Month: August 2026

Tweets of note: Red Wings (finally) post promotional and theme night schedules

The Red Wings’ Tweets regarding their promotional schedule are a little late to the party, but here they are nonetheless:

Detroit’s GM search must balance speed and decision-making to hire the ‘right fit’ at the right time

Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen argues that the Red Wings need to “giddy up” in terms of their GM/president of hockey operations search, while also suggesting that the team should hold fast to its demands in terms of a return for Dylan Larkin:

First and foremost, the Red Wings must get the hire right, but they also need to move as quickly as they can in this Detroit vetting process. The new boss will need time to explore Larkin options, including whether he might want to stay.

For those who believe the new hire will accept some draft picks and prospects from Minnesota for Larkin and move on, that is unlikely to happen. When you talk to people around the NHL, no one believes [Steve] Yzerman was wrong for demanding a proven player or players in a Larkin swap. A weak scoring team cannot give up a proven 30-goal scorer for spins at the roulette wheel.

Everyone in the NHL understands that unless you are picking in the Top 15, draft picks are raffle tickets. Even in the first round, there’s roughly a 30% chance a team won’t land a player who will make it.

Continue reading Detroit’s GM search must balance speed and decision-making to hire the ‘right fit’ at the right time

Monarrez: Analytics alone aren’t the answer to problems for Detroit’s ‘chaotic’ front office situation

This morning, the Free Press’s Carlos Monarrez addresses Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman’s report that the Detroit Red Wings are considering hiring an analytics-based general manager/hockey executive this summer, and that Tigers GM Jeff Greenberg may be a candidate for the position.

Monarrez doesn’t see the fit, but he also suggests that the Red Wings have struggled with incorporating underlying analytical data into their day-to-day operations:

A person familiar with Yzerman’s approach, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Yzerman thought hockey is “still trying to figure out what analytics work.”

That led to Yzerman struggling to explain hockey in analytic terms Ilitch prefers.

“He had to speak an analytical language he wasn’t familiar with,” the person said. “And he had no idea what he was telling [Ilitch]. He had to explain in analytical terms and not hockey terms.”

Analytics can be helpful in any sport. But baseball’s use of data tools is entirely unique, and if Ilitch thinks any GM, even [Tigers GM Jeff] Greenberg, can use a few key metrics to synthesize what leads to success in hockey, he’s setting himself up to be charmed by the smoothest talker with the best PowerPoint presentation.

According to Monarrez, Chris Ilitch’s indecision on the hockey side of his Red Wings and Tigers business operations isn’t helping the situation…

Continue reading Monarrez: Analytics alone aren’t the answer to problems for Detroit’s ‘chaotic’ front office situation

Tweet of note: Ken Daniels previews the Roast of Chris Osgood and its charity auction

From Detroit SportsNet comes a 6-minute interview in which Logan Reever discusses the Roast of Chris Osgood with Red Wings broadcaster Ken Daniels.

Daniels sets up the event on August 29th (it’s pricey at $300 per seat, though it’s to raise funds for the Jamie Daniels Foundation) and the charity auction, which will “go live” online shortly.

Tweet of note: ‘Hockeytown’ is on the ice at Little Caesars Arena (literally)

The Red Wings have officially confirmed that they’ve painted a “Hockeytown” logo on the ice at Little Caesars Arena for this upcoming season. I hope the Wings grow back into that name some time soon:

Audio/video/video link: Kulfan, Allen and St. James weigh in on the Red Wings’ front office uncertainty and the Dylan Larkin situation

Three of the Red Wings’ beat writers spoke with local and national broadcasters, and podcasters, regarding the Red Wings’ front office uncertainty and Dylan Larkin’s complicated situation.

First, via SI’s Jayd Serdy, the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan spoke with WWJ Newsradio 950 and 97.1 the Ticket’s Jeremy Otto regarding the intertwined nature of the Wings’ general managerial flux and Dylan Larkin’s trade demands…

Kulfan suggests that the Red Wings may see Dylan Larkin head to training camp (where he would be accepted by the team), start the season with and possibly rectify the situation with Detroit because the new GM would be running out of time to trade #71 given that it’s mid-August.

Kulfan says that with 65 goals out of the lineup in Larkin, Kane and JvR gone, Detroit needs as much offense as possible…But Kulfan is less certain that Larkin would end the season in Detroit.

Second, Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen spoke with the Flying Octopod’s Evan Sabourin, Devin Little and Tony Wolak regarding the Red Wings’ managerial search and Dylan Larkin’s trade demands…

Third and finally, the Free Press’s Helene St. James appeared on the NHL Tonight this evening, and while I can only provide a video link to St. James’ 6:37 interview with Tony Luftman and Ken Daneyko regarding Yzerman’s semi-resignation…

–St. James suggests that Steve Yzerman’s timing in choosing to step down from the Red Wings’ GM position is unusual to say the very least;

–St. James believes that the Red Wings should emulate Zach Werenski’s trade demand in Columbus and try to rectify the situation by reconciling to find a way to salvage their relationship, with HSJ suggesting that the Red Wings’ fans can accept Larkin again;

–St. James also notes that the Red Wings must attempt to find a Dylan Larkin-type player in return for a trade, and while the Red Wings are “miffed” that they’ve paid him $31 million of his total salary on that 8-year deal, with an $8.7 million cap hit left on the marketplace…

–And St. James describes the Red Wings’ situation as “dismal” as of mid-August, because she suggests that Detroit needs to find a GM/Director of Hockey Operations who must decide whether to reconcile with Larkin or trade him for “futures,” which would set back Raymond and Seider’s playoff aspirations, and he/they must re-sign Simon Edvinsson and get ready for the rookie tournament and training camp as well.

