The Detroit Red Wings started the 2024-25 season in a bit of a hole. The team was not performing well and the free agents brought in were not living up to their contract. General Manager Steve Yzerman had enough and fired head coach Derek Lalonde.
After replacing him with veteran head coach Todd McLellan, the team took off. They are now 15-4-1 under McLellan and have put themselves back into the wild card race. However, they have holes to fill. Will they be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline?
Red Wings, Yzerman prepare for trade deadline
The 2025 NHL trade deadline is March 7th, and is quickly approaching. On one hand, the Red Wings are one of the hottest teams in the league and could use upgrades at the forward and defensive positions.
They do have some quality players that could be moved to acquire space for some young talent to come up from the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League (AHL). Forward Marco Kasper and defenseman Albert Johansson have played extremely well since their recall and Kasper has been elevated to the top line with captain Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond.
Who may be moved? Yzerman will likely be looking to unload players who have expiring contracts and does not expect them to return. Unrestricted free agents (UFA) after this season include Patrick Kane, Christian Fischer, Tyler Motte, Jeff Petry, William Lagesson, Alex Lyon, and Ville Husso. UFA's in 2026-27 include Vladimir Tarasenko, Dominik Shine, Ben Chiarot, Justin Holl, Erik Gustafsson, and Cam Talbot.
Yzerman does have some talented pieces if he chooses to be a seller at the trade deadline
However, they have been incredibly hot this past month and may be looking to be buyers. Additional scoring and defensive depth are two positions that Yzerman may be looking at when evaluating this roster.
A couple of middle-six scoring forwards and a couple of defensemen who can skate and provide offense may be what he is looking for. He does have assets to part with and make a splash to further push the Red Wings in the right direction.
Yzerman could also stay put and wait for the free agency period. Detroit has a projected cap space of $25.09 million for the 2025-26 season, which could land a few nice pieces for next season. Although they have been playing well, there are holes to fill and those holes could be what is holding them back from their full potential.
Yzerman is not afriad to make moves. He will do what is best and not make a move just to make a move. There is a real possibility to upgrade this roster and put them in a good spot for a playoff run. Who goes and who comes in is the big question?