from Pat Caputo of The Oakland Press,

Defenseman Nick Jensen and winger Gustav Nyquist proved to be the Red Wings’ only moveable parts. What the Red Wings got in return made sense.

Now that isn’t to suggest a parade be planned down Woodward for the summer of 2020, or that the Red Wings fleeced the Capitals (Jensen deal) or the Sharks (Nyquist).

But they got something. Second-round NHL Draft picks do have value. The list of great players taken in the second round is long. The NHL’s top player, Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning, was a second-round selection (56th overall). So were P.K. Subban, Patrice Bergeron and Duncan Keith. Alex Debrincat from Farmington Hills has 34 goals at age 21 for Chicago. He was a second-round pick. Filip Hronek, who has arguably been the Red Wings' best defenseman this season at 21, was a second-rounder.

There simply wasn’t a market for goaltending, so Jimmy Howard remains in place. A Luke Glendening to Toronto deal did make sense, but evidently the Leafs weren’t as interested as reported. This isn’t 1995. Teams aren’t seeking older defensemen, so Niklas Kronwall wasn’t moved. That's good because he should be a career-long Red Wing when you think about it. Very underrated career.

Madison Bowey, the defenseman the Red Wings got back from Washington, has a chance to be a long-term NHL player. He skates well, has an edge to him and was a very good junior player. He didn’t embarrass himself in 84 NHL games at a young age with the Capitals.

It’s about building a nucleus, letting some of the overvalued contracts come off the books and fighting smarter in the future.

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