We’re officially in the “countdown to NHL training camps” phase of the offseason — with Detroit set to hit the ice in Traverse City beginning Sept. 18.
That’s less than a month away, which both feels so close and maddeningly far away.
So, to pass the time, let’s open up one last summer mailbag, and dig into some season expectations, some questions on the Red Wings’ organizational approaches and philosophies — and whether there’s still time for one more move from general manager Steve Yzerman before the team takes the ice.
(Note: Questions have been lightly edited for clarity and length.)
At this point, is a trade for a top-four defenseman or a top-six wing even a remote possibility? If so, who might that be? — Charles W.
It’s still possible — those were the two biggest needs entering the offseason, and both remain unsolved — but I wouldn’t hold your breath on it.
The most realistic names are probably in Pittsburgh, which is in the early stages of a rebuild and has a handful of players who could fit in the two spots you mentioned: RHD Erik Karlsson, and wingers Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell.
Rust would fill a clear need for Detroit on the top line, bringing some needed hard offense to the top six. But at 33 years old, he’s probably not a player the Red Wings should be giving up a first-round pick for — and I think Pittsburgh could plausibly get that price for each of Rust and Rakell.
Karlsson, meanwhile, would have a much lower trade cost, and would add some puck moving to the back end on top of eating second-pair minutes, but at a $10 million cap hit for two more years, how much is Detroit willing to take on for a 35-year-old who won’t do anything to help the team’s ability to defend?
As for the pipe-dream names, I’m highly skeptical Anaheim will trade young center Mason McTavish, even though he’s still currently an unsigned RFA, and I think it’s a little early for Winnipeg to panic over Kyle Connor being unsigned for 2026, too.
So my guess is Detroit goes in with what it has now and will look to find an answer to those two spots from within.
I’m curious how Simon Edvinsson is going to grow as he gets more ice time. Do you think there’s more offense in his future? A No. 2 defenseman? What do you think his prime looks like? — Matt J.
I think he’ll be a No. 1-caliber defenseman, taking on huge minutes and tough matchups and producing his share of offense, too — similar to how Moritz Seider has become one. It likely won’t be 70-point, Norris Trophy-level offense, but keep in mind that Edvinsson’s 31 points last season came without a single one on the power play. He got just 30 minutes of time on the advantage. I would expect that number to go up this season, and with it should come some extra production.
Now, eventually, Axel Sandin Pellikka will come along and take on a healthy share of time on the power play. That could cut into the offense for both players down the line.
But in the near future, I envision Edvinsson joining Seider as a 23-minute, all-situations defenseman who lives in the 40-point range. And having two such players on the same team is a heck of a foundation.
Moritz Seider recorded 46 points last season. (Gregory Shamus / Getty Images)
If Moritz Seider has a Norris-caliber season, do the Wings make the playoffs? — Evan K.
I’m going to say yes.
Seider is already excellent, so we’re not talking about a massive jump here to get into that territory. But the Red Wings also haven’t been that far off the cut line in recent years.
Obviously, being a legit Norris Trophy candidate these days demands a certain level of offense, and Seider would need a couple of things to go right for him in that department. But Boston’s Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm both had top-five finishes in the last four years, and both are pretty stylistically similar to Seider as defensive studs who put up good (but not league-topping) offense. They finished with 56 and 53 points, respectively, in 2021-22 and 2022-23, and that territory is within range for Seider, who had 46 last season.
Add 10 more points to his ledger while continuing to win his minutes against the toughest competition the NHL has to offer, and I think he’d find his way onto some ballots.
Obviously, whether Detroit makes the playoffs or not depends on more than one player. But for that point total to happen, it likely means 1. Detroit’s power play stayed elite, and 2. the team also found some more offense at even strength. Those are both essential for the Red Wings to make the playoffs.
So I’ll say yes, but I’ll also note it’s probably a two-way street: If Detroit makes the playoffs, players such as Seider, Lucas Raymond and Dylan Larkin are more likely to get more national attention.
What is the timeline for Axel Sandin Pellikka to play in the NHL? What should we be expecting from him this year? — Maxime P.
Based on what I saw late last season when he came to Grand Rapids, I think he’s going to need at least a season in Grand Rapids adjusting to the speed and style of play in North America. That doesn’t mean he couldn’t get a game or two late in the season, and Sandin Pellikka is smart enough that he could be a quick learner with the Griffins. But especially as a smaller defenseman, I think the Red Wings will be careful not to rush him.
As for what to expect, I think some early growing pains are reasonable. I think Sandin Pellikka will produce on the power play because of his smarts and big shot, and I do think he has the competitive drive to acclimate to North American hockey pretty quickly. I’m mainly curious to see how he responds to the speed of the game on the smaller ice sheet and how long it takes him to adjust.
But by year’s end, I do think he will lead Griffins defensemen in scoring, and put himself in a position to at least challenge for an NHL spot in 2026-27.
