The Detroit Red Wings have been active so far in the 2025 offseason with respect to player movement.
Not only did they trade Vladimir Tarasenko and his $4.75 million cap hit to the Minnesota Wild, but they also signed a multitude of free agents, including forwards James van Riemsdyk and Mason Appleton along with defensemen Jacob Bernard-Docker and Ian Mitchell.
Jonatan Berggren and Albert Johansson, both of whom were restricted free agents, agreed to new contracts.
Additionally, they shored up the crease by acquiring veteran goaltender John Gibson from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Petr Mrazek.
However, Red Wings fans are still hoping that GM Steve Yzerman is lying in wait to soon pounce and make what could be considered a major splash of an acquisition.
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There are few executives in professional sports today who keep their cards closer to the vest than Yzerman, though he did say he was open to making a major move during his end-of-season press conference.
Unfortunately, opportunities to acquire some of the more notable names in free agency didn't present themselves.
Mitch Marner was dealt to the Vegas Golden Knights in a major sign-and-trade, while the Florida Panthers somehow managed to re-sign Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad, and Brad Marchand before they hit the open market.
Reports surfaced that former Winnipeg Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers, who signed with the Carolina Hurricanes, wasn't interested in even discussing a contract with Detroit. Goal scoring forward Brock Boeser re-signed with the Vancouver Canucks, while former New York Rangers defenseman K'Andre Miller was traded to the Hurricanes and subsequently signed an eight-year extension.
For Yzerman, he said there wasn't much he could do in this situation and that it wasn't exactly a surprise that they weren't able to so much as sit down with some of the more notable names.
"We were were certainly open to it," Yzerman said. "The guys that we were hoping to talk to all signed before free agency with their clubs, or got traded. In the case of Mitch Marner, we didn't even get an opportunity to talk to these guys. There's not much you can do about that.
"Going into free agency, I think we all recognize that it was going to be difficult all around the league. There weren’t as many as what we would all consider high-end free agents available this year. So it wasn't really a shock to us that we weren't able to get anything done with any of the bigger name guys."
That being said, there is still plenty of time between now and the start of Training Camp in mid-September for a trade.
Jason Robertson of the Dallas Stars, who has ties to Michigan and scored 35 goals this past season, remains a talked-about name in trade rumors. Additionally, goal scoring forwards Bryan Rust (Pontiac, MI native) and Rickard Rakell of the Pittsburgh Penguins have been linked to the Red Wings as potential acquisitions.
On the back end, Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson and Jack Roslovic, who played last season for the Hurricanes, are possibilities for Yzerman to consider.
While Yzerman expressed hope that the players currently on Detroit's roster take another step in the upcoming campaign, there still remains the potential of a major pickup via the trade market.
The opportunity is still there, and Yzerman could choose to make that leap at any moment.
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