Tag: Detroit Red Wings

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With the 2020 NHL Draft tonight, the Detroit Red Wings are poised to get an elite player

Cole Perfetti, Jamie Drysdale, and Jaroslav Askarov are just a few names that have been linked and mocked (drafts) to the Detroit Red Wings for a while now. Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman has not and will not tip his hand as to what position he and his scouting department are leaning towards. Yzerman like the rest of the NHL world have to see how the top three pick shake out first.

In my opinion, with the 2021 full of elite defensive players, Detroit Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman should be looking at forwards with the No. 4 overall pick in tonight’s draft.

There is elite talent within the top ten picks of the 2020 NHL Draft. A player that has caught my eye is Marco Rossi, Rossi is an electric offensive force  at center. That is a big need for the Red Wings second line.

There are two very close to elite defensive players in this draft. Jamie Drysdale and Craig Button. Again in my opinion with the offensive needs the Red Wings have Yzerman would be wise to search for blueline help in the second round where the Red Wings have three draft picks.

It would not be the end of the world if the Red Wings go defense at No.4. Either Drysdale or Button’s scouting report and projects would justify picking either player. That said, there is talent in the Red Wings system. Including last years first round draft pick Moritz Sieder.

For Steve Yzerman who will be doing his second draft as Red Wings GM, he has has nine more picks to play with and find impact players. Whoever the Red Wings select in the first round it will be a player who is close to being NHL ready.

GUELPH, ON – MAY 8: Marco Rossi #23 of the Ottawa 67’s skates against the Guelph Storm during Game Four of the OHL Championship Series Final at the Sleeman Centre on May 8, 2019 in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. The Storm defeated the 67’s 5-4. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)

Of the forwards who do not go in the first three draft picks experts agree Marco Rossi is the closest to being NHL ready. In fact many say he could make the jump in the upcoming 2020-21 NHL season.

It will all unfold tonight at 7:00 pm.

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Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman speaks

He does not do it often, yet when he does fans and media tend to stop and listen. Steve Yzerman general manager of the Detroit Red Wings seldom offers glimpses into how he runs his team. He prefers to just do it. This past week Yzerman sat down for a ZOOM  call and actually laid out some of his vision for the future of the Red Wings as well as how he and his staff will approach the 2020 NHL draft.

This is one of the busiest times for NHL GM’s. The 2020 draft is next Tuesday with free agency to follow October 9. Through it all Steve Yzerman is not going to alter how he approaches building the Red Wings back into a playoff contender.

“Our plan right now is to draft and try accumulate, or add, additional picks along the way. Draft, be patient, and hopefully we draft well,” Yzerman said. The Detroit Red Wings GM is looking to build a solid nucleus around some of the young Red Wings talent already in Detroit.

DETROIT, MI – SEPTEMBER 17: Steve Yzerman of the Detroit Red Wings poses for his official headshot for the 2019-2020 season at Little Caesars Arena on September 17, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Dave Reginek/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Red Wings in the middle of a rebuild, they are not targeting specific position groups in the draft. At this point, they simply want to add the best prospects available.

The Red Wings were the worst team in the NHL last season and the organizations reward is the fourth overall first round draft pick, due to a faulty NHL lottery system that needs overhauled.

Even picking fourth, there is a fairly deep pool of talented prospects available in top half of the first round, the Red Wings will likely get a player who eventually will help them at No. 4 overall. Be it a year or five years.

Cole Perfetti, Marco Rossi and Lucas Raymond, and defensemen Jamie Drysdale and Jake Sanderson all have been linked to the Detroit hockey team. This is how Yzerman will draft and how he runs his team during a rebuild. Collect as many draft picks as you can. Detroit has three second round draft picks this year.

Collect talent and hope you strike gold on some of them. Steve Yzerman has a history of striking gold with later draft picks.

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The Detroit Red Wings trade for veteran Marc Staal and a second round draft pick

In his quest to both fill roster needs while keeping an eye on the future, Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman did both yesterday. Yzerman traded for Marc Staal of the New York Rangers and a second round draft pick  in 2021 NHL draft in exchange for future considerations.

Marc Staal is clearly a player in decline at 33 years old. Last season for the Rangers Staal had appeared in 52 games with the Rangers last season, recording two goals and nine assists. He had one goal in three playoff games.

Staal a 13 year NHL veteran has one year left on his contract with a $5.7 million cap hit. Staal is a player who can be plugged into the fourth line and play limited minutes.

Steve Yzerman has been bent on adding draft picks since becoming Detroit’s general manager. Part of the rebuilding process, is to add draft picks, prospects, young players and future assets to really help us down the line.

