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Khan assesses the Wings’ cap situation

The NHL released its “payroll ranges” for the next three seasons, with the salary cap tentatively rising to $95.5 million, $104 million and $113.5 million over the next three seasons. As such, MLive’s Ansar Khan assessed the Wings’ cap situation going into this summer:

The Red Wings are in good shape, cap-wise. Their top players (Dylan Larkin, Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond) are locked up to long-term contracts through 2031 and 2032, and Alex DeBrincat has two more years on his deal after this season.

The Red Wings also will be trimming more than $10 million from their payroll with the unrestricted free agents not expected to return.

Their young players on entry-level contracts, notably Simon Edvinsson and Marco Kasper, aren’t up for new deals until 2026-27 and 2027-28, respectively.

This will give general manager Steve Yzerman flexibility to seek big-money players through free agency or trade, if the opportunity is there.

As of now, the Red Wings have 15 players signed for 2025-26 (nine forwards, five defensemen and one goaltender) at a cap figure of $69.6 million. That would give them roughly $25 million to fill out their 23-man roster with eight more players. That includes their own restricted free agents and any prospects being promoted to the NHL, most notably of which figures to be defenseman Axel Sandin Pellikka.

Continued (paywall)

Tweets from practice: Red Wings are skating in Edmonton

The Detroit Red Wings are skating in Edmonton today, before flying to Calgary after having defeated the Edmonton Oilers 3-2 in a shootout on Thursday night:

Three things: On the win in Edmonton, winning on the road and the Wings’ goaltending

Of Red Wings-related note this afternoon:

  1. MLive’s Ansar Khan took note of the Red Wings coach and players’ comments as stated after last night’s 3-2 shootout win over Edmonton:

“I didn’t think we had enough players going and challenged them between periods,” McLellan told FanDuel Sports Network. “All we had to do was find two or three more in the second period and maybe two or three more players in the third and scrap our way to a win.

“But we needed great goaltending, which we got. And we needed some good penalty killing, which we got. And the opportunities we got in the second half of the game we buried. The first half, we missed nets on some of our chances, didn’t find a way to finish. But good night for our group.”

The Red Wings (25-21-5, 55 points) have won four in a row and are 12-4-1 under McLellan. They are only two points out of the wild card spots that Tampa Bay and Columbus currently occupy. They visit Calgary Saturday in the second stop of their four-game trip (10 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network).

“We’ll take any win we can get right now,” McLellan said. “As we win no matter how we do it I think we feel better about ourselves. But we do know we have to be better than we were tonight for the next 60 minutes in Calgary, but we’re not going to over-critique a win.”

2. The Hockey News’s Sam Stockton discussed the Wings’ road-heavy schedule over the final half of the NHL season:

Continue reading Three things: On the win in Edmonton, winning on the road and the Wings’ goaltending

Press release: NHL, NHLPA announce ‘Team Payroll Ranges’ for next 3 seasons

I’m a little late with this announcement, but it’s a consequential one, per the NHL and NHLPA:

NHLPA, NHL Announce Team Payroll Ranges for Next Three Seasons

NEW YORK/TORONTO (Jan. 31, 2025) – The National Hockey League and the National Hockey League Players’ Association announced today an agreement that will provide increased predictability on core Salary Cap economics for a minimum of the next three years (through 2027-28).

The agreement sets the following annual increases to the Upper Limit, subject to the Collective Bargaining Agreement being in effect beyond the 2025-26 season:

2025-26: $7.5 million

2026-27: $8.5 million

2027-28: $9.5 million

Those increases would set Team Payroll Ranges for the next three seasons to:

2025-26

Upper Limit: $95.5 Million

Lower Limit: $70.6 Million

2026-27

Upper Limit: $104 Million

Lower Limit: $76.9 Million

2027-28

Upper Limit: $113.5 Million

Lower Limit: $83.9 Million

The projected Team Payroll Ranges for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons will be subject to potential minor adjustments (up or down).

The parties still intend to meet to discuss other elements of the Collective Bargaining Agreement that might need modification and/or improvement beyond the 2025-26 season.

Tweet of note: Saginaw Spirit to host Shocks & Saves game on Saturday

From the Saginaw Spirit:

Tweet of note: At the Four Nations Face-Off, Raymond will wear #23, Larkin #21

Per Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston:

The numbers were released as part of a promotion for the Four Nations Face-Off jerseys:

A bit of praise for Dominik Shine

Sportsnet’s Mike Amato spotlights 4 NHL players in his “Friday Four,” and here’s his pick from the Red Wings:

Dominik Shine, Detroit Red Wings: What a journey for Dominik Shine.

The 31-year-old played his first NHL game for the Red Wings this week after grinding away in the AHL for nine seasons. Shine joined the Grand Rapids Griffins after spending four years at Northern Michigan University and has posted at least 10 goals in each of the past four seasons. He becomes the oldest player to make his NHL debut since 2015.

If you’re scoring at home, Shine played 462 AHL games before finally getting the call from the Wings, but it was worth the wait. What makes this moment even more special for Shine is that he’s a Detroit native. He got to make his NHL debut for his hometown team and the organization he grew up watching.

This is the second feel-good debut we’ve seen in January. Ethen Frank played his first NHL game for the Washington Capitals earlier this month at the age of 26, where he also plied his craft in the AHL for several years. Frank actually picked up a point in each of his first three games, including tallying a pair of goals.

Shine’s debut wasn’t as memorable as Frank’s when it came to the scoresheet. He managed only two hits and a block in 9:50 of action and didn’t record a shot on goal. Still, Shine proved persistence pays off and no matter what happens in the future, he can say he was an NHL player. No one can take that away from him.

Continued

An early Red Wings-Flames preview

The Red Wings defeated the Edmonton Oilers via a 3-2 shootout decision on Thursday night, and Detroit will head to Calgary after today’s practice to play the Calgary Flames. Here’s an early AP preview of Saturday night’s game:

BOTTOM LINE: The Calgary Flames host the Detroit Red Wings after the Red Wings took down the Edmonton Oilers 3-2 in a shootout.

Calgary is 25-18-7 overall and 16-7-3 in home games. The Flames are 7-12-2 when they commit more penalties than their opponent.

Detroit has a 25-21-5 record overall and a 10-10-3 record in road games. The Red Wings have a 4-6-3 record in games they have more penalties than their opponent.

The matchup Saturday is the second time these teams meet this season. The Red Wings won 2-1 in overtime in the last matchup.

TOP PERFORMERS: Jonathan Huberdeau has 19 goals and 17 assists for the Flames. Matthew Coronato has four goals and three assists over the last 10 games.

Alex DeBrincat has 21 goals and 18 assists for the Red Wings. Marco Kasper has six goals and four assists over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Flames: 6-4-0, averaging 2.9 goals, 4.4 assists, 4.8 penalties and 13.3 penalty minutes while giving up 2.5 goals per game.

Red Wings: 6-3-1, averaging three goals, 5.3 assists, 2.6 penalties and 5.2 penalty minutes while giving up 2.6 goals per game.