EP Rinkside’s JFresh is something of an analytics wizard, and, this morning, the subscription website has offered an unlocked entry in which JFresh analyzes the free agency additions of three major players in the trade and unrestricted free agency marketplaces–the Ottawa Senators, Carolina Hurricanes, and Detroit Red Wings
JFresh’s analytical models suggest that the Red Wings will earn a much-better but out-of-the-playoff-mix 94 “projected standings points” this upcoming season, but he’s not particularly impressed by Steve Yzerman’s additions, nor the means by which Yzerman made the additions.
JFresh suggests that the Wings will only improve upon their moribund 2021-2022 season record by approximately ten points, despite the Wings’ additions of a significant number of secondary scorers, secondary defensemen and possibly a starting goaltender:
What do you do when your team has pretty much no middle-of-the-lineup players and a gigantic pile of cap space? Evidently, you simply buy yourself seven players.
General Manager Steve Yzerman‘s extreme patience while rebuilding the Red Wings has paid off in the form of at least one apparent franchise-level talent in Moritz Seider, but with the team having stagnated in the 70-74 point range for the most part since 2018 it did kind of appear as though the team was ambling along aimlessly.
Apparently, that time has come to an end. The Red Wings dumped a big pile of money on several solid free agents and essentially bought themselves a couple more wins in the short term.
He continues (I’m clipping the text as these articles are often re-locked; while I’m an optimist regarding the Red Wings’ level of improvement, I also believe that there’s still a youth movement going on, and I don’t know if that’s delusional at this point)…
Continue reading EP Rinkside’s JFresh analyzes the Wings’ free agency moves