In the 2020 and 2021 NHL draft’s Yzerman and the Detroit Red Wings organization as of this moment have six second round draft pick in each draft. That will certainly help add future assets.

The Detroit Red Wings were an NHL worst dead last in defense last season. Yzerman said that defensemen Jonathan Ericsson and Trevor Daley would not be resigned.

By adding Staal, he can play the left side along with Patrik Nemeth and Danny DeKeyser. So it was a good trade in the aspect of helping the roster this season. With only one year left on his contract, Yzerman could feel another Red Wing prospect is close to being NHL ready. So a short contract does no derail a player from finishing his development and being in the roster mix at 2021 training camp.

Armed with draft picks, Steve Yzerman is giving his scouting department the opportunity to add important pieces to the Red Wings organization. Just as he said he would.

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An updated look at the state of the Detroit Tigers, Red Wings, Pistons and Lions rebuild’s

All four Detroit Michigan sports teams are under construction. Rebuilds across the board. It has not been a fun time for the sports enthusiasts around the state of Michigan and the rest of the country. Yet here we are, it is time to update the four major sports teams rebuild efforts to date.

Let’s take a look at the worst and possibly longest rebuild in sports, or close to it. The Detroit Lions. Bob Quinn was brought in from the New England Patriots and there was hype when he arrived in Motown. The hype is gone, fans have soured and the Lions are a total mess. Losers of 11 games in a row with no end in sight. The Lions should fire Quinn and all associated with him and start from scratch.

The Detroit Pistons, In better shape than the Lions (who is not?) The Pistons have young talent to build around. Bruce Brown, Sekou Doumbouya, Luke Kennard, Christian Wood give the Pistons some nice players to build around. The Detroit Pistons are armed with some cap space for the first time in a long time so that will help speed the process up a bit.

The Detroit Tigers, the Tigers also have some nice young talent to build around. Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal, Isaac Paredes, Spencer Torkelson, Riley Greene are a few of the names Tiger fans should know or begin to learn. The Tigers still have work to do on the rebuild, however they are in good shape moving forward.

The Detroit Red Wings, general manager Steve Yzerman is still building his team. Like the Tigers the Red Wings have some nice prospects to build around. With the No. 4 pick in the first round Yzerman is poised to bring in another high-end prospect, not to mention Yzerman also has cap space. Cap space is a good thing it is even better when a GM with a proven history of spending wisely is in charge.

So there it is in a nutshell. The Lions are a mess as usual, the Pistons, Tigers and Red Wings are advancing rather nicely in the rebuilding of the respected organization.

I am sticking with my initial thought that the Detroit Red Wings finish their rebuild first.

 

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The Detroit Red Wings must show improvement 2020-21

The Detroit Red Wings rebuild has gone on for about three full years now. With current Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman overseeing the past two years. The 2020-21 NHL season is critical to the rebuild. Since Yzerman arrived in Motown the organization has been trending upward.

This season in order for a light to be seen at the end of the long rebuild tunnel, The Detroit Red Wings need prospects to play, in Detroit, at Little Caesars Arena to be exact.  Prospects such as  Mathis Bromé, Gustav Lindström, , Evgeny Svechnikov Joseph Veleno, and Filip Zadina an others need NHL playing time.

By perhaps adding a goalie in free agency and another player the Red Wings will not become a contender during the 2020-21 season. They organization can however takes steps towards becoming a contender.

Yzerman, understands todays NHL is a young players league now. The Red Wings have long believed in sending prospects development. No matter a players draft position they are sent to the minors to fine tune their skills.

That said the Red Wings do have players who need to take the next step which is NHL time. It is something the Columbus Blue Jackets have done with most of their top prospects.

The future of the Red Wings will be centered around the teams top line of Tyler Bertuzzi, Dylan Larkin, and Anthony Mantha. The Red Wings now need to fill in other lines with players who will be playing on the other three lines.

This is where the Detroit Red Wings rebuild is. It is time to the next step or phase (depending how you like to say it.) The team is preparing to add another prospect during this years NHL draft.

This season will be a measure marker for the Detroit organization.

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Why the Tampa Bay Lightning playing for the Stanley Cup is good news for the Detroit Red Wings

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – JUNE 21: General Manager Steve Yzerman of the Detroit Red Wings looks on from the draft table during the first round of the 2019 NHL Draft at Rogers Arena on June 21, 2019 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images)

Since the 2016-17 NHL season no team has accumulated more wins than the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Lightning have accumulated one President’s Trophy, two 100-plus point seasons and plenty of regular season records as well. For all the winning the Lightning have done one thing has eluded them, a Stanley Cup championship.

