The Detroit Red Wings came into the 2022/23 season with a lot to prove. Many free agent signings had this team believing they could compete with anyone. The Detroit Red Wings did for a while, then the play started suffering, and it recently went downhill.
The Detroit Red Wings started the season off well and had some fans thinking this could be the season. The team had the NHL thinking they could grab a playoff spot but started to disappear slowly.
Last week, the Red Wings went 0-4, crushing what hopes they would have had for the second season. Scoring fewer than two goals per game last week, general manager Steve Yzerman knew he had to make changes and grab what pieces he could.
The 2022/23 Detroit Red Wings trade recap.
The Detroit Red Wings needed to shake this team up and hopefully get them back on track. This season may not be a playoff year, but it is now time to start building for next season.
Yzerman made many moves this week, making sure the Detroit Red Wings were going in the right direction for the future.
The Detroit Red Wings, within a matter of days, traded Tyler Bertuzzi, Jakub Vrana, Oskar Sundqvist, Filip Hronek, and a 2023 fourth-round pick.
The return? A conditional first-round pick in 2023, a second-round pick in 2023, a conditional first-round pick in 2024, a fourth-round pick in 2025, a seventh-round pick in 2023, and prospect, center Dylan McLaughlin.
The Detroit Red Wings would likely have not re-signed Bertuzzi. Trading Hronek was a bit of a shock, but considering the return, the trade was a no-brainer.
Vrana and Yzerman were in a no-win situation, so Yzerman got what he could for the talented winger. Sundqvist was another surprise, but again, Yzerman got a fourth-round pick, which is a good return value.
Trading away these players hurt Detroit because it left a hole in the defense and the wing. Aside from Moritz Seider, the Detroit Red Wings do not have a right-shot defenseman that can quarterback the power play.
Vrana and Bertuzzi being traded leaves a hole on the wings that Yzerman replaced with recalls of Adam Erne and Alex Chiasson from their AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins.
This is all part of the rebuild. Fans could see a vastly different roster come opening night next season as we still have free agency to go. Yzerman built up the Tampa Bay Lightning, and they won back-to-back Stanley Cups.
Will it happen in Detroit? Maybe, but fans have to believe that Yzerman does have a plan to build the Detroit Red Wings back up to championship material.
Aside from the trades, the Detroit Red Wings made a few transactions on Friday. They recalled goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic on an emergency basis from the Griffins. Nedeljkovic was 9-7-2 with a 2.89 GAA and a .909 save percentage with Grand Rapids.
Also from Grand Rapids, forward Alex Chiasson signed a one-year deal with the Red Wings. Chiasson had nine goals and 11 assists for 20 points in 29 games with the Griffins.
Lastly, goaltender John Lethemon signed a one-year deal with the Detroit Red Wings. Lethemon had a record of 16-1-3 with a 2.08 GAA and a .927 save percentage.