After making a splash in free agency with nine UFA signings, the Red Wings placed forward Filip Zadina on waivers.
Detroit has put Filip Zadina on waivers
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) July 3, 2023
Zadina, who turns 24 in November, was selected 6th overall in the 2018 NHL Draft, which was Ken Holland’s last draft as Red Wings GM. Since then, the winger has played 190 NHL games with 68 points (28-40–68) under his belt.
Unfortunately, the writing was on the wall for Zadina. He has had a tough time finding consistency in the Wings lineup and has fallen short of expectations. With so many acquisitions in free agency, he was likely an odd man out.
Zadina is in year two of a three-year deal that carries a cap hit of $1.825 million. He will be a restricted free agent when his current deal expires in 2025. We’ll see tomorrow if he gets claimed by an NHL team willing to give him another shot. Otherwise he will be assigned to Grand Rapids while he awaits his next opportunity.
UPDATE
Steve Yzerman gave some context to this move during a press conference this afternoon:
Yzerman says Zadina requested a fresh start through his agent before the draft
— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) July 3, 2023