It is fair to say the Tampa Bay Lightning are due. Being a consistent NHL regular season winner has paved the way for the organization to face the Dallas Stars in this year Cup Finals.

So just how does the Lightning playing for the Stanley Cup bode well for the rebuilding Detroit Red Wings? Let’s start with the obvious. The same man who built the juggernaut Tampa Bay hockey team is the same man tasked with rebuilding the Red Wings. Steve Yzerman.

When Yzerman took over as Lightning general manager he took over a bad hockey team. Through shrewd traded and savvy  free agent signings, the Lightning became a regular season giant and a regular in the NHL playoffs.

Things are a bit different in Detroit. Yzerman is building a young core around Dylan Larkin, Tyler Bertuzzi, Anthony Mantha and Filip Hroneck. Yet, Yzerman has made some rather nice trades for the Red Wings, such as trading for Robby Fabbri from the St. Louis Blues.

Seeing the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 20129-20 NHL Stanley Cup finals, should be a welcomed sight for the Red Wings organization and the Red Wings fans base. Yzerman stated over and over during his time as Red Wings general manger, it takes time to build a winning. Yet, that is what he does.

There are different expectations in Detroit. Yzerman himself acknowledged this by saying he understands the Detroit Red Wings play for championships. He is tasked with getting the organization back to that level of play. There is next to no doubt Yzerman will deliver.

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Who will be on the 2020-21 Detroit Red Wings opening night roster

DETROIT, MI – MARCH 06: Filip Hronek #17 of the Detroit Red Wings talks with teammate Dylan Larkin #71 on a play stoppage during an NHL game against the Chicago Blackhawks at Little Caesars Arena on March 6, 2020 in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit defeated Chicago 2-1. (Photo by Dave Reginek/NHLI via Getty Images)

The rebuilding Detroit Red Wings look to take a step forward during the 2020-21 NHL season. Young prospects should get at the very least a nine game call up. Others may be on the opening night roster for the Red Wings. So who exactly will be on the roster. At this time that is unknown, based on the players now (free agency starts October 9, due to COVID-19) here is a guess.

The NHL is targeting December 1, 2020 as the season opener, the season would end July 5, 2021. The NHL is watching the NFL’s mold for allowing  limited capacity attendance to see if it is possible.

The Detroit Red Wings are on a mid-November target for training camp. The camp will be at Little Caesars Arena and not Traverse City. The Red Wings are hopeful for a 2021 return to  Traverse City for training camp.

The Red Wings have some glaring needs which general manager Steve Yzerman will need to address and fill during the free agent signing period. The Red Wings have the cap space to begin to improve the roster this off season, but not at the expense of prospect development.

So let’s look at who could be in the Winged Wheel opening night,

Goalie- Jonathan Bernier, He is currently the only goalie under contrat for Detroit. He will enter the 2020-21 season as the guy. His numbers last season were not bad. Bernier posted a .915 save percentage in 25 games.

There are good goalies that will hit the open market. This will be worth paying attention to for Red Wings fans.

The Detroit Red Wings first line, Dylan Larkin, Anthony Mantha and Tyler Bertuzzi have excellent chemistry. While   Robby Fabbri and Filip Zadina can help the second line with scoring. Valtteri Filppula should once again center the second line. Filppula is not the goal scorer he once was but is solid in passing the puck.

Luke Glendening, Darren Helm and Adam Erne Should be the Red Wings third line. It is a solid yet not spectacular third line. With Helm the really only scoring threat and Erne providing the physicality of the line.

The Detroit Red Wings was (to put it nicely) a hot mess last season. This season, Frans Nielsen, Evgeny Svechnikov, Dmytro Timashov, Justin Abdelkader, Michael Rasmussen, Christoffer Ehn, Givani Smith and Mathias Brome will battle it out in training camp in hopes players step up.

On the defensive front for the Red Wings, Danny DeKeyser, Patrik Nemeth and Filip Hronek are locks for the top four. I fully expect 19 year old defenseman Moritz Seider will be in the opening night lineup as well.

The rest of the Red Wings defense needs upgrade. Otherwise it will be another tough season.

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The Detroit Red Wings could be in position to be buyers

Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman has never had a problem working the phone when it comes to upgrading the teams he has been in charge of. The Red Wings with $43 million in cap space available and the NHL salary cap expected to stay at $81.5 million Yzerman could look to make a deal or two.

With only Tyler Bertuzzi and Anthony Mantha needing new deals, the Detroit Red Wings will have enough money to sign a player or two to help begin to bring the Red Wings play back to a more respectable level.

