The Athletic’s Harman Dayal posted an article which discusses “tanking” this morning, separating teams into two categories: those who are “ready to graduate from the basement” and a top five list of teams that are still well-positioned to win the 2024 NHL Draft lottery.
Surprisingly, Dayal says that the Red Wings are “ready to graduate from the basement”:
2022-23 finish: 24th
Key acquisitions: Alex DeBrincat, J.T. Compher, Jeff Petry, Daniel Sprong, Shayne Gostisbehere, Justin Holl
Key departures: Dominik Kubalik, Pius Suter
Steve Yzerman’s aggressive offseason has positioned the Red Wings to take a meaningful step this season. There were a couple of questionable contracts handed out in free agency, but there’s no denying that the club is significantly deeper. DeBrincat gives them a new top-of-the-lineup scorer, Compher solidifies the top-nine center situation and Sprong will inject crucial secondary scoring. On the back end, Petry, Gostisbehere and Holl will offer more stability behind the solid top pair of Moritz Seider and Jake Walman.
Lucas Raymond is expected to take a big step in Year 3, while you could continue seeing progress from the likes of Jonatan Berggren and Michael Rasmussen.
Put it all together and you have a team that’s much more likely to contend for a playoff spot than a prime lottery position.
Continued (paywall); that’s probably the most optimistic outlook for the Wings that I’ve read this offseason.
Ideally, the Red Wings are in the mix for a playoff spot throughout the 2023-2024 season. That’s my hope.
