During the offseason, the Detroit Red Wings have gone through a massive makeover. In total, seven players from last season have found new homes while six players will be coming to Detroit to play their first season with them.
Is this new version of the Red Wings better than last season or did too much talent leave and a setback is imminent?
The Red Wings lost scoring, leadership, and depth this offseason, and some players are irreplaceable with what they brought to the table.
Gone are Zach Aston-Reese (Vegas Golden Knights), Robby Fabbri (Anaheim Ducks), Daniel Sprong (Vancouver Canucks), David Perron (Ottawa Senators), Shayne Gostisbehere (Carolina Hurricanes), James Reimer (Buffalo Sabres), and Jake Walman (San Jose Sharks).
The Detroit Red Wings will surely look different coming into 2024-25
Detroit lost leadership with Sprong and Perron. They lost scoring with Gostisbehere and Walman. They lost depth with Reimer and Fabbri.
This is quite the list of players who left, not just players, but players who had an impact during their tenure in Detroit and during last season's playoff push. Some players cannot be replaced, but others come to a dime a dozen.
New Detroit this season are forwards Tyler Motte and Vladimir Tarasenko, defensemen Erik Gustafsson and William Lagesson, and goaltenders Cam Talbot and Jack Campbell.
This group is more of a veteran group and brings a bit of everything to the lineup. However, will Detroit take a step back this season due to the massive lineup overhaul?
Detroit has lost a lot this offseason and may not be able to recover. Some players that left had a tremendous impact on the playoff run last season and Detroit did not replace that part of their roster. There are still holes that need to be filled.
The Red Wings still have moves to make due to the surplus of defensemen and could make some trades to bring in more scoring at both the forward and defense positions.
Detroit may surprise some people but if they do not make some additional moves they may not come close to last season's magical run in the final weeks.