Abel to Yzerman

Abel to Yzerman

Grading The Wings

03/07/2023 at 9:26am EST

I've always wondered how you can grade a trade/signing/transaction within days of it being made.

But you may differ.

via Ryan S. Clark and Kristen Shilton of ESPN ($)

Detroit Red Wings: C-

Key additions: 2023 first-round pick (NYI), 2023 second-round pick (VAN), 2024 first-round pick (BOS, top-10 protected)
Key subtractions: F Tyler Bertuzzi, F Oskar Sundqvist, F Jakub Vrana, D Filip Hronek

Our take: Detroit did not improve in the past week. GM Steve Yzerman arguably made his team worse by trading away Bertuzzi even when it looked and sounded like he would stay through the Red Wings' attempt to return to the playoffs. And then there was the whole failed attempt to acquire James van Riemsdyk from the Flyers.

Yzerman picked up a few draft choices along the way, which is great for Detroit's future. What about its present? Yzerman's transactions from a busy offseason haven't made the Red Wings an immediate contender. Inactivity at the deadline won't achieve that goal, either. If this is now another season where the Red Wings are outside looking in come spring, it's understandable why the fan base is becoming frustrated.

nolan33

This may be the post with the least nuance or foresight I've seen in a while. But then, it's ESPN... 

HippyDavenolan33

And Ryan S. Clark was a beat writer for the Avs, Kristen Shilton for the Leafs, so...

MZ2215HippyDave

So they must have been too busy covering their old teams to listen to or read quotes from an Yzerman presser from the last year or two then, and didn't have time to see what preseason expectations were or how the season has progressed. Noted.

MurrayChadwick

Considering the over compensation for trades this year, I give Yzerman a C- as well, should've gotten more for Bertuzzi, he did well on the Hronek trade, and should've been in on Chykrun. 

dcaMurrayChadwick

The only way to get more for Bertuzzi was to trade him last summer or early fall when Canada lifted the COVID vaccine requirements for entry.


He has made it clear he's going to UFA and seeking a top dollar amount. That hits trade value hard.

He hit the market late as the Wings were in a wait and see mode for two weeks. That hits trade value hard as potential buyers hit the cap ceiling.

He's been hurt twice and was/is in the middle of a terrible season. That hits trade value.


SY was lucky to get a conditional 1st for 'lil Bert. SY was smart to make sure it was Boston's 2024 pick as the team is expected to have retirements of quality players and/or cap issues from the team that is running away with the President's Trophy.


SY did extemely well for Hronek.


Chykrun is a left shot defenseman. Detroit has way too many left-shot defensemen--esp after Maatta and Walman were re-upped. SY indicated he doesn't like left shot d-men to play on their backhand on the right side. Besides Chykrun also has family in Ottawa (his grandfather and his sister plus the family has owned a  cottage there--and would spend Christmas there). When you pay the kind of price you pay for a young star you don't want to have him walking out the door 2 years later (during which he has a 10 team no trade list) when he becomes an UFA.

HippyDavedca

Look at it this way, the odds of us signing Bertuzzi in the offseason are unchanged from what they were a week ago.

evileye

I don't think Yzerman could have gotten much more for Bertuzzi considering he is a rental. Trading him was definitely best because it sounds like there was no way he was going to come to terms with Detroit. He did great with Hronek and did well with Sunqvist. My biggest question mark was Vrana. Was the little salary cap relief better than trying to revive his game in Detroit? Was Yzerman being petty with him or was it truly a situation where he needed to be gone.

No, the trades didn't make the team better now and quite frankly, that wasn't the goal. That will be the goal at the draft and free agency where the team can hopefully add some talent that can positively impact the team next season. It's going to be a tall order replacing Bertuzzi and Vrana.

Let's not forget that Yzerman also extended Larkin, Maata and Walman. Overall I'd give him a B-. It would have been interesting to see what the idea of JvR trade was.

dcaevileye

IF it was a cocaine issue (like what was common in Washington see the pics on the internet of Capitals), then you want that out of the building as quickly as possible. If it was something else it was clear management wanted him far from the Wings as possible unless it was to showcase him for a trade.

The UFA market this offseason is looking pathetic:
1) Pastrnak re-signed.
2a) Larkin re-signed.
2b) Horvat signed.
3) Patrick Kane has made his preferred destination known.
4) Ryan OReilly is on the decline and doesn't fit the timeline.
5) Tarasenko plays RW (Wings seem pretty set there).
6) Bertuzzi was a pass by SY at the price.
7) Dumba's had a noticeable decline in his game but is a position of need (RHD).
8) Kuzmenko re-signed with Vancouver.
9) Klingberg will be 31 next season (but again is a RHD).
10) Jarry--but he's not going to want to be a backup goalie.

That leaves Alex DeBrincat, Pacioretty (coming off LTIR), Toews (retiring?), Michael Bunting, Frederik Andersen (same issue as Jarry), Connor Brown (coming off LTIR), Damon Severson (29yrs old RHD), Ivan Barbashev (down year with trade from STL), David Krejci (retiring?), Alex Killorn (34 and played in a lot of games with TB over past 6 seasons), Vladislav Gavrikov (LHD so no), Dmitry Orlov (LHD so no), Shayne Gostisbehere (shoots left but has played RHD), Brian Dumoulin, Ryan Graves (LHD so no), Cam Talbot (same situation as Jerry), Jonathan Quick (doubtful backup), James van Riemsdyk (probably a Wings target), Paul Stastny (turns 38 in Dec), Phil Kessel (too many hot dog producers in area), Sean Monahan, Max Domi, Jason Zucker (winger issue), Evan Rodrigues, J.T. Compher (Plymouth/Team USA and U of M connections but RW)

....and the rest no thanks (Kyle Okposo, Evgeni Dadonov, Corey Perry, Gustav Nyquist, Alexander Kerfoot, Craig Smith, Kevin Shattenkirk, Alex Nedeljkovic, James Reimer, Justin Holl, Jonathan Drouin, Erik Gustafsson, Jordan Staal, Scott Mayfield, Martin Jones, Pheonix Copley, Antti Raanta, Semyon Varlamov)

So DeBrincat, Bunting, Pacioretty (if medical clears), van Riemsdyk, Max Domi, Sean Monahan, and Evan Rodrigues? Doesn't inspire confidence in UFA.

