Red Wings Are Poised To Take The Next Step
There’s no question it’ll remain an uphill battle after the Olympic break, but the Detroit Red Wings appear poised to return to the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in a decade.
Detroit’s most recent playoff streak was the fourth-longest in NHL history, spanning from 1991 to 2016. During that stretch, the Red Wings won four Stanley Cup titles in six appearances. Ready to begin the next streak, captain Dylan Larkin explained to DJ Siddiqi of RG Media how his career has unfolded and what’s different about this year’s club.
Obviously, being from Waterford, MI, and playing his amateur hockey at the Belle Tire program, Larkin’s commitment to southeast Michigan runs deep. Playing his collegiate hockey at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Larkin has never had a home game outside of his small pocket in Michigan.
Being on the last Red Wings to make the playoffs in 2016, Larkin had the opportunity to learn from a pair of the organization’s best: his first captain, Henrik Zetterberg, and his current General Manager, Steve Yzerman.
Opening up on some of the conversations he’s had with Yzerman, Larkin said, “I mean this respectfully, he’s a pretty private guy, and I believe most of the stuff we talk about should stay private. But he’s been a great role model for me. Henrik Zetteberg, who I got to play for my first three years, is probably the most significant person I’ve leaned on in my career. Steve is right up there with Henrik. I’m very fortunate to work with him, and he’s given me a lot of great, priceless advice.”
Zetterberg was one of the Red Wings’ most successful draft stories from the 1990s, and there were a few. Detroit selected him 210th overall in the 1999 NHL Draft, and he debuted for the team in the 2002-03 season.
Although he and fellow diamond-in-the-rough Pavel Datsyuk never tallied a 100-point campaign at the NHL level, they became two of the most complete forwards in the game, helping sustain Detroit’s success. Zetterberg finished his career with 337 goals and 960 points in 1,082 NHL games before having his career cut short by chronic back issues. He won the Conn Smythe Trophy during the Red Wings’ 11th Stanley Cup title in 2008 and was the team’s captain from 2012 to 2018.
Even by today’s standards, there would be few better players to learn from. Like his predecessors, Larkin doesn’t appear poised to crack the 100-point plateau, but he is making up for that with how he plays the game. He has shown flashes of being above a point-per-game player and has been consistent in his skill in the faceoff dot and possession metrics.
Lastly, Larkin opened up on what making the playoffs would mean for him and the team, saying, “It would be unbelievable to play a playoff game – the first playoff game at Little Caesars Arena in hockey history. It would mean a lot to our fans and mean a lot to me. It’s not all about me, but being here through some tough days and getting into the playoffs, I believe our team can do some damage. I hope our fans do as well.“
Sebastian Cossa Making NHL Push
- 23-year-old Sebastian Cossa, who was the No. 15 pick of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft by the Detroit Red Wings, is making a real push for consideration for an NHL roster spot, writes Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen. Cossa has gone 20-4-2 with a .928 save percentage on a juggernaut Grand Rapids team, the best season of his young pro career. While offseason acquisition John Gibson has been solid as Detroit’s starter (22-12-2, .904 save percentage), the grip of veteran backup Cam Talbot on an NHL roster spot is likely less firm. In 24 games this season, Talbot, who is 38 years old, has an .892 save percentage, which ranks inside the bottom-15 in the league among netminders with at least 20 games played.
Red Wings Unlikely To Acquire Artemi Panarin
In his update, Pagnotta suggested that the Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Los Angeles Kings, and San Jose Sharks remain interested in acquiring Panarin with an extension. In contrast, the Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, and Edmonton Oilers view him only as a rental. Additionally, Pagnotta mentioned that unless something changes relatively soon, the Anaheim Ducks, Detroit Red Wings, Utah Mammoth, and Washington Capitals are no longer in the running.
Red Wings Interested In Nazem Kadri
Still, that’s a long shot from Montreal’s perspective. Further down the article, D’Amico suggested that the Carolina Hurricanes, Detroit Red Wings, and Minnesota Wild remain interested in acquiring Kadri in varying degrees. There is no word on whether those teams are on Kadri’s no-trade list.
