What would the most logistical trade for Filip Gustavsson look like for the Red Wings?
The Detroit Red Wings must do something to fix their play in the crease this offseason, and the Minnesota Wild could field offers for Filip Gustavsson.
The Detroit Red Wings must make something happen if they want a complete team in the 2024-25 season. Right now, earning a trip to the 2025 playoffs would be preferred, but general manager Steve Yzerman will ask a lot out of his team if he doesn’t address the goaltending.
While it would be great to find a suitor for Ville Husso and to refrain from signing any NHL-caliber goaltender in the current free agent market thanks to how poor the class is this season, it would be epic if he brought in a young netminder with high potential, and it’s something Filip Gustavsson brings.
So what must the Red Wings do if they’re looking to make a big trade with a team that is really in the same position as them? Here is the most logical hypothetical trade that would benefit Detroit and the Minnesota Wild.
What would the Wild want in a trade for Filip Gustavsson?
The Wild didn’t finish too far behind the Red Wings in the league standings, notching 87 points. But they looked like a team at a crossroads before re-signing Marc-Andre Fleury. It’s becoming clear that despite his advanced age, Fleury will be the No. 1 goaltender in St. Paul, and one general manager Billy Guerin wants to build a winner around.
This will make a 1A-caliber goaltender like Gustavsson expendable to a netminder-needy team, preferably one with assets that will make the Wild better as both organizations look to benefit and seek the playoffs. The Wild will need forwards to help improve their lackluster scoring, but ironically, this isn’t the trade that will give them anything or anyone guaranteed.
They will, however, need a 1B goaltender and another defenseman to replace Gustavsson and Alex Goligoski, whose career may be finished. Meanwhile, the Red Wings also need upgrades to their blue line, and this trade wouldn’t give them anything immediate, so instead, we’re looking at minor assets besides Gustavsson.
The most logical trade between the Red Wings and Wild comprises…
This is a unique trade as it could more than benefit Detroit and Minnesota in the short and potentially the long run, and in more ways than just swapping current NHLers. The basis of this trade will comprise the Wild sending Gustavsson to the Red Wings for Ville Husso and a blueliner we spoke about in the previous post, Justin Holl.
This allows someone who has 1A potential in Gustavsson to play somewhere he can sidle in as the top netminder while a clear-cut 1B in Ville Husso has a chance to restart his career and play in a role identical to what he enjoyed in 2021-22 when he was initially the 1B to Jordan Binnington.
Justin Holl makes an adequate replacement for Goligoski, and we all know he shouldn’t be in a Red Wings uniform for 2024-25 anyway, so placing him in this trade also made sense. Yzerman will also flip a borderline NHL-ready prospect over in Elmer Soderblom, an imposing winger whose physical play could inevitably lead to more scoring chances with a team like the Wild.
Likewise, the Wild will send a prospect on the blue line over and one who, with more improvement, could see their stock skyrocket next season. Ryan O’Rourke possesses a playing style the Wings need, and even if he’s not an NHLer next season, it won’t be long until the stay-at-home defenseman is routinely checking opponents with the big club.
The Red Wings and Wild will benefit from a trade like this
You could realistically call the Filip Gustavsson trade the Gustavsson-Husso trade because this one involves two goaltenders whose roles need to change. Husso has proven himself to sidle in behind a more established talent, while you can’t say exactly the same for Gustavsson, but as a clear-cut 1A as opposed to a 1B.
Since Husso would complete what will be a solid one-two combo in St. Paul, the Wild would have no problem making the swap here, and there would be no goaltender controversy attached.
There isn’t another blueliner in the NHL who would benefit more from a change of scenery than Holl. Swapping a pair of high-potential prospects may help Minnesota’s scoring in the long run, and the Red Wings would also get deeper with another young talent on the blue line.
This trade may not have ‘blockbuster’ written all over it, but it’s one of necessity for the Red Wings and Wild. If this trade occurred and everything went according to plan, you could see both teams sneak into their respective conferences’ playoffs in 2025, and it would at least give each fanbase much-needed optimism for 2026 and beyond.
We’ll see if Yzerman makes the inquiry involving Gustavsson and, if so, if he’s willing to give up the right compensation to bring him to the Motor City.
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