The Red Wings Desperately Need a Trade

The poor play from Marco Kasper has left them without a second-line centre. Patrick Kane has begun showing his age, and his spot on the second line has been taken away at times this season. The depth seems to be coming through. Rasmussen, despite all the hate, has picked up his game. JVR and Compher look like they’re giving a real effort too. But even with that, Detroit has two gaping holes in their top six.

The defensive group isn’t much better. The team insists on playing Hamonic for his penalty killing, which has led them to some pretty awful goals. Moritz Seider and Simon Edvinsson have been prone to making some of the worst turnovers I’ve ever seen, and Johansson is at best inconsistent. Luckily, Ben Chiarot has been pretty good to kind of reduce the damage, making a strong case for Detroit to pay up and keep him.

If that wasn’t bad enough, the goaltending has been awful too. John Gibson has been one of the worst goalies in hockey and has lost seven straight starts. While Cam Talbot has been okay, his age limits the number of starts he can have, and when Gibson steps in, he continues to boast an awful 3.59 goals against.

Who Can Save Them:

• Jordan Kyrou: The Blues have talked about trading Kyrou for a while. He’s a consistent 65+ point player and can skate amongst the best. Kyrou would be the perfect winger to play with Kasper and DeBrincat. He’s the high-talent right wing that can make things happen for this team at even strength, and when the power-play is slumping like it is, Kyrou would fit in well. Personally, I’d give up a first-round pick plus a top prospect or young roster player for him. He fits the timeline, puts up points, and meshes well into that second-line role. It would be a huge boost to Detroit’s top six. Detroit’s right-wing depth would also become one of the best in the league with Raymond, Kyrou, Kane, and Appleton.
• Quinn Hughes: It won’t happen, at least not soon enough. But as long as the deal doesn’t involve Seider, Edvinsson, Raymond, Larkin, or DeBrincat, they can take however many of whoever they want. Hughes would fix genuinely everything about this team both now and in the future, but I fear that is more of a pipe dream than it is a real possibility.
• Filip Forsberg: This one is probably more of a pipe dream as well, but Nashville has been spoken about as sellers, and I would be more than comfortable giving up a Hughes-level return to give Detroit a forward core that consists of Larkin, Raymond, DeBrincat, and Forsberg. It would cost a lot, but at this point, as long as it doesn’t touch the core, let them have it.

Could Detroit Right the Ship Internally?

I lean towards no. They simply can’t score, and they have a serious talent issue throughout the roster. I think they will stay in the mix with this current group, but every year that passes is another one you waste of those amazing Raymond and Seider contracts.

More to Read:

How Larkin, DeBrincat, and Raymond Are Changing the Game for Detroit

Detroit Red Wings: Deal or No Deal pt. 2