How desperate will Red Wings get ahead of NHL Trade Deadline?
Nobody in the NHL would come out and admit it, but certain seasons matter more for some teams than others. The Florida Panthers would love to go on a late-season run and make the playoffs, but it’s understood that their back-to-back Stanley Cup championships and the year-long injury to center Aleksander Barkov affords them plenty of grace should they come up short. Then you have teams like the Detroit Red Wings, who must be feeling a high level of urgency to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
Detroit has had a solid season so far, as they currently occupy the top wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. But their play has slipped of late, having lost six of their past nine games going back to before the Olympic break. Even head coach Todd McLellan called out some of his players for being “just jerseys” after a recent loss. If the Red Wings want to ensure a postseason berth this season, they could be particularly motivated to make some win-now moves ahead of March 6th’s trade deadline.
On Monday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, hosts Tyler Yaremchuk and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton discussed just how aggressive Detroit should be in the trade market.
Tyler Yaremchuk: What team needs to make a trade more than the 31 other teams? What GM has got to be a little desperate this week, Hutts?
Carter Hutton: I think the Detroit Red Wings. I think the Red Wings as a team that have just quietly been pecking away and getting it done. I think they could use a little reassurance with where they’re at, a little bit of depth. They play a good skill game but I think you could go and acquire a veteran guy to play down in your lineup with some experience, with some grit. If Columbus starts to lose, is Boone Jenner still an option? (Vincent) Trocheck, one of those players where I think you could go in and just add a little more depth to a team that’s still is pretty young but ready to take a step forward in my personal opinion. I think with the Wings, it feels like this is their year to make a move.
You can catch the full discussion and the rest of Monday’s episode here…