Red Wings Sign Sheldon Dries To Two-Year Extension
The Red Wings announced they’ve signed forward Sheldon Dries to a two-year, two-way contract extension. Financial terms were not disclosed. He was slated for unrestricted free agency this summer.
Dries was returned to AHL Grand Rapids on Friday after a one-day call-up, his second of the season. The 31-year-old has yet to play an NHL game for Detroit since signing a two-year, two-way deal with his hometown team in free agency in 2024, despite being recalled a handful of times now for injury insurance.
The veteran of 122 NHL games with Colorado and Vancouver has nonetheless provided immense value to the organization in a minor-league role. Long a top producer in the AHL, he’s put up 40 goals and 69 points in 99 games with Grand Rapids over the past two seasons. That includes a resurgent 15-14–29 scoring line this season in 39 games, tied for second on the team in points, as they’ve marched to a ridiculous 33-6-3 record with a +65 goal differential, winning games by 1.55 goals on average.
Dries now sees his contributions rewarded with another couple of seasons of financial security. He was already well-compensated for a two-way player with a $525K guarantee, and it’s hard to see that figure changing much. The Western Michigan product may not have appeared in an NHL game since 2022-23 with the Canucks, but he remains a reliable recall option and an important veteran centerpiece to anchor the Wings’ developing prospects in Grand Rapids.
Red Wings Interested In Panarin With Extension
Jan. 31st: On Saturday Headlines, Friedman expanded on his reporting from 32 Thoughts. According to the Sportsnet insider, the Hurricanes, Red Wings, Panthers, Kings, Sharks, and Capitals are interested in acquiring Panarin with an extension, with varying degrees of interest. Additionally, Friedman shared that the Ducks, Avalanche, and Stars are attempting to convince Panarin’s camp to join their respective clubs without an extension in place, treating him solely as a rental for a postseason run.
Red Wings Reassign Justin Holl
1/31/26: Detroit has now reassigned Holl as well.
1/30/26: Detroit announced Friday morning that Dries has been reassigned back to AHL Grand Rapids. His stay on the NHL roster has therefore ended less than 24 hours after it began.
Dries did not dress for Detroit’s shootout loss to the Washington Capitals last night, instead serving as a healthy scratch. With the Griffins taking on the Chicago Wolves tonight, Dries’ reassignment allows Grand Rapids to have access to a key veteran for their final game this month.
The 31-year-old, who has played in over 100 NHL games, has not dressed for an NHL contest since 2022-23, and is still waiting on the chance to make his Red Wings debut.
1/29/26: The Red Wings announced they’ve recalled defenseman Justin Holl and center Sheldon Dries from AHL Grand Rapids. Defenseman Simon Edvinsson was placed on injured reserve retroactive to Jan. 21 in the corresponding move. Detroit had an open roster spot entering today, so only one spot needed to be opened.
The veteran Holl had to wait quite some time for his first recall of the season after landing on waivers in October, but it finally came past the halfway point on the calendar. Holl, who turns 34 tomorrow, is in the final season of a three-year, $10.2MM contract that he signed in free agency in 2023 that virtually carried negative value from the start. He served as the Wings’ extra defender for most of the first year of the deal and then cleared waivers to begin 2024-25, although he still remained up on the NHL roster for nearly all of last season.
This year, though, Holl has seen extended time in the AHL, his first minor-league action since the 2017-18 campaign. The 6’4″, 205-lb righty has leveraged his nearly 400 games of NHL experience into being one of the top shutdown defenders in the league, posting 10 points and a +17 rating in 31 games. With his help, Grand Rapids is off to a historic 32-5-3 start through 40 games.
Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reports there’s a flu bug going around the room before tonight’s game against the Capitals. The Wings were already carrying an extra defenseman in Erik Gustafsson, and since they’re already down a lefty with Edvinsson out, it would likely be Gustafsson who draws in if a Detroit defender needs to sit. In case it’s two names heading out of the lineup, though, Holl would see his first NHL action in over nine months.
