Projecting the Red Wings Opening Night Roster: Before Free Agency
By Zach Piteo
The Detroit Red Wings Current State
The Red Wings currently have 16 roster players under contract, and 33 within the organization as a whole. This does not include players currently on IR: Robby Fabbri and Carter Rowney (pending UFA). Let’s assume Fabbri is not ready for opening night after suffering another ACL tear back on March 10. Beginning to fill out the roster with players under contract who played significant roles last season is pretty easy:
Vrána, Larkin, Bertuzzi
Raymond, Suter, ?
Erne, Rasmussen, ?
Smith, Sundqvist, ?
Oesterle, Seider
?, Hronek
?, Lindström
Husso, Nedeljkovic
The addition of Ville Husso for a 3rd round pick in the draft will go a long way to stabilizing the goaltending situation. We now have 2 goalies under 28 who have shown promise and are looking to establish themselves as legitimate starters. Nothing against Thomas Greiss, but this combination should give the Wings a legitimate chance to win every single night. Plus, signing Husso to a 3-year deal ensures primo prospect Sebastian Cossa won’t need to be rushed to the NHL just to fill a roster spot.
Next, we’ll bring up some of the kids to fill out the lineup.