Free Agent Focus: Detroit Red Wings

Free agency is now just a bit more than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens. There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Red Wings. 

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Lucas Raymond – The Red Wings have the never-exciting privilege of putting a price to their leading scorer this summer, with Raymond set for a substantial pay raise after posting 31 goals and 72 points in 82 games this season. He was incredibly productive on his entry-level contract, totaling 71 goals and 174 points in 238 games and quickly vindicating his top-five selection in the 2020 NHL Draft. The Red Wings intend to take their time in negotiating with both Raymond and Seider, which could drag negotiations through the summer, though it seems inevitable that Detroit will soon be locking up a their top winger for the foreseeable future.

F Joe Veleno – Joe Veleno hasn’t yet vindicated his first-round selection in the 2018 NHL Draft, though he did seem much more comfortable handling a daily NHL role this season – his third full-time year in the league. Veleno scored a career-high 12 goals and 28 points in 80 games this season, while serving a quaint role on the team’s third line. He hasn’t done much to warrant a particularly expensive new deal but he filled a role worth re-signing. At 24, a mid-term deal would take Veleno through his remaining RFA years and give him a chance to solidify his role with the team amidst his prime.

D Moritz Seider – Detroit’s summer will be co-headlined by Moritz Seider, after he spent all three seasons of his entry-level contract as the team’s top defenseman. He’s averaged nearly 23 minutes of ice time through the first 246 games of his career – not missing a single game, scoring 134 points, and earning one Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie in 2022 along the way. That’s a dazzling way to spend the first contract of a career, and Seider will be due for a confident raise as a result. While he’s yet to reach the heights of his 50-point rookie year – scoring 42 in each of the last two seasons – Seider has accomplished enough before his 23^rd birthday to place himself among the league’s highest paid defenders.

Other RFAs: F Jonatan Berggren, D Jared McIsaac

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Patrick Kane – Future Hall of Fame winger Patrick Kane joined the Red Wings in December after a dramatic return from hip resurfacing surgery this season. His return from injury was bumpy, with Kane in and out of the lineup with day-to-day issues as he beefed up his conditioning. But Kane returned to his usual self soon after, ultimately scoring 20 goals and 47 points in 50 games with the Red Wings – though plagued by ineffectiveness on defense. The 35-year-old legend has an unclear future ahead, with Detroit saying they’ll keep in touch ahead of July 1^st and Chicago Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson confirming they aren’t looking for a reunion. His scoring is still encouraging – and his precedence is no doubt impressive – but too high of an asking price could make Kane hard for many teams to budget for.

F Daniel Sprong – Daniel Sprong vindicated a one-year, $2MM contract with the Red Wings with 18 goals and 43 points in 76 games this season. The performance was plenty of an encore to Sprong’s 21 goals and 46 points in 66 games with the Seattle Kraken last year, and seems to have finally solidified Sprong as an impactful middle-six winger years after his highly-discussed second-round selection in 2015. Sprong is due a raise from his $2MM salary this summer but he’ll likely not be able to demand much, with still little to show for his 344 games in the league. He seems set for a hardy extension this summer, and a return to an impactful role on Detroit’s second line next season.

D Shayne Gostisbehere – Shayne Gostisbehere joined Sprong in vindicating his signing this season, posting 10 goals and 56 points in 81 games while serving out a one-year, $4.125MM contract. Gostisbehere returned to his 50-point form after a runaround season last year that saw Gostisbehere traded from the Arizona Coyotes to the Carolina Hurricanes mid-year. But through all of the moves, Gostisbehere has continued his run as a stout second-pair defenseman, playing well enough to earn added salary and term this summer. Locking him up will go a long way towards solidifying Detroit’s depth throughout their defense.

Other UFAs: F David Perron, F Christian Fischer, F Zach Aston-Reese, F Austin Czarnik, F Taro Hirose, F Matt Luff, D Wyatt Newpower, G James Reimer, G Michael Hutchinson

Projected Cap Space

The Red Wings are entering the summer with plenty to do – but they’ll thankfully also have plenty to spend, with $29.367MM in projected cap space. There’s a very good chance that Raymond and Seider could eat into the majority of that space, though even $10MM should be enough to let Detroit sure up their depth pieces. Detroit could also choose to prioritize a few flashier free agency additions, with the promise of top prospects like Nate Danielson and Simon Edvinsson sure to help round out the offense soon.