How Holl plays in whatever limited NHL opportunities he gets down the stretch will be crucial in his positioning for a one-way contract in free agency this summer. He once reliably logged over 20 minutes a game for the Maple Leafs with decent under-the-hood numbers before signing in Detroit. His role with a new team next season won’t climb past the No. 6/7 deployment he’s seen while on Detroit’s roster, but a strong showing in a small sample could go a long way toward convincing a team he can still be a reliable extra option.
Detroit didn’t have an extra forward on hand, so Dries will come in if anyone is sick. The 31-year-old Michigan native is also an experienced plug-in option with over 100 games of NHL experience, although he hasn’t made a big-league showing since skating in a career-high 63 games with the Canucks in 2022-23. He’s now in his second season in the Wings organization with Grand Rapids, where he’s posted 14 goals and 28 points in 32 games.
Edvinsson’s IR placement is only a formality. He’s already been ruled out through the Olympic break with his lower-body injury and there’s no certainty he’ll be ready to return once games get going again in late February.
Patrick Kane Becomes All-Time U.S. Born NHL Points Leader
History was made tonight in Detroit as Red Wings forward Patrick Kane broke Mike Modano’s record for most points by a United States born player, as he reached 1,375, seen in a clip shared by the NHL.
The milestone was reached on a secondary assist as Ben Chiarot teed off on a one-timer, beating Washington Capitals goalie Charlie Lindgren, and tying the game 1-1.
As it was naturally a focus for the team to get their future Hall of Famer the record tonight on home ice, Kane seemingly broke it in the first few minutes of the game. He fed Alex DeBrincat for a tally in a signature play, but it was called back for offside. Nonetheless, Kane found the scoresheet midway through the second period for good.
The Buffalo, New York native takes the crown after the legendary Modano held the record for over 18 years. It was last broken by Modano on November 7, 2007 in a Dallas Stars win over San Jose, as he surpassed legendary defenseman and former Sabres Head Coach Phil Housley.
Detroit shared a video of Modano, who also donned the Winged Wheel in the twilight of his career, congratulating Kane on the accomplishment.
Kane, 37, has naturally started to slow down with age and dealing with injuries, as his 31 points in 38 games so far seems to be the new norm. However, he and DeBrincat remain as dangerous together as always, and he is still an elite power play set up man, with an 89.1% Corsi For on the man advantage.
The icon is an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, but in all likelihood, Detroit will snap their nine year postseason drought, and Kane continues to be a big part of the Wings’ revival, certainly enjoying his tenure on his third Original Six franchise.
In terms of active United States born players who could challenge the record into the future, Auston Matthews stands as the second-highest active player with 772 points in 676 games. If able to stay healthy and play into his late 30s as Kane has, with his 1,341 games so far, Matthews is right on track to reach the record.
Perhaps one day the Arizona-born sniper could take the honors, but for now, it’s proudly in the hands of Kane, who sits fourth in points among active players, behind just Sidney Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin, and Evgeni Malkin. Kane is expected to eclipse the 1,400 mark by the end of the season, as he’s hovering around 10 points behind the 39-year-old Malkin, who also continues to produce despite his age.
Although Team USA is set to take on the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics without Kane, indicative of a new era, the 2007 first overall pick has made an indelible impact on the game, not only for United States hockey, but the National Hockey League in its entirety. Tonight proves to be another unforgettable achievement in Kane’s remarkable career.
Image Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
Red Wings Sign Ben Chiarot To Three-Year Extension
12:45 p.m.: Chiarot will earn a flat $3.85MM salary each season of the deal, PuckPedia reports. The contract includes a full no-trade clause from 2026-27 until 28 days prior to the 2028 trade deadline, when it converts to a 10-team no-trade list. That 10-team no-trade list remains through 2028-29, the final season of the deal.
