The trade deadline has come and gone and as we’ve covered here, it was fairly quiet for the Red Wings, who are gearing up for a road game against the Washington Capitals tonight.
Here’s my quick take, sure to go over well: the sky is not falling. The biggest names moved — Mikko Rantanen and Brad Marchand — had some say in where they ended up. Players like that aren’t coming here until we’re routinely making deep playoff runs (and/or until the NHL does something about the advantage no-state-tax teams have). For the most part, the rest of the names moved… were a bit rich for my blood, or otherwise don’t move the needle much.
I don’t think people should be rejoicing in the streets over Craig Smith and Petr Mrazek, but it’s a fourth-line forward for the next couple of months and a backup goalie for next season (or a buyout if things don’t go well down the stretch). For the most part, contending teams invest heavily in the tops of their lineup, and fourth lines are generally “just guys.” That’s been Smith for a few years now, removed from his 20-goal seasons with Nashville, bouncing around the league and chipping in decent offense here and there. Regrettably, at 25 years old and playing a smaller role than he was last season, that’s the direction Joe Veleno was headed: just a guy. I don’t get too concerned over who Detroit’s “guys” are: you grow fond of some (Christian Fischer, 2023-24), but they just as quickly fade into the background (Christian Fischer, 2024-25).
With Cam Talbot under contract for next year, the Red Wings need someone else to play 30ish games, and the options are not likely to be much more appealing than Mrazek. His numbers are straight-up bad this year, but so is Chicago’s defense. His track record is respectable enough that, should he find his game back in a city where he played some of his best hockey (Carolina is the answer there, but every goalie has great numbers there), he might have some value a year from now. Mrazek’s contract means more money on Detroit’s cap for next season, but there will be plenty of room to improve the team.
The changes in Detroit’s roster over the last five months are far more important to me than spending futures on Scott Laughton, Andrey Kuzmenko, or Brandon Carlo. Simon Edvinsson (and Jonatan Berggren, sorta) were the only rookies in Detroit’s opening night lineup. Since then, Edvinsson has earned a ton of trust, Berggren slightly more. Marco Kasper came up, stole a job and has gotten a long look on the top line. Albert Johansson made his mark when he finally got his opportunity and looks competent in the top four. Elmer Soderblom emerged from the depths of the Griffins’ depth chart to look like the most productive third-liner the Red Wings have had all season. Were it not for horrible luck, I’m confident Carter Mazur would have been in the same boat with an extended NHL look. That’s, effectively, five rookies who are now regulars.
I think Detroit’s prospect system is pretty deep (and even broke it down recently) and think the Red Wings are in a position where they could fast-track things a bit by moving some depth for established players, because not everyone will pan out. But they were under no pressure to make sure that happened today. In the meantime, Nate Danielson, Amadeus Lombardi, William Wallinder, Shai Buium and Sebastian Cossa will play critical roles for the Griffins down the stretch, and start pushing for jobs maybe as soon as September. There are plenty of other exciting names to come (Axel Sandin Pellikka is pretty good, I hear).
I can see why optimism has dried up after four straight, mostly uninspiring losses, but the Red Wings are 17-9-2 under Todd McLellan, which is 5th in the NHL in that span. I still believe they’re perfectly capable of making the playoffs (winning a round is another story, but again, the names that moved today are highly unlikely to change that). I don’t think they’re quite as good as they were during the multiple seven-game win streaks, but I don’t think they’re as lifeless as they’ve looked at times over the last week.
They have a tall task ahead tonight playing Washington and a record-hunting Ovechkin, but I’m hopeful they’ll be able to stay in the fight this season. Am I alone in that belief?!
How to Watch
Time: 7:00 p.m. EST
TV: FanDuel Sports Network Detroit
Radio: 97.1 The Ticket
Red Wings Projected Lineup
Kasper – Larkin – Raymond
DeBrincat – Compher – Kane
Soderblom – Rasmussen – Tarasenko
Berggren – Motte – Shine
Chiarot – Seider
Edvinsson – Johansson
Gustafsson – Holl
Talbot
Lyon
Capitals Projected Lineup
Ovechkin – Strome – Protas
McMichael – Dubois – Wilson
Mangiapane – Eller – Raddysh
Duhaime – Dowd – Frank
Sandin – Carlson
Fehervary – Roy
Chychrun – van Riemsdyk
Thompson
Lindgren
