Top 3 players the Red Wings missed out on at the NHL trade deadline

Of all the disappointing teams at the 2024 NHL trade deadline, the Detroit Red Wings may have disappointed more than any other. Steve Yzerman was one executive you just have to keep tabs on around the deadline, given the transactions he has made in the past. But when 3 PM came on March 8th, he made just one move that involved moving one of his more physical players to the San Jose Sharks.

For a team that could use some physicality, that was a bad trade at the worst, and questionable at best. While it’s true Yzerman didn’t need to pull off a blockbuster move at the deadline, he still needed to address team needs either by adding defensive-oriented players at forward, stay-at-home defensemen, or even another goaltender. 

Yzerman clearly turned his focus from adding pieces from other organizations to looking internally at his own franchise, and that’s never a bad thing. You want to promote and grow your organization internally, as they are players who are either building or have built chemistry alongside one another in the lower leagues. But as a playoff contender who is currently struggling, he still needed to add someone, and even a rather obscure piece would have worked. 

The Red Wings could have made small moves at the NHL trade deadline

Yzerman has given us plenty of high-profile acquisitions, and no, repeating that this season wasn’t necessary. But there are three forwards with defensive-minded approaches who would have immediately upgraded the Red Wings, especially since they are missing one of their top scorers in Dylan Larkin.

So, who could have helped turn around what has been a poor defensive team this season? The names you are about to see wouldn’t have added much value in the offensive zone, and only one would likely have been near a ‘blockbuster’ deal. But they all would have improved Detroit’s lower lines, and perhaps even for longer than just this season.

Lars Eller would have added depth scoring and defense

One major theme with the Detroit Red Wings in 2023-24 is that, while they have been fantastic with the puck, it has been a different story when the puck is on the opponents’ sticks. This team is supposed to be a playoff contender, but allowing 211 goals or 3.29 per contest after 64 games won’t take anyone far in the postseason. 

Lars Eller is one of three forwards listed whose defensive game would have given Detroit’s goaltending rotation some much-needed relief. Eller hasn’t been the most physical defensive forward this season, but with 39 takeaways, he’s still tough on opponents trying to make something happen when his team is in the defensive zone. 

A team struggling defensively can also never have too many men on the penalty kill. Eller brings that, despite Detroit’s PK unit being one of the better ones in the league with a success rate of over 80 percent. 

Best yet, Eller has a career Corsi of over 50 percent at 5-on-5, and he’s also someone who can win faceoffs in the defensive zone. With the playoff race heating up now, you can never have too many players who can help a team regain or maintain puck possession. 

Scott Laughton’s defense-first mentality could have transformed Detroit

Despite playing sensational hockey this season, the Philadelphia Flyers weren’t supposed to keep their entire team intact. One player in the rumor mill, Sean Walker, went to the Colorado Avalanche, and it yielded the Flyers a conditional first-round pick. Scott Laughton was the other player supposed to be on the move, but general manager Daniel Briere kept him in the City of Brotherly Love. 

While Laughton, despite his affordable cap hit, would have cost some significant compensation in the way of high-end prospects and draft picks, Yzerman shouldn’t have thought twice about calling up Briere. He had a prospect in Jonatan Berggren, who Briere would have taken, and while Laughton likely would have cost a first-round pick, Yzerman had first-round picks to burn, considering the state of his team and his prospects pool. 

Laughton’s contract also runs through the 2025-26 season, so the Red Wings would have had him for not one, not two, but three potential playoff runs. Considering his physical, defense-first game, plus the ability to provide adequate scoring (double-digit goals in the last three seasons), and the contributions he could also make on special teams, Laughton would have been a remarkable addition, even if the Red Wings weren’t linked to him.