Red Wings have free opportunity at two known players on NHL waivers

As the trade deadline approaches, the Detroit Red Wings need to explore all options to find a way to improve their lineup. Waivers are a way of obtaining talent you would normally find in a trade package as a way to add depth through salary dumps and reclamation projects.

The New Jersey Devils placed Juho Lammikko and Colton White on waivers.

If they clear, they'll report to the AHL's Utica Comets.

The move gives the Red Wings a free opportunity through waivers to bolster their lineup.

Lammikko has been given another shot in the NHL, at age 29, after being brought over from Switzerland, where he played the last season with the Swiss League's Zurich Lions. There, he scored 48 goals and 112 points in 144 games with a +60.

He has only played 22 games this season as a Devils forward, scoring 2 points (2 assists). And this isn't his first stint in the NHL either; he's played 181 games split between the Florida Panthers, Vancouver Canucks, and New Jersey Devils.

Lammikko won the Swiss-A league championship twice with the Lions and looks to establish himself as an NHL forward, which the Red Wings could give him a chance to do. His salary would fit under the cap with an $800,000 average-annual-value deal he signed last summer with the Devils.

Defenseman Colton White is a different story; he was brought up to the NHL due to injuries plaguing the lineup. He was recalled from the Utica Comets and has played in the lineup since.

In 23 games as a Devil, he scored 4 points (4 assists) with a plus-2 rating. His cap hit is an affordable $775K AAV per PuckPedia.

The defenseman placed on NHL waivers could fill out the roster in Grand Rapids nicely.

The team will be desperate for talent when they're late in the postseason and injuries arise. We've seen it happen plenty of times where depth talent has had to fill a void in emergency scenarios.

For example, the Panthers' last cup run saw Matthew Tkachuk out for a significant amount of time, and they had to rely on other players to fill the gaps.

They'd essentially be call-ups who would fill a role in the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins until they're needed.

In the playoffs, you have to account for every variable. Here's one solved.

Also read on Detroit Hockey Insider :
Official trade offer on the table for Rasmus Andersson has been made public