Today, NHL.com places the Red Wings under the microscope, attempting to discern the team’s situation despite the uncertainties surrounding Dylan Larkin’s trade request and the search for Steve Yzerman’s replacement.
Nicholas J. Cotsonika kicks NHL.com’s series of articles off with a team overview…
The Detroit Red Wings are at a crossroads. They have missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for 10 straight seasons, the longest drought in their 100-year history and the longest active drought in the NHL. General manager Steve Yzerman is leaving his role. Captain and No. 1 center Dylan Larkin has requested a trade.
Until Yzerman’s successor is named and Larkin’s situation is resolved, the direction will be unclear.
But the Red Wings addressed a couple of their most pressing needs this offseason by adding forwards Viktor Arvidsson and Keegan Kolesar, and the next GM will inherit an organization with building blocks.
“I think they’re going in a great direction,” Kolesar said. “They have a lot of young studs who I have felt that have been good for a number of years and are tough to play against. I just want to bring whatever I can to (build) more of an identity for the team.”
Cotsonika also looks forward, asking 3 questions about the Red Wings for this upcoming season, and he doesn’t just talk about Larkin’s situation or Yzerman’s successor…
3. Who can take another step?
Yzerman made it clear after the season the Red Wings needed to improve the roster but felt they needed more from key players. Detroit badly needs some young players to develop to their full potential. Some examples:
Center Marco Kasper, 22, had 19 points (nine goals, 10 assists) in 81 games last season, down from 37 points (19 goals, 18 assists) in 77 games the season before.
Forward Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, 20, made the Red Wings roster out of training camp but was sent to Grand Rapids of the American Hockey League soon afterward. He ended up with only one assist in 14 NHL games last season.
Defenseman Axel Sandin-Pellikka, 21, also made the Red Wings roster out of training camp but was eventually sent down to the AHL as well. He ended up with 21 points (seven goals, 14 assists) in 68 NHL games.
Center Nate Danielson, 21, had seven points (two goals, five assists) last season in his first 28 NHL games.
Even forward Lucas Raymond, 24, can be on this list. He had 25 goals in 80 games last season, after scoring 27 in 82 games the season before and 31 in 82 games the season before that.
Cotsonika also discusses 5 top prospects for the team…
Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, F
How acquired: Selected with No. 15 pick in 2024 NHL Draft
2025-26 season: Detroit (NHL): 14 GP, 0-1-1; Grand Rapids (AHL): 60 GP, 20-24-44
The 20-year-old (6-1, 204) made the Red Wings roster out of training camp last season. After he had one assist in nine games, he was sent to the AHL. He had no points in five games in two NHL stints late in the season.
But he produced for Grand Rapids in the regular season and felt he made progress.
“I’m getting more and more comfortable with the puck and keeping a guy on you while you have the puck,” he said late in the regular season. “Also just getting used to the tempo (in the NHL) too. Everything goes so much faster than I’m used to.”
Brandsegg-Nygard had eight points (four goals, four assists) in eight Calder Cup Playoff games for Grand Rapids. He had six points (three goals, three assists) in five games for Norway at the 2026 IIHF World Championship, including an assist in a 3-2 overtime win against Canada in the bronze medal game, helping his country win at medal at Worlds for the first time.
Projected NHL arrival: This season
Pete Jensen makes 26-27 season fantasy hockey projections for the Red Wings’ top performers…
Moritz Seider, D
NHL.com fantasy rank: 77
Seider had NHL career highs in goals (10), assists (50), points (60) and power-play points (28) last season. The 25-year-old is the only defenseman in the NHL to have at least 140 points (148), 500 hits (551) and 500 blocked shots (573) over the past three seasons combined (dating to 2023-24). Seider ranks fifth among defensemen in the fantasy keeper rankings and is one of two Detroit defensemen 25 or younger in the top 100 of that list (other: Simon Edvinsson). Seider is a fringe top 10 fantasy defenseman in redraft leagues and one of the best category coverage targets in the entire NHL.
NHL.com point projection: 65
And Jensen rounds out the article portion of the series with “NHL EDGE stats” for the team:
Seider’s two-way prowess
At 25 years old, Moritz Seider is the cornerstone of the Red Wings on both ends of the ice in terms of some key advanced metrics. Seider ranked fourth in the entire NHL in total skating distance (299.85 miles) last season behind Connor McDavid (330.27), Quinn Hughes (307.46) and Ivan Provorov (299.86), and was in the 93rd percentile among defensemen in both hardest shot (98.93 mph) and average shot speed (72.70).
Seider’s consistent shot speed translated to his perimeter offense; he ranked second in the entire NHL in long-range shots on goal (115; behind Darren Raddysh’s 130) and was tied for fourth in the entire League in long-range goals (six). He also was a standout among defensemen in mid-range shots on goal (38; 94th percentile) and mid-range goals (four; 88th percentile).
Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond, on a similar note, ranked in the 92nd percentile in average shot speed (60.53 mph) and, as a result, was a standout among forwards in perimeter offense; he was in the 92nd percentile at his position in mid-range shots on goal (71) and 89th percentile in both mid-range goals (nine) and long-range shots on goal (19). Detroit, as a team, ranked highly in 70-plus mph shot attempts (1,575; ninth) and average shot speed (58.58; 12th) last season. Like with Seider, that speed translated to the long-range category, where the Red Wings ranked sixth in long-range shots on goal (508) and 11th in long-range goals (20).
Although the Red Wings missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 10th straight season (longest active postseason drought in NHL), Seider’s strong underlying metrics helped goalie John Gibson’s cause in his first season after being traded to Detroit from the Anaheim Ducks last offseason. Seider ranked fourth in the entire League in blocked shots (180) last season and led Detroit skaters in 5-on-5 shot attempts percentage (53.2 percent), while Gibson ranked 10th in quality starts (27; starts with greater than .900 save percentage).
Finally, there’s a 1:48 video discussing the team’s situation as it stands on August 10th, and, if you missed it, here’s Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman discussing Detroit’s general managerial search, from last week:
