This morning, The Athletic ponders what teams did not address during the start of free agency, and here’s what Max Bultman has to say about the Red Wings’ lingering needs:
Detroit Red Wings: A right-shot top-four defenseman
Detroit added power-play quarterback Erik Gustafsson to replace Shayne Gostisbehere and indicated it will try him on the right side, but he’s more of an offensively tilted player who’s best cast on the third pair. That likely means the Red Wings will once again turn to Jeff Petry in the top four behind Moritz Seider. There was some hope Detroit could find someone to help take a little pressure off Seider, who played the toughest minutes in the NHL last season, but with limited cap space (once accounting for Seider and Lucas Raymond extensions), it looks like this is the group the Red Wings will take into the season. — Max Bultman
Continued (paywall);
At this point, barring a summertime trade that involves the Red Wings shedding salary cap commitments, it may take until next season’s trade deadline before the Red Wings finally address their need for one more offensive defenseman on the right side of the ice.
The Wings may have planned on addressing said need via the proposed trade for Jacob Trouba, who’s more of a shut-down defender, but that’s fallen through, and as such, we’ll have to be patient and see what develops in terms of a potential trade.
