup. Furthermore, given that he averaged a 92.6% on-ice save percentage across all situations during his time with the Winnipeg Jets, Appleton was brought aboard to assist the Red Wings’ penalty kill, which finished dead last in the league last year.

Outside of Appleton, Detroit added a few veterans in van Riemsdyk and Hamonic, as well as took a flyer on Bernard-Docker. The former was brought in to replace the lost offense from Vladimir Tarasenko, while the latter two are expected to stabilize the defensive core. Unfortunately, the Hamonic signing has sprouted more questions than answers, given his disastrous play in the team’s season opener.

RFA Re-Signings

F Jonatan Berggren (one year, $1.825MM)
D Albert Johansson (two years, $2.25MM)
F Elmer Soderblom (two years, $2.25MM)
D Antti Tuomisto (one year, $813,750)*

*-denotes two-way contract

Detroit moved quickly in re-signing two of its best defensive forwards from last year, Berggren and Soderblom. Both youngsters recorded an on-ice save percentage above 91.0% during even-strength play last season, marking two of the best performances on the team. Unfortunately, unless the Red Wings receive more offense from Berggren this year, it may become his last season with the team that drafted him.

He was relatively productive on that front during the 2024-25 campaign, scoring 12 goals and 24 points in 75 games, averaging 12:59 of ice time per game. Unfortunately, that’s well below the point-per-game average he managed during his time in the AHL and SHL. If he isn’t able to find another gear offensively, he could become a trade candidate for Detroit during the deadline season.

Meanwhile, Johansson earned himself a two-year deal after a solid debut last year. He offered little offensively, scoring three goals and nine points in 61 games, but was much better on the defensive side of the puck. He was one of Detroit’s most physical defensemen last year and managed a 90.2% on-ice save percentage at even strength. Unfortunately, he’s lacking the talent to work into a top-four role. Still, he’s an effective spark plug that the Red Wings can utilize at the bottom of their defensive core.

Departures

F Timothy Gettinger (signed in DEL)
G Alex Lyon (signed with Buffalo, two years, $3MM)
G Petr Mrazek (traded to Anaheim)
D Jeff Petry (signed with Florida, one year, $775K)
F Joe Snively (signed in SHL)
F Vladimir Tarasenko (traded to Minnesota)

Not only was Tarasenko the most disappointing signing for the Red Wings ahead of the 2024-25 season, but he was one of the most disappointing league-wide. Before joining Detroit, Tarasenko scored 23 goals and 55 points between the Ottawa Senators and Panthers in the 2023-24 campaign, winning the second Stanley Cup championship of his career after scoring five goals and nine points in 24 postseason contests for Florida.

Unfortunately, the Red Wings didn’t get anything close to that level of production. Tarasenko finished the year with 11 goals and 33 points in 80 games, far and away the lowest output of his career across a full season. During last year’s trade deadline, Tarasenko found himself in trade rumors, though Detroit waited until the offseason to finalize the much-needed divorce.

Aside from Tarasenko, the Red Wings didn’t lose too much this offseason, nor did they stand to do so. Detroit is gambling that Gibson can effectively replace the lost value of Lyon and Mrazek, though the former is dramatically outplaying him to begin the 2025-26 campaign. Meanwhile, there was little chance of the Red Wings pursuing an extended relationship with Petry this summer, as he, along with Ben Chiarot, were the only two defensemen on the team last season to not average higher than a 50.0% xGoals%.

*-denotes two-way contract

Salary Cap Outlook

Because Detroit didn’t hand out any big-ticket contracts this summer, the team has ample cap space for the 2025-26 season. According to PuckPedia, the Red Wings have $12.37MM in cap space, the fifth-most in the league. That flexibility is expected to grow dramatically next summer.

Assuming the upper limit of the salary cap only reaches $104MM for the 2026-27 season, the Red Wings will enter the summer with approximately $42MM in cap space. They’ll need to use some of that for Simon Edvinsson and Kane if there’s mutual desire for a reunion. Regardless, Yzerman will have plenty of cash to pursue high-tier options, such as Artemi Panarin, Adrian Kempe, and Martin Necas, among others, if they make it to the open market.

Key Questions

Is John Gibson The Answer In Net?

Over the past several years, the Red Wings have utilized several different placeholders in the crease, like Alex Nedeljkovic, Ville Husso, and James Reimer, among others. The team is clearly waiting for the emergence of prospects Sebastian Cossa and Trey Augustine, though there’s no guarantee they’ll reach their ceiling at the NHL level. They took a swing at Gibson this summer, hoping that his 2024-25 season wasn’t a fluke. Unfortunately, Gibson had been relatively disappointing in the five years prior, managing a 74-129-33 record with a .900 SV% and 3.36 GAA with the Ducks. Further, it would have been difficult to have a worse debut than the one he had with Detroit, allowing five goals on 13 shots before getting pulled in the second period.

How Will They Fare Under A Full Season Of Todd McLellan?

After getting off to a 13-17-4 start through the first three months of the campaign, the Red Wings fired former head coach Derek LaLonde. The team performed much better under McLellan (26-18-4), though it wasn’t enough to overcome the hole they had already dug for themselves. Still, although the team performed much better offensively under McLellan, their defense remained weak after the transition. McLellan has previously found success in his career, particularly with the San Jose Sharks and Edmonton Oilers. However, given Detroit’s roster makeup, there’s no guarantee he’ll find success with this current iteration of the Red Wings’ lineup. This season is an important litmus test of whether Yzerman hired the right man for the job.

Is Axel Sandin Pellikka Ready For Top-Four Minutes?

Given their brief pursuit of Ekblad this summer, there’s no question the Red Wings are looking to bolster the right side of their defensive core behind Moritz Seider. Since Detroit is compelled to pair Chiarot with Seider, as he is the only one capable of compensating for the veteran’s defensive weaknesses, Edvinsson swiftly becomes the prime candidate for Detroit’s second unit. Still, the Red Wings are taking a significant gamble by thrusting Axel Sandin Pellikka into a top-four role alongside his countryman. There’s no questioning his talent, as the former first-round pick scored four goals and 10 points in seven games as the captain for Team Sweden during last year’s IIHF U20 World Junior Championships, and another 12 goals and 29 points in 46 games for the SHL’s Skellefteå AIK. Still, Sandin Pellikka only had two games of professional experience in North America before this season, and there’s no guarantee he’s ready for top-four minutes at the NHL level. He’s gone scoreless through three games to start his rookie season, though he’s averaged a 54.2% CorsiFor% at even strength, and a 90.0% on-ice save percentage at even strength while averaging 21:02 of ice time per game.

Photo courtesy of Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports (Gibson).

Photo courtesy of Brett Holmes-Imagn Images (Tarasenko).

PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed to this article.