The Detroit Red Wings could solve their issues at netminder with one big trade in the offseason. Even if it costs them a large amount of compensation, acquiring an adequate goaltender for 2024-25 would be the final step in this team’s quest to end its far-too-long playoff drought.
This past season, the Red Wings may have earned that elusive postseason berth if they just had a couple of solid goaltenders, but Ville Husso kept disappointing and never seemed to stay healthy, while James Reimer played well at times but lacked consistency.
This left Alex Lyon as the top player in the net, but despite the strong season, it would be risky to go into 2023-24 with who is currently a “one-year wonder” at the position. With nobody worth mentioning in free agency, let’s check out five goalies general manager Steve Yzerman should seriously consider trading for this summer.
Logan Thompson, Vegas Golden Knights
Logan Thompson is the one goaltender on this list who would provide a cost-effective solution in the net for Detroit. So far, his AAV is an ultra-manageable $766,667, and Thompson will be in a contract year for 2024-25. While it’s more than possible the Vegas Golden Knights sign him to an extension this summer, he may still factor in behind Adin Hill, whom they invested far more money into.
This isn’t a knock on Thompson, who had no choice but to step up and provide quality goaltending for Vegas this season when Hill missed extended time with multiple injuries. It resulted in Thompson playing in 46 contests and taking the 1A role, and he did a fine job, logging a 0.908 save percentage, a 2.70 GAA, a shutout, and a 0.595 quality starts percentage.
Thompson also outplayed Hill in a few categories, but again, he’s getting a six-figure investment, while Vegas has nearly an AAV of $5 million invested in Hill. And it’s not like Thompson completely outplayed Hill, so they would have fewer issues trading away the 27-year-old unless Hill’s injury issues this season entice them to shop his contract and drop the final year of it onto someone else.
That said, of the two goaltenders more likely to leave Vegas, at least logistically, it may ultimately be the guy playing netminder in the postseason’s first four games. They also turned to Hill halfway through the series, so until it’s otherwise Thompson’s net for good, he’s getting the mention.