Red Wings: What Does Alex Biega Extension Mean for Detroit?

The Detroit Red Wings extended defenseman Alex Biega to a one-year, one-way deal worth $875,000 Sunday night.

Late Sunday night the Detroit Red Wings extended the contract of defenseman Alex Biega.

It’s a one-year, one-way extension worth $875,000, as first reported by CapFriendly.com and later confirmed by yours truly.

It’s not a flashy move by general manager Steve Yzerman by any means, but it’s a move us here at Octopus Thrower think is the right one.

First off, he’s an Yzerman guy. Yzerman traded forward David Pope for Biega in October 2019, so to see a short-term resigning isn’t surprising…and makes sense.

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Biega is a gap-filling defenseman who is a bridge until the Red Wings get more NHL-ready defensemen in their system and improve enough to make the move from Grand Rapids to Detroit.

For the stat-sheet lookers, Biega is a bust.

He never has been one to put up stats, scoring four goals in his six-year career…and that’s OK. Biega is a dependable veteran who Yzerman inked to another short-term deal that won’t affect the team’s long-term outlook.

Here’s why this move is a win for Yzerman and the Red Wings.

If Biega takes a step back next season, he’s simply cut. If he plays above his pay grade, he becomes a viable asset that Yzerman can flip at the trade deadline similarly to what he did with defenseman Mike Green. It likely won’t be anything substantial, but if Biega earns Yzerman a dart throw in the 2021 NHL draft, that’s a win for the organization.

A third scenario is also in play. If we get repeat Biega, a guy who doesn’t score, kills penalties and provides a veteran presence all season long, that’s a win, too. That could even ink him another one-year deal.

He’s a good third-line/depth defender and the move is low risk, medium reward, so why not?

Is he part of the core? No.

Does this extension make sense now? Yes.