Even when it’s early in the season, it doesn’t mean we won’t see plenty of player movement throughout the next week. While the three Red Wings listed below won’t all be on their respective ways out of Detroit (or the entire organization completely), they are, at the moment, the likeliest ones to play their final game, at least for a while, in a red and white uniform.
Two of those listed, one forward and one blueliner, are still with the Red Wings as of 2 p.m. Thursday afternoon. The final name is currently in Grand Rapids, and you can make a solid case for him finally moving on from the Red Wings in what has been an ill-fated tenure.
1 - Jonatan Berggren
The Jonatan Berggren experiment is going exactly as predicted in the Motor City through the first handful of games. We had an inkling it was ending last year, but with just an assist in six games plus 12:33 of average total ice time, and a 6.5 on-ice shooting percentage at even strength, it wouldn’t surprise me if the wings once again reassigned Berggren.
Sure, his on-ice save percentage in that same situation is an unprecedented 97.3 percent, but hot goaltending has been the theme of this 2024-25 Red Wings season so far. Overall, there are players and prospects out there who give the Wings a better chance to win than Berggren, and the way things are shaping up, they need to turn to those players.
2 - Justin Holl
While the Justin Holl experiment should be working better than the one mentioned above, it’s hard for the blueliner to take full advantage of his chances with the Wings if he hardly gets any. Against the New York Islanders on October 22nd, Holl saw under 15 minutes of ice time, and if that trend continues over the next week, a trip back to the AHL is his likeliest destination.
Should that be the case, Holl’s name could also start swirling around the trade rumor mill again. But I wouldn’t expect the Red Wings to get a lot of value for him at this point, and the trade would likely involve the team just passing him off to someone else.
3 - Ville Husso
Ville Husso is a rather special case since he’s already in the AHL, meaning he’s the likeliest trade piece should another organization seek organizational depth or even a No. 2 goaltender for their lineup. The former fourth-round pick is mainly taking up space in the AHL, and most fans should be clamoring to see mainly Sebastian Cossa snag most of the starts.
But to ensure this, it means moving Husso elsewhere, even if it’s for a late-round pick at this point. Earlier in the month, I elaborated as to why Husso needs to go, but not only do we need to see Steve Yzerman take that drastic action now, among goaltenders, he’s the likeliest one to move on.