Red Wings: Fixing the Depth in Free Agency

The Red Wings have a new bench boss in Derek Lalonde. Lalonde has a young talented core and a prospect pool to work with in his opportunity as an NHL head coach.

While the Red Wings are stocked with young talent, the team lacks depth. While Steve Yzerman has done an excellent job of bringing in different players to protect and teach the organizations young players to be professionals; it is time to bring in difference makers. This year’s free agent market boasts a plethora of high-end talent like Johnny Gaudreau, Nazem Kadri, Evgeni Malkin, and John Klingberg to name a few.

The next phase of the “Yzerplan” is ready to commence. Adding players that can score to enhance the production of Raymond, Larkin, and Bertuzzi should be a priority as well as adding depth pieces around the line-up to propel the team to the next level.

The Red Wings of old were the framework for building a consistent playoff contender. During their extraordinary playoff streak, they ran four lines. It is not surprise that as we watched Tampa Bay make deals the last few seasons to build their depth after drafting most of their top-six.

Let’s take a look at some potential signings that can propel the Red Wings into the playoffs next season.

The Red Wings Could Kill Two-Birds with One Stone

What better piece to add than a Stanley Cup Champion? There is an option on the market that will make the team instantly better and those around him better, enter Nazem Kadri.

While Colorado dealt with injuries during the regular season, it was Kadri who drove the bus.  After averaging over 1.2 points per game this past season, a veteran of over 700 NHL games, and putting up career best in assists and points, there is more to prove. Kadri is living up to his 7th overall selection in 2009. The Wings have the cap space to land Kadri and could use his skillset and grit to reclaim Hockeytown, USA.

Kadri will command a contract north of 8 million AAV. Depending on the length, he is worth it. He is a player that is ready to break away from the shadows and be the man. He is a capable 20-goal scorer that has broken the 30-goal threshold multiple times in his career.

Projected Stats- 37 Goals- 92 Points

Projected Line- Vrana-Kadri-Zadina & Power Play 1

The Red Wings New Forecheck, Backcheck, Trocheck

Our other target should be Vincent Trocheck. It is time for him to return to his “hockey home”. Trocheck grew up playing his youth hockey for Little Ceasars and his junior hockey for the Saginaw Spirit- both located in Michigan. He has shown ability to put up points in Florida and be solid defensively in Carolina while still contributing in on the offense.

Trocheck is a player that has been able to be a constant .5 points per game player in his career and has four 20-goal seasons including a 30-goal season. He showed the most promise in Florida when he was playing first-line minutes in the 2017-2018 campaign. He stormed back to his potential this season with the Hurricanes. He learned how to contribute at a high level in a top-9 role, which is an extremely rare attribute.

Projected Stats- 24 Goals- 61 Points

Projected Line- Suter-Trocheck-Rasmussen & Power Play 2