ESPN posted a set of “future power rankings” in an attempt to assess the way the NHL might look in three years, and Ryan S. Clark, Kristen Shilton and Greg Wyshynski rank the Red Wings as the 4th-best team in terms of its future:
4. Detroit Red Wings
Overall score: 82.9Why they’re here: Detroit isn’t just Hockeytown, it’s also Tomorrowland. The Red Wings have the No. 1 ranked prospect pool in the NHL, with towering defenseman Simon Edvinsson and No. 8 overall pick Marco Kasper waiting to join Calder Trophy winner Moritz Seider on the roster. GM Steve Yzerman, the architect of that rebuild and the overseer of the fifth best salary cap outlook, ranked No. 4 overall. The franchise’s long-respected ownership group no doubt helped there, too. The only thing pumping the brakes on the team from Motown is the current roster, which ranked No. 24 overall. But not for long. — Wyshynski
Points of concern: Dylan Larkin and Tyler Bertuzzi are both entering the last season of their respective contracts. So is goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic. One of the reasons this may not feel as dramatic as it sounds is the Red Wings have more than $41 million in available cap space. They will have the money to re-sign those players while being able to add the needed personnel who play a role in the Red Wings insulating their young players with experienced teammates. — Clark
Reason for hope: After the offseason Yzerman put together, it finally feels like the Red Wings of old — who famously made the postseason for 25 straight years between 1990 to 2017 — are on their way back. Yzerman has done an admirable job rebuilding around the team’s core, and what we saw from Moritz Seider, Lucas Raymond & Co. last year showed Detroit’s future may well have pulled in ahead of schedule. Across the board, the Red Wings are in excellent shape to start challenging the league again. — Shilton