Going to have to go the trade route.

HippyDavedca

Getting Compher would be something.  Rodrigues would be an interesting addition with a decent amount of upside.  Other than that I think we keep some roster spots open for the young guys to come up.

damndogrevengeevileye

Strange no word on the JVR trade that did not happen 

MZ2215damndogrevenge

The comments from their GM made it seem like they wanted to send him to a contender, sounded like Yzerman was going to get him and then flip him somewhere else but it depended on someone else making a move that fell through. I don't think Detroit was ever meant to be his landing spot. 

dcaMZ2215

Their 3 salary retention's were used (Panik, Vrana, and Bertuzzi) at that point so I wouldn't be so sure. That 3rd team could have been interested in one of Detroit's players and paying draft picks that would have financed the trade for JVR or clearing a roster spot: they could have talked with JVR's agent and wanted to agree to a contract extension structure before moving a player out--who knows. Details like that don't usually leak.

TreKronor

And then there was the whole failed attempt to acquire James van Riemsdyk from the Flyers.


It's tough to count that against him because we don't know what the terms were going to be (read: Who was going to be shipped out from the current roster, and for what in return).

But the Bertuzzi trade is one I'm going to continue struggling with.  If it was going to happen, he likely could have gotten more a few days prior.  You look at the return on Tanner Jeannot and it's hard not to be a little underwhelmed the Wings couldn't get better.

Tanner Jeannot: Traded by the Nashville Predators to the Tampa Bay Lightning for 1st round draft pick in 2025 Top 10 protected, 2nd round draft pick in 2024 , 3rd round draft pick in 2023 , 4th round draft pick in 2023 , 5th round draft pick in 2023 and Callan Foote.

I'm not just unhappy with the deadline but with the state of the roster.  We're jammed with middling 4-9 type forwards, and we traded away one of the guy's who's actually a first liner in Bert.  We would have said, "Make it happen" to Holland - why wouldn't we say the same to Yzerman?

retrospecdTreKronor

We got a pick for Bert that is a 1st rounder this year or next.

Your example they get one 2 years from now.


EthrDemonretrospecd

It's actually Boston's 1st next year (2024) that could potentially move to 2025

TreKronorretrospecd

Fair to assume Boston's pick will be somewhere in the last few chosen in round 1, no?  Likely number 29-32.

damndogrevengeTreKronor

I would of asked for Fabian Lysell. I would of taken him over the first round pick

MZ2215

"Yzerman picked up a few draft choices along the way, which is great for Detroit's future. What about its present? Yzerman's transactions from a busy offseason haven't made the Red Wings an immediate contender. Inactivity at the deadline won't achieve that goal, either. If this is now another season where the Red Wings are outside looking in come spring, it's understandable why the fan base is becoming frustrated."

This is basically all you need to read understand that they aren't paying attention and shouldn't be taken seriously. The moves made weren't intended to make them an "immediate condender" and that's never been the plan.

MurrayChadwickMZ2215

I took contender to be for the playoffs not the cup. 

MZ2215MurrayChadwick

The analysis is bad regardless. The Athletic gave them an 11% chance of making the playoffs before the season started. Best case scenario was slipping into a wild card spot IF everything went great. If you were expecting them to contend for a playoff spot this year you had the wrong expectations, unless you consider what they're doing now as "contending" for a playoff spot. 

Shanny_Fan

There are a lot of centers projected to go in the top 10 to 20 picks of this year's draft. Picking 10th compared to 15th might be a significant difference this year. Add in the the NYI pick at 17ish and I bet SY has some under the radar center targets in mind in the upcoming draft.

damndogrevenge

Yzerman should of traded Chiarot

MurrayChadwickdamndogrevenge

Would've cost him the picks he got for Hronek or Bertuzzi for someone to eat that contract. 


Chiarot will play that contract out in Detroit, hopefully by the end of the contract both the cap will be up and talent will have moved him down so it'd be a justifiable 3rd pair salary. 

damndogrevengeMurrayChadwick

Yes he overpaid for all his UFAs last summer not only in dollars but term. 

dcadamndogrevenge

False.


Maatta got a 1 year deal x 2.25M. When re-signed he got a 2 yr deal x 3M. Therefore we conclude his original contract was a slight bargain though some analysts feel different--but even to them their are UFA in the Wings class that were dollar bargains.


Some analysts/writers that have covered the subject: here's an article from the end of Jan that dove into the Wings:


https://theathletic.com/398946...


Perron contract 4.8M vs est market value 5.9M

Copp contract 5.6M vs est market value 2.7M

Kubalik contract 2.5M vs est market value 3.9M

Chiarot contract 4.8M vs est market value league minimum

Maatta contract 2.3M vs est market value 1.2M


So it's 2 for 5 from this analyst. 


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