from John Niyo of the Detroit News,

So even though Detroit is flush with salary-cap space heading into free agency — roughly $31 million, third-most in the NHL — Yzerman still sounds like he’s looking for bargains at this point. That’s probably not what some fans want to hear, and he knows it. ("I can’t sit here forever (saying). ‘Hey, be patient everybody,'" Yzerman admitted back in April.) But keep in mind, when you’re in the basement, some of the top-shelf free agents tend to look the other way, anyway....

t shouldn’t take too long to find out once the market opens at noon Wednesday. Yzerman actually got a head start on things, swinging a trade with St. Louis for goaltender Ville Husso, a pending UFA the Wings quickly signed to a three-year deal. It cost him a third-round pick to jump the line, but given the limited supply of starting-caliber goalies out there, Yzerman didn’t want to take any chances.

As for those other areas he referenced, the Wings desperately need a No. 2 center to take some of the pressure off captain Dylan Larkin. They also could another scoring-line winger — especially with Robby Fabbri rehabbing a torn ACL — and a left-shot defenseman who can help steady things on the blue line.

A player like Carolina’s Vincent Trocheck, a 29-year-old center with an energetic, two-way game, is exactly what new coach Derek Lalonde could use behind Larkin in the lineup. Or perhaps Andrew Copp, the Ann Arbor native who is coming off a career year that saw him dealt from Winnipeg to New York and then flourish in the playoffs for the Rangers.

more (could be paid)...