Are the wings waiting for Kyle Connor next year? — Ben S.
After the way this past free-agent class played out, can they really afford to wait? Virtually none of the top players in the class even made it to July 1 last year. Who knows if that will repeat to the same degree, or if players will eventually decide to really test what the open market could offer them, but if I’m the Red Wings, I’m probably not looking to wait and find out.
As I mentioned above, I don’t think the Jets will be looking to panic-trade Connor this far out. But if they really can’t get a deal done and look to trade him, I think the Red Wings would need to jump the line, even with him being a hometown kid. You just can’t take the chance he gets traded somewhere else and likes it enough to stay, as happened with Brad Marchand and Mikko Rantanen this past season, and Noah Hanifin before that.
Why are Red Wing fans so skeptical and even despairing about an in-house rebuild from their own prospect base while the Tigers are the living embodiment of success using that same route (except for the Gleyber Torres acquisition)? — Dale R.
Well, Tigers fans were pretty skeptical and despairing until last August, too — that’s what happens when you’ve been out of the playoffs so long. It gets harder to believe the payoff is actually coming. And honestly, I am pretty skeptical that the Red Wings will deliver the same level of results this season that the Tigers have over the last 12 months. That’s a high bar.
But to Dale’s point, it is entirely possible Detroit can answer some questions and find internal sparks similar to the ones the Tigers have found time and again in that span. I’d argue Marco Kasper, Edvinsson and Albert Johansson already count as such from last season. Elmer Söderblom taking another step would count as the same. Perhaps Nate Danielson and Carter Mazur can provide a boost this year. Certainly, that’s what the front office will be hoping for.
And whether it’s this year or next, I do like what Detroit has on the way. There are a lot of good prospects coming. But they still would need a lot of things to go right to get to the level the Tigers are on right now, and I can’t fault anyone for getting tired of waiting.
I get the “not till they’re ready” for the prospects, but why do the Wings block progress by signing so many 3-4 line forwards and third-pair defensemen? Wouldn’t it be better to bring up the prospects, take your beating early and see what you’ve got? I’d rather see Danielson as the 3C/4C early and work his way up the lines. What am I missing? — Mike M.
I think the key is that they’re not actually “blocked.” Detroit has certainly taken its time in promoting its top prospects under Yzerman, and there have been cases (such as Edvinsson in 2023) where I did feel a player was blocked from a realistic path to the NHL.
But this year, I don’t feel that way. Detroit did sign two forwards this offseason, Mason Appleton and James van Riemsdyk, but there’s still room for a young player to break in. Especially considering the Red Wings showed with Kasper last season that they aren’t afraid to break in a young center on the wing.
With Danielson, for example, if he comes in and has a great camp, I don’t think Detroit is going to be worried about scratching someone to make it happen. And that’s assuming everyone is healthy — which they may not be.
The more relevant question would be whether the Red Wings agree with the latter part of your question, about it being better to take a beating early and using a top prospect in limited usage. Historically, they have not, preferring for those players to get big minutes in Grand Rapids to help their development until they can play a top-nine role.
And while that certainly isn’t as fun for fans, it is hard to argue with how it’s gone for their top prospects in recent years.
That all said, I do think there’s a path for Danielson to make this team in a top-nine role. It’s just going to take him proving that’s where he needs to be.
I keep hearing that the cap going up is going to be a boon for the Red Wings. Is it possible that the timing of the cap going up is bad for the Red Wings? Will all of the good teams now have the money available to retain their top players, keeping them from hitting free agency? — Joe S.
I think the simplest way I can put it is it will be good for them if they can become one of the good teams — and bad for them if they can’t.
I’ve certainly banged the drum that the rising cap was a great opportunity for Detroit, which already has many of its stars signed to long-term deals, plus a strong farm system ready to yield a steady stream of young talent on ELCs in the coming years. And I stand by that to an extent — that opportunity still very much exists.
But it hinges largely on being good enough that the players who do reach free agency (or are in a position to dictate trade destinations) actually want to come play for you. Because the increased cap flexibility league-wide is certainly going to make it harder for teams to lure talent to markets where they won’t be competing for the Stanley Cup.
Contenders being able to keep their top players certainly doesn’t help, but at the same time, those teams were already finding ways to do that. Perhaps not to the extent the Panthers did this summer, mind you, but most good teams have largely been able to keep their superstars forever.
The key to me is how to position yourself for the good players who do shake loose — such as Vladislav Gavrikov and Nikolaj Ehlers this past summer. The Rangers (who landed Gavrikov) aren’t a great team, but they do have the New York factor going for them. For the Red Wings, they need to be able to sell winning.
And while that may create a chicken-or-the-egg question, I do think there’s enough talent in the Red Wings system to at least get them back into the playoffs in the coming years. That should at least get them in the conversation for whichever free agents do make it to July 1.
(Top photo of Simon Edvinsson, Rickard Rakell and Andrew Copp: Justin Berl / Getty Images)