Red Wings March 2026 Games Thread

[Jason_R]

I don’t agree with the sentiment that nobody wants to come to Detroit. Detroit is the 12th largest media market in the NHL and an original six team. It is also home to many NHL players. It is a town known for an intensely supportive fan base. If you are a free agent and your choice is between Detroit and Ottawa does anyone really think that players will flock to Ottawa? Columbus? Calgary? Raleigh? Buffalo? Winnipeg? Maybe some prefer NYC, Vegas, LA. Maybe some prefer no tax states. But these guys want to get paid, they want to play, and they want to compete. Detroit wasn’t competitive five years ago or even three. They are on the cusp now. 

Also, maybe I’m forgetting someone but the only player I remember using a NMC to veto a trade to Detroit was Tyler Myers who apparently has a child with special needs, who was born and has family in Texas, and who ended up in Dallas. Faulk had a 15-team no trade clause, so either Detroit was not on it, or he willingly waived it. 

[buddha]

44 minutes ago, Jason_R said:

I don’t agree with the sentiment that nobody wants to come to Detroit. Detroit is the 12th largest media market in the NHL and an original six team. It is also home to many NHL players. It is a town known for an intensely supportive fan base. If you are a free agent and your choice is between Detroit and Ottawa does anyone really think that players will flock to Ottawa? Columbus? Calgary? Raleigh? Buffalo? Winnipeg? Maybe some prefer NYC, Vegas, LA. Maybe some prefer no tax states. But these guys want to get paid, they want to play, and they want to compete. Detroit wasn’t competitive five years ago or even three. They are on the cusp now. 

Also, maybe I’m forgetting someone but the only player I remember using a NMC to veto a trade to Detroit was Tyler Myers who apparently has a child with special needs, who was born and has family in Texas, and who ended up in Dallas. Faulk had a 15-team no trade clause, so either Detroit was not on it, or he willingly waived it. 

what free agents have signed here to play with dylan larkin?

[sagnam]

2 hours ago, buddha said:

the idea that everyone loves dylan larkin and wants to play with him is a myth.

didnt we go through this at the trade deadline when players were using their nmc to NOT come to detroit?

The point was that the Hughes brothers playing together isn’t tied to NJ. It could just as easily be Larkin and his NJ-esque magnetism. But without either one here already it’s infinitely less likely.

[sagnam]

9 minutes ago, buddha said:

what free agents have signed here to play with dylan larkin?

You might be on to something. Maybe it’s becuase of Larkin that they don’t want to sign here.

[gehringer_2]

13 hours ago, buddha said:

if youre under the impression that i have never second guessed kenny holland, youre barking up the wrong tree.

yzerman was dealt the worst hand in the nhl because of kenny holland.  kenny holland is why we are here.  yzerman just hasnt been able to dig out of it.

bottom line is that Yzerman (and maybe Ilitch) didn't want to pay the price for Holland having let things get so bad, which was to be a bad team longer. In a capped league there are only so many levers. Outside of the three big draft hits, they haven't scouted better than the rest of the league, which is one of only three ways to get better. They didn't lose enough to collect more top picks, which is the 2nd way to get better, and Yzerman has not managed to pick any other GM's pocket in a trade, which is the third way to get better. If you don't do any of those, what can you expect the outcome to be? So they either need to go back to losing and collecting picks, they need to trade better, or they need to scout better. How do either of those last two things improve unless you upgrade the people tasked to do them who haven't done them well enough so far to produce the needed improvement?

Edited 17 hours ago by gehringer_2

[buddha]

27 minutes ago, sagnam said:

You might be on to something. Maybe it’s becuase of Larkin that they don’t want to sign here.

jason previously stated that players want to play with dylan larkin.  i'm asking who.  

 

[buddha]

6 minutes ago, gehringer_2 said:

bottom line is that Yzerman (and maybe Ilitch) didn't want to pay the price for Holland having let things get so bad, which was to be a bad team longer. In a capped league there are only so many levers. Outside of the three big draft hits, they haven't scouted better than the rest of the league, which is one of only three ways to get better. They didn't lose enough to collect more top picks, which is the 2nd way to get better, and Yzerman has not managed to pick any other GM's pocket in a trade, which is the third way to get better. If you don't do any of those, what can you expect the outcome to be? So they either need to go back to losing and collecting picks, they need to trade better, or they need to scout better. How do either of those last two things improve unless you upgrade the people tasked to do them who haven't done them well enough so far to produce the needed improvement?

i dont think illitch had anything to do with it.  i think it was all yzerman.  i doubt illitch is that involved in the day to day.

[gehringer_2]

6 minutes ago, buddha said:

i dont think illitch had anything to do with it.  i think it was all yzerman.  i doubt illitch is that involved in the day to day.

