The Red Wings have their first trade of the 2025-26 season, and it’s for a familiar face: winger David Perron is coming back to Detroit.
Perron previously played in Detroit from 2022 through 2024, when he was one of the most respected voices in the locker room and a key offensive contributor, nearly helping the Red Wings into the 2024 playoffs. Two years later, he’s hoping to help them get over the hump again after Steve Yzerman traded a 2026 conditional fourth-round pick to acquire him from the Ottawa Senators.
The Senators receive the fourth-round pick if Perron plays before the end of the regular season or during the playoffs. If the Red Wings advance to the second round of the playoffs and Perron appears in 50 percent of the first-round games, the pick upgrades to a third-round pick, per The Athletic’s Chris Johnston.
Perron hasn’t played since Jan. 20 after sports hernia surgery, but is skating, so it remains to be seen how quickly he’ll be available for the Red Wings. The 37-year-old forward has 25 points in 49 Senators games, and his 10 goals this season rank sixth among all Red Wings. Detroit has been looking to improve its five-on-five offense, and Perron certainly brings a playoff flavor to their lineup as one of the league’s better puck protectors and retrievers.
What it means for the Red Wings
The Red Wings have needed more offense, particularly at five-on-five, and Perron should help in that department. He can operate well below the goal line and near the crease, which should complement what Detroit has up front.
It’ll be interesting to see where the Red Wings start Perron. They still could use a top-six addition, and at 37, Perron has typically played more in the 12-13 minute range this season. Yet, he should bring more offensive punch to the bottom six, and his leadership will be a welcome bonus. Perron wore a letter in his previous stint in Detroit and brings a strong vocal element to the bench and locker room.
The cost, too, leaves the Red Wings with plenty of ammo to potentially make another move before 3 p.m. ET on Friday. The right side of their blue line remains a clear need. — Max Bultman
What it means for the Senators
Perron became expendable after the Senators acquired Warren Foegele on Thursday afternoon. Foegele’s acquisition resulted in a logjam of bottom-six forwards. With Perron an unrestricted free agent at season’s end (and still making his way back from sports hernia surgery), he became the sacrificial lamb. Ottawa obtaining a conditional fourth (if Perron plays) will help the Sens’ stockpile of picks from the third round onward.
Perron was a solid contributor for the Senators when healthy. When he joined ahead of the 2024-25 season, he was away from the team for family reasons and had a nagging injury through the first half of the season. Though when healthy, he fit well on a second line with Dylan Cozens and Drake Batherson and helped the Sens make the playoffs for the first time in eight years. Even if he was probably better suited in a role further down the lineup, Perron was capable of playing with the Senators’ best players thanks to his work along the boards.
Perron played up and down the lineup this season but may have been at his best in a fourth-line role with Nick Cousins and Lars Eller, a trio who did an incredible job of limiting chances against and using an aggressive forecheck to sustain offensive-zone pressure. Alas, that nagging sports hernia injury took him out of the lineup during the Senators’ road trip in January, and that’s the last Senators fans will see of him. — Julian McKenzie