Detroit Red Wings 2022-23 trade deadline week recap

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The 2022-23 NHL trade deadline has come and gone. The Detroit Red Wings made several deals leading up to the deadline and have had a busy week overall. Steve Yzerman was prepping to be both a buyer and a seller throughout the week but ultimately shifted into seller mode and opted to part ways with some of the team’s assets.

It should not be shocking for the Detroit Red Wings after the back-to-back set against the Ottawa Senators resulted in them getting pummeled for their second and third straight losses. Heck, now they have lost four in a row as the Seattle Kraken grabbed an overtime win on Thursday night over Detroit.

But the good thing for the Red Wings is that they were able to come away with a plethora of draft picks and likely set themselves up moving forward beyond the 2022-23 season. This term rebuilding has become so painful to hear, but the job that Yzerman did deserves a round of applause.

With the moves that the Red Wings did make this week, he set the Red Wings up big time moving forward. They’ll have a chance to make upgrades this off-season and try to come back strong in 2023-24 and compete as they showed they could do at points over the last month and a half.

Detroit Red Wings 2022-23 trade deadline recap

Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin (71) passes the pucks during the warmup period against the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome. (Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports) /

Tuesday, February 28th

On Tuesday, the ball got rolling on the Detroit Red Wings’ busy week. Amid some tough losses from their pummeling by the Senators, the Red Wings were able to find some good. They brought back Jake Walman on a three-year contract extension to rejoin the team’s defense core.

Walman is slated to take home $3.4 million a year and will likely keep playing with Moritz Seider and being a perfect partner for the youngster. Besides Walman, the Red Wings also extended Olli Maatta on a two-year contract extension a few weeks back.

Wednesday, March 1st (Extensions)

The Detroit Red Wings had a franchise-altering day on Wednesday with their accomplishment. Yzerman was able to come to an agreement with Dylan Larkin and his agent on a contract extension. It was a huge day for the Red Wings as they were able to lock up their captain on an eight-year, $69.6 million contract extension to remain in Hockeytown. Larkin will earn $8.7 million annually (on average) and continue to be this team’s leader.

It’s not franchise-altering in that they traded someone big, but they committed to Larkin and were able to ensure that they kept their captain in Hockeytown. There was a lot of positivity around the move and plenty of excitement about the future of this team.

The extensions were huge, and while Larkin’s has much more of a shelf life with an eight-year deal, it was still good to see Walman get his deal. It started to really kickstart the week of moves from the Red Wings.

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Filip Hronek (17) against the Montreal Canadiens during the first period at Bell Centre. (David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports) /

Wednesday, March 1st (Trades)

While the vibes were high that the Detroit Red Wings were able to come to an agreement with Dylan Larkin on a contract extension, Steve Yzerman was busy working the phones. This is when the first domino of the Red Wings trades fell.

It was an unlikely name too. Many thought the first name to be moved was going to be Tyler Bertuzzi, but instead, it was Filip Hronek. The Red Wings traded Hronek and a 2023 fourth-round draft pick to Vancouver in exchange for a 2023 first-round draft pick (New York Islanders originally) that is protected and could slide to the 2024 draft. The Canucks also sent the Red Wings a second-round draft pick in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft.

For the Red Wings, this was the start of the major sell-off from Yzerman. He continued on Thursday as well.

Thursday, March 2nd

Even though things were going so well for Dylan Larkin and the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday, things took a turn on Thursday. In all reality, it’s a good move for the team, but trading Tyler Bertuzzi had a clearly harsh impact on Larkin, and it showed in the presser.

Yzerman got the Bruins to bite on a deal that helped stack more draft capital. Boston sent the Red Wings a 2024 first-round draft pick and a 2025 fourth-round draft pick. As part of the Red Wings trading Bertuzzi to Boston, they retained 50% of his salary to make the deal happen.

It was another excellent move for Yzerman, who added another first-round pick into the mix and was able to get something for nothing since the two sides could not agree on a contract extension.

Detroit Red Wings left wing Jakub Vrana (15) skates with the puck during the third period against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Little Caesars Arena. (Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports) /

Friday, March 3rd

The morning started with another Detroit Red Wings trade. Yet again, it was Yzerman getting something for nothing. The Red Wings traded forward Jakub Vrana to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for a 2025 seventh-round draft pick and AHL centerman Dylan McLaughlin.

As part of this trade, the Red Wings will also retain 50% of Vrana’s remaining salary. It was time for the two parties to move on, as Yzerman phrased it, and he ultimately was going to pursue a buyout this summer, so he was able to get something out of it by moving him with his trading buddy in St. Louis, Doug Armstrong.

Later in the day, things started to get chaotic as the team had two trades in the works as things started to come down to the final moments. The Red Wings were set to acquire James Van Riemsdyk at the same time that they were engaging in a trade of Oskar Sundqvist to the Minnesota Wild.

However, the only trade that became official was Sundqvist being sent to the Wild. The Red Wings traded Sundqvist to the Wild for a fourth-round pick in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft. This essentially negates the fourth-rounder sent to Vancouver in the Hronek deal.

On top of that, the Red Wings added Alex Chiasson on a pro-rated one-year contract. He will have to clear waivers to join the team but is slated to join Detroit as a depth addition. This move was announced shortly after the deadline had passed.

Steve Yzerman. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

One final look at the Detroit Red Wings trade deadline efforts

The Detroit Red Wings were busy over the last week. They made several trades, extended a few players, signed another, and continued to build for the future. Steve Yzerman worked the phones and had plenty on his plate over the past few days.

Looking at the trades alone, here is what the Red Wings gained and lost throughout the week of deals.

Detroit Red Wings Acquired:

2023 1st Round Pick (NYI) *conditional, could slide to ’24
2023 2nd Round Pick (VAN)
2023 4th Round Pick (MIN)
2024 1st Round Pick (BOS)
2025 4th Round Pick (BOS)
2025 7th Round Pick (STL)
Dylan McLaughlin

Detroit Red Wings Traded:

Tyler Bertuzzi (50% retained)
Filip Hronek
Oskar Sundqvist
Jakub Vrana (50% retained)
4th Round Pick (DET)

The Red Wings had a busy trade deadline, and Yzerman did what he does best, stack himself some draft capital. He traded four players and a draft pick (which he recouped) and brought in five draft picks (not counting the flipped 4th rounder) and a player.

I would say it was a successful week and trade deadline for the Red Wings. Aside from the trades, Yzerman was able to lock up his captain on an eight-year contract. The remainder of the 2022-23 season may not be as fun to watch as the last month, and a half was, but Yzerman just put the Red Wings’ wheels in motion for next season and beyond.

Red Wings fans may be upset with how things will go in the home stretch, but there should be no ill will. The team’s run after the All-Star break was perfect for them moving forward.

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The Red Wings just have to keep making steps in the right direction, and Yzerman’s moves this week will help accomplish that.

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