I think it's pretty certain Ilitch and Yzerman had talked through the immediate future of the team when he hired him and part of discussion would have to have been "I want this team improving starting tomorrow" vs "invest the time you need to make this team better". Once that was decided, sure it's all Yzerman, but any owner is involved enough to have made that initial guidance determination, and if you were hired as a GM and your owner didn't, you'd be a fool to take the job.

Edited 17 hours ago by gehringer_2

[gehringer_2]

I'm gonna say it's only in rare cases who is on a team impacts a player's choice either way as much as what that team is. In the case of Patrick Kane the fact the DeBrincat had come here probably was a factor, but I doubt anyone can come up with another case outside of family ties.

Edited 17 hours ago by gehringer_2

[buddha]

8 minutes ago, gehringer_2 said:

I think it's pretty certain Ilitch and Yzerman had talked through the immediate future of the team when he hired him and part of discussion would have to have been "I want this team improving starting tomorrow" vs "invest the time you need to make this team better". Once that was decided, sure it's all Yzerman, but any owner is involved enough to have made that initial guidance determination, and if you were hired as a GM and your owner didn't, you'd be a fool to take the job.

you "think its pretty certain" based on what?  again, you put stock in illitch having a plan other than yzerman falling into his lap and him saying "ok."  i think its more likely yzerman said "i'll take the job, but the farm system is **** and it will take ten years to rebuild and i want him, him, him, and him to come to my staff and a budget for whatever i want."

yzerman had all the leverage and illitch has no history of knowing anything about hockey or any connections in the league to make a judgment on who to hire.

[gehringer_2]

1 minute ago, buddha said:

you "think its pretty certain" based on what?  again, you put stock in illitch having a plan other than yzerman falling into his lap and him saying "ok."  i think its more likely yzerman said "i'll take the job, but the farm system is **** and it will take ten years to rebuild and i want him, him, him, and him to come to my staff and a budget for whatever i want."

yzerman had all the leverage and illitch has no history of knowing anything about hockey or any connections in the league to make a judgment on who to hire.

LOL, c'mon Buddha, you think Chris Ilitch has been in a cocoon all his life as #1 son and heir apparent while his family ran a hockey team? Ok, sure.

[Jason_R]

41 minutes ago, sagnam said:

The point was that the Hughes brothers playing together isn’t tied to NJ. It could just as easily be Larkin and his NJ-esque magnetism. But without either one here already it’s infinitely less likely.

I’m not sure what this is supposed to mean but the best chance for getting a Hughes brother to Detroit was when Ken Holland picked Filip Zadina instead of Quinn Hughes. 

Yes, it is conceivable that Yzerman could have traded for Hughes but most observers thought the trade assets given up by Minnesota were pretty substantial with only a season and a half left before UFA. And if you are Steve Yzerman are you going to bet that you can trade for Quinn and retain him when he has two brothers playing in New Jersey? 

[gehringer_2]

1 hour ago, Jason_R said:

I don’t agree with the sentiment that nobody wants to come to Detroit. Detroit is the 12th largest media market in the NHL and an original six team. It is also home to many NHL players. It is a town known for an intensely supportive fan base. If you are a free agent and your choice is between Detroit and Ottawa does anyone really think that players will flock to Ottawa? Columbus? Calgary? Raleigh? Buffalo? Winnipeg? Maybe some prefer NYC, Vegas, LA. Maybe some prefer no tax states. But these guys want to get paid, they want to play, and they want to compete. Detroit wasn’t competitive five years ago or even three. They are on the cusp now. 

Also, maybe I’m forgetting someone but the only player I remember using a NMC to veto a trade to Detroit was Tyler Myers who apparently has a child with special needs, who was born and has family in Texas, and who ended up in Dallas. Faulk had a 15-team no trade clause, so either Detroit was not on it, or he willingly waived it. 

If your team has a rep for being inept, it's a big problem no matter who you are. Beyond that, most of these guys are Canadian or northern Euro. They're not dying to get to Florida or the SW desert.

[Jason_R]

47 minutes ago, buddha said:

jason previously stated that players want to play with dylan larkin.  i'm asking who.  

 

What I said (or have been purported to say) is irrelevant. The players from Team USA all said they liked playing with Larkin. 

I said it was good for Detroit to have Larkin, Raymond, and Seider at the Olympics. On top of everyone on Team USA raving about Larkin, Seider was an assistant captain for Germany and Raymond was Sweden’s top scorer and third in the Olympics. Other teams may have had more players at the Olympics but the Wings were well represented.