NHL teams such as the Washington Capitols, Pittsburgh Penguins, St. Louis Blues who were beaten in the NHL playoffs and some others could look to to moves players in an attempt to shake up current rosters.

There is little doubt as Yzerman and the rest of the Red Wings organization waits for prospects to develop, he will be looking to upgrade the roster to help the continued growth of Dylan Larkin, Matha, Bertuzzi and Filip Hronek and a couple of others.

Bringing in savvy veterans be it by trade or free agent signings, will go a long way to help the Detroit Red Wings rebuild. Yzerman, has typically been able to get players to sign for reasonable deals in both term and length. That said it is possible the Detroit GM looks for a player who will be around longer than one to two years.

While the Red Wings rebuild presses on, steps need to be taken to ensure it is done properly. Steve Yzerman understands this and will make his off season to-do list with the intention of being smart with the cap space while improving the roster with an eye on the future. Even if that is to sign a player for three or four years.

This is a big off season for the Detroit Red Wings. It is time to begin to add a player or two, perhaps more to keep the Red Wings moving forward. It will be interesting to see how it unfolds.

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Tyler Bertuzzi is set to take off for the Detroit Red Wings

Embed from Getty Images During the 2019- COVID-19 shortened NHL season Tyler Bertuzzi did a thing. Bertuzzi  led the Detroit Red Wings in goals and amassed a career high in assists and points. Bertuzzi has emerged as a rebuilding block and a player who has done nothing but improve every year of his professional career.

March 12, 2020 the day the NHL shutdown due to COVID-19, Tyler Bertuzzi had 21 goals and 27 assists in 71 games along with 48 points good for second place on the team next to Dylan Larkin (53), matching his goal output from 2018-19, which was Bertuzzi’s first full NHL season.

Tyler Bertuzzi paid his dues in a little over two years in the minors with the Grand Rapids Griffins. Bertuzzi was named playoff MVP in the Griffins 2017 Calder Cup championship.

A four game stretch was the longest Tyler Bertuzzi would go without a point in 2019. When the Red Wings Christmas break roll around,  Bertuzzi was Detroit’s best player in the first half, which saw him accumulate 14 goals and 16 assists in 38 games.

Tyler Bertuzzi is a smart player, he also enjoys getting under the skin of opponent’s. Bertuzzi is a restricted free agent who has been right around 50 points in both of his seasons in Detroit. That should help his cause in a new contract.

Projections for next season (could be January if COVID-19 pushes the start of the season back) has Bertuzzi looking at 25 goals and around 55 points in an 82 game season.

Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman has said he is looking to improve the team and have some salary cap money freed up to begin to shape the Red Wings. If Yzerman can find a puck moving defenseman and a backup goalie that would greatly help.

The Red Wings need more forwards as well. If Yzerman can do the things he wants Tyler Bertuzzi could his the 30 goal mark. No matter how you slice it Tyler Bertuzzi is a very important player in Detroit both during the rebuilding stage and after.

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When the Detroit Red Wings next play there is a good chance Moritz Seider will be in the lineup

Embed from Getty Images The 2019 first round draft pick of the Detroit Red Wings has shown much promise in his development. So much so, there is a very good chance when the Detroit Red Wings play their next regular season game, Moritz Seider very well could be in the lineup.

Moritz Seider spent the 2019-20 with the Grand Rapids Griffins, posting two goals and 20 assists in 49 games. The 6 foot 4, 207-pound defenseman. The young defenseman showed maturity and a well rounded game.

Before the coronavirus pandemic, the Red Wings were planning on giving Seider an opportunity to play in a handful of games in Detroit. Now Seider’s shot will have to come at training camp.

Seider, who will turn 20 in April, projects as a key player in the Detroit Red Wings rebuild. Seider is a good puck mover who shoots right handed, and as a player is someone who can run a power play unit. His 22 points and .45 points per game average ranked second among Griffins defensemen.

Moritz Seider averaged about 23 minutes of ice time per game, and Seider also showed improvement in puck handling, as well as getting shots through to the net, and overall assertiveness.

Seider would add skill and size to the Red Wings defense corps, potentially fitting into the top four next season with Filip Hronek  a second-round pick from 2016  and veterans Danny DeKeyser and Patrik Nemeth. That would enable pairings of offensive defensemen who shoot right  Hronek and Seider with defensive defensemen who shoot left.

Moritz Seider would make the Detroit defense stronger and more athletic. Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman said of Seider  “He will get an opportunity, whenever our season kicks off. He will get an opportunity to show he is ready to play. If he is ready to go, he will play. If not, he will spend a little more time in the American Hockey League (AHL). But he had a very good year and it’s encouraging to see the things that he did in his development.”