Update: For what it’s worth, Luftman and Daneyko have another segment in which they discuss Larkin’s trade value and debate his trade value vs. reconciliation.

Discussing the Red Wings’ next leadership group

Detroit Hockey Now’s Max Smith ponders the shape of the Red Wings’ potential leadership group when and/or if Dylan Larkin leaves the team. I believe that Smith’s “guesstimate” as to who will wear the next alternate captain’s “A” is spot-on:

With the Red Wings a month away from the start of training camp, one of the biggest questions remaining on the roster is how the team’s on-ice leadership group will shake out. Mo Seider appears to be the heir apparent to the Red Wings captaincy with current captain Dylan Larkin’s trade request hanging over the franchise like a dark cloud.

Seider has proven himself, in the words of head coach Todd McLellan, ‘to be the heartbeat of this team’ and ‘a true diesel engine’ who the Red Wings should follow the example of. That’s probably why McLellan got rid of the team’s rotating alternate captain system and put the ‘A’ on Seider’s chest after coming to the team two years ago.

Now, with Larkin on the way out the door and Seider stepping up, the Red Wings next leadership group will be quite different than it was at this time last year. Lucas Raymond and Alex DeBrincat are the most obvious options for the postion, especially with Patrick Kane’s exit.

Continued; Seider makes a whole lot of sense as captain, and I’d suggest that the final “A” would be a toss-up between DeBrincat and a veteran like Ben Chiarot, with DeBrincat earning the nod as a “carrot” with which to entrench him as a Red Wing.

Talkin’ about Carter Bear

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff continues Detroit Hockey Now’s survey of the Red Wings’ young players this morning, discussing Carter Bear’s potential:

Last Season

Still recovering from an Achilles injury suffered late in his draft year, Bear was slow out of the gate last season. He refuses to let anyone suggest that the ailment played any role in his slow start.

“No, I don’t really like to put any excuse on it,” Bear said. “I started playing, and it just went away from my mind and started to feel normal. Yeah, it’s all healthy now, for sure.”

Boy, did it ever go away. Bear absolutely ignited as fall turned to winter. He finished with 36 goals, 77 points, and a +45 rating in 53 games for Everett. He added seven goals, 22 points, and a +22 rating in 18 playoff games. Everett won the WHL title, ultimately falling to the Kitchener Rangers in the Memorial Cup final.

“As a kid, you watch the Memorial Cup each year, and playing it was pretty special to do with the group of guys I had in Everett,” Bear said. “For sure was unbelievable. So, yeah, it was pretty cool. But it sucks how we came up short.”

Continue reading Talkin’ about Carter Bear

Khan breaks down the Wings’ centers sans Larkin

MLive’s Ansar Khan examines the Red Wings’ depth chart at center minus one Dylan Larkin today, discussing the statuses of Andrew Copp, J.T. Compher, Marco Kasper, Michael Rasmussen and Nate Danielson (in that order):

Andrew Copp: He is the most logical choice to fill that top-line center spot until a better option becomes available. He’d center Lucas Raymond, a shooter (who needs to shoot more), and probably Emmitt Finnie, who’d bring much-needed speed that would be lacking without Larkin. Copp fit in well the second half of the season on the second line with Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane and produced career highs in assists (34) and points (43) to go along with nine goals. He was the team’s most effective faceoff man (54.2 percent).

J.T. Compher: He hasn’t been able to secure the second-line center spot, and his production has declined in each of his three seasons in Detroit (11 goals, 28 points in 82 games last season). But he’d be the best option to center a line with DeBrincat and perhaps newly acquired Viktor Arvidsson.

Marco Kasper: If he plays like he did the second half of his rookie season, Kasper would be a fixture in the top six and possibly the second-line center. The team tried everything to get him going last season, playing him at center, on the wing and on every line, but he couldn’t gain traction (nine goals, 19 points).

Continued (paywall); as Khan suggests, the Red Wings rather desperately need to acquire a center in exchange for Dylan Larkin, even if that means trading “futures” to a 3rd team in order to maximize Larkin’s value.

Roughly translated: Simon Edvinsson’s waiting for the Red Wings’ next GM

Expressen’s Gunnar Nordstrom updates the status of Red Wings defenseman and restricted free agent Simon Edvinsson this morning, reporting that Edvinsson’s contract negotiations are in a holding pattern as the team searches for its next hockey executive. What follows is roughly translated from Swedish:

It may be that Simon Edvinsson has to wait for a new contract

Los Angeles. Simon Edvinsson, 23, is awaiting a new contract with the Detroit Red Wings.

But the team is currently missing a general manager since Steve Yzerman left his post earlier this summer.

So the salary negotiations are down.

“We are patiently awaiting for a new general manager,” Edvinsson’s agent, Peter Werner, told Expressen.

Continue reading Roughly translated: Simon Edvinsson’s waiting for the Red Wings’ next GM