[gehringer_2]

21 minutes ago, Jason_R said:

What I said (or have been purported to say) is irrelevant. The players from Team USA all said they liked playing with Larkin. 

I said it was good for Detroit to have Larkin, Raymond, and Seider at the Olympics. On top of everyone on Team USA raving about Larkin, Seider was an assistant captain for Germany and Raymond was Sweden’s top scorer and third in the Olympics. Other teams may have had more players at the Olympics but the Wings were well represented.

This is all true, but there is a big additional step between, "I'd love to have D Larkin as a teammate" and "I'd love to be on a team that's going to miss the playoffs just to play with D Larkin." 🤷‍♂️   The latter is going to weigh heavier than the former!

Edited 16 hours ago by gehringer_2

[sagnam]

2 hours ago, Jason_R said:

I’m not sure what this is supposed to mean but the best chance for getting a Hughes brother to Detroit was when Ken Holland picked Filip Zadina instead of Quinn Hughes. 

Yes, it is conceivable that Yzerman could have traded for Hughes but most observers thought the trade assets given up by Minnesota were pretty substantial with only a season and a half left before UFA. And if you are Steve Yzerman are you going to bet that you can trade for Quinn and retain him when he has two brothers playing in New Jersey? 

Yeah, the draft was 100% the time. I said earlier I’d have done a 1st, ASP, and Danielson and more. I wouldn’t have included Edvinsson though, that would be too much for me.

[buddha]

8 hours ago, gehringer_2 said:

LOL, c'mon Buddha, you think Chris Ilitch has been in a cocoon all his life as #1 son and heir apparent while his family ran a hockey team? Ok, sure.

i certainly dont feel he's some evil genius like you do, that he's holding back detroit sports teams by pinching pennies.  this tigers' summer sort of undercut your thesis on that one.

i think he's a nepo baby who hasnt done the work like his dad did.  i'm not sure why you think otherwise.

[lordstanley]

The Wings lost long enough to accumulate enough top picks. Top 10 picks seven years in a row - two by Holland, five by Yzerman. Problem is only three are proven hits so far and none are superstars.

Edited 6 hours ago by lordstanley

[gehringer_2]

38 minutes ago, buddha said:

i certainly dont feel he's some evil genius like you do, that he's holding back detroit sports teams by pinching pennies.  this tigers' summer sort of undercut your thesis on that one.

i think he's a nepo baby who hasnt done the work like his dad did.  i'm not sure why you think otherwise.

who said anything about evil genius? He's just a guy who his father picked to run things because he had shown himself to be at minimum the pick of the litter, who has spent his life around the management of professional sports, who has managed over a decade now not to muck up a multibillion dollar operation at LC/Olympia so I think the default assumption that he has some idea he knows what he doing is actually pretty strong. If you talk about evidence, what evidence is there to the contrary? He's brought in an apparently excellent management team at the Tigers and he has a lot more history around hockey than baseball. 

It's always enjoyable to completely dismiss people as idiots - I do it mostly in the political forum myself, but there really is a lot more evidence CI is a competent person than for the contrary. One problem with the Wings is that they probably make money even missing the playoffs so there isn't enough pressure from that direction.

[1984Echoes]

11 hours ago, gehringer_2 said:

This is all true, but there is a big additional step between, "I'd love to have D Larkin as a teammate" and "I'd love to be on a team that's going to miss the playoffs just to play with D Larkin." 🤷‍♂️   The latter is going to weigh heavier than the former!

This

[Mr.TaterSalad]

In hindsight, would you feel better and do you think the Wings would be in a better position if they had continued tanking for a top pick in the 22 or 23 seasons to get someone like a Bedard, Carlsson, Fantilli, Wright etc.?

Edited 2 hours ago by Mr.TaterSalad

[lordstanley]

57 minutes ago, Mr.TaterSalad said:

In hindsight, would you feel better and do you think the Wings would be in a better position if they had continued tanking for a top pick in the 22 or 23 seasons to get someone like a Bedard, Carlsson, Fantilli, Wright etc.?

It's really hard to finish bottom 5. Look at the Wings' 2022 lineup. Would you have traded leading scorer Larkin? Maybe could have traded 2nd leading score Bertuzzi a year earlier. But not played Seider or Raymond? I don't think having Pius Suter, Sam Gagner, Robby Fabbri, Vladimir Namestnikov or Adam Erne propped up the roster.  And yet the Wings still finished with 74 points, which was 11 points above 5th overall. 

https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/DET/2022.html

In 2023, the Wings finished with 80 points, which was 20 pts above 4th overall and 12th above 5th overall. But their 2nd and 3rd scorers were David Perron and Dominik Kubalik, it's not like the Wings were trying to ice a strong roster.

https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/DET/2023.html