A move has been completed by Steve Yzerman and the Red Wings: Elliotte Friedman reveals they took a step back
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NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman made a troubling announcement today regarding the Detroit Red Wings' rebuild; he believes the team has taken a step back with their latest move, sending Justin Holl and Erik Gustafsson to the AHL and getting much younger in the lineup.
The Detroit Red Wings have made moves this past week that have given NHL insider Elliotte Friedman some pause.
General manager Steve Yzerman put defenseman Justin Holl and Erik Gustafsson on waivers, as they have promoted Axel Sandin-Pellikka and changed the defense core around.
Travis Hamonic and Axel Sandin-Pellikka are two players who will be suiting up in the lineup, where Erik Gustafsson and Justin Holl (on waivers today) were.
Giving us a look into what Yzerman's plans for the Red Wings' future look like: Younger. But is it better?
According to NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman, they've taken a step back with their latest moves.
"They put Holl and Gustafsson on waivers, which is totally fine, but that says to me, they're thinking about doing a really young defense to start the year, like a really young D, we talked about this at the year end last year how Yzerman didn't give out term to veterans because he's like, the young guys need to play and I will bet on these young players, I wonder if that bet really starts right now, I just I don't think that they're ready," Friedman said.
NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman Believes They're Not Ready To "Progress"
The Detroit Red Wings operated during the postseason with the intent of improving the lineup.
General Manager Steve Yzerman said the idea of the year was to "progress" as a unit.
This was after the beginning of a long summer, which was marked by Captain Dylan Larkin calling out the GM in the media.
Now in October, it appears the team's lineup is set, but Elliotte Friedman isn't sold on the product.
With Friedman's comments, it seems he's not sold on the Red Wings' 2025-26 lineup, who need to be able to push into the playoffs after a disappointing finish last year.
He will be throwing players like Axel Sandin-Pellika, Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, and Emmitt Finnie to the wolves to start the season.
And he could end up being wrong about ASP or MBN, depending on how well they transition from training camp into the regular season.
The move maximizes the team's available cap space, which could lead to more moves during the trade deadline come March.
But will he use the available $13.2 million in cap space to address needs on the blue line? We'll see.
Either way, Friedman may not be wrong, but Sandin-Pellikka, Finnie, and Brandsegg-Nyard could end up surprising us all if both former SHL players transition to North American ice well.
Previously on Red Wings Insider
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