8:06 a.m.: The Red Wings announced they’ve signed defenseman Ben Chiarot to a three-year extension worth $3.85MM per season. That’s a total value of $11.55MM for Chiarot, who was set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Chiarot could have tested the market as one of the top left-shot defensemen available in what looks to be a paper-thin class. It would have been his third trip through unrestricted free agency, previously landing a three-year, $10.5MM commitment from the Canadiens in 2019 and then his current four-year, $19MM contract with Detroit in 2022. He’s one of the last few Thrashers draft picks sticking around the league, selected in the fourth round by Atlanta in 2009 before eventually breaking into the league with the Jets after they relocated to Winnipeg.
While the Thrashers didn’t reap the rewards, it’s safe to say they’ve gotten great value out of a mid-round pick. He’s been a lineup staple for Winnipeg, Montreal, Florida, and Detroit since first emerging as a full-time option in the 2014-15 season, often serving as the complementary defensive-minded piece on a pairing with Dustin Byfuglien.
It wasn’t until signing in Montreal that he began to be viewed as a bona fide top-pair piece, though. He quickly averaged over 23 minutes per night for the Habs as his all-around usage expanded, and he ended up playing a significant role in their underdog run to the 2021 Stanley Cup Final. His surface numbers that season were uninspiring – just nine points and a -22 rating in 63 combined regular-season and playoff games – but the fact that he averaged over 25 minutes per game in the postseason and his physical brand of play ended up boosting his stock significantly around the league. He was valued highly enough to net Montreal a first-round pick when they flipped him to the Panthers as a rental at the following season’s trade deadline.
Since signing in Detroit, though, the shine has largely worn off. What were once passable, if not downright promising, under-the-hood numbers have faded. Chiarot has long struggled to produce good two-way results in what’s been a difficult possession environment in Detroit, controlling under 45% of shot attempts at even strength through the first three seasons of the deal. He quickly lost out on a top-pairing job alongside Moritz Seider to Jake Walman and, now, Simon Edvinsson, although he’s temporarily back up in top-pairing deployment with Edvinsson hurt.
Chiarot’s game has recovered to some degree this year. With a +1 rating and 11 points in 54 games, his on-ice results are the best they’ve been since signing with the Wings. That’s with him averaging 21:07 per game, third on the team behind Seider and Edvinsson, and he ranks second on the Wings in both blocks (113) and hits (109).
His possession numbers still leave much to be desired, though, and they can’t be explained by aggressive defensive zone deployment at even strength. In fact, Chiarot’s 51.9 dZS% is the second-most favorable number among Detroit defensemen behind rookie Axel Sandin Pellikka. Those two have formed Detroit’s second pairing for much of the year, controlling 45.9% of expected goals but still managing to outscore opponents 24-22, per MoneyPuck.
All that suggests Chiarot’s brief resurgence could be more mirage than longer-term promise. With that in mind, a three-year commitment seems aggressive to retain the 34-year-old. The dearth of potential UFA replacements, though, didn’t leave the Wings with many other options. Most of their defensemen in the pipeline with legitimate promise have already graduated to NHL roles, and the ones that haven’t wouldn’t be ready to succeed Chiarot in top-four duties next season. Save for a trade pickup, retaining him at a reasonable cap hit – even if the multi-year term will raise some eyebrows – was the easy move to make.
The Wings are still in a great spot, cap-wise, for next season. They have $38.8MM in space with 15 roster spots already accounted for, per PuckPedia. A good chunk of that money will need to be earmarked for Edvinsson, a pending RFA, but that’s still plenty of spending money.
Image courtesy of Brian Bradshaw Sevald-Imagn Images.
Simon Edvinsson To Remain Out Through Olympic Break
The Red Wings have been without left-shot defender Simon Edvinsson for the past two games due to a lower-body injury, and it doesn’t sound as though he’ll be rejoining the team anytime soon. Head coach Todd McLellan told reporters today, including The Athletic’s Max Bultman, that Edvinsson will be out through the Olympic break.
For a Detroit team thin on defensive depth and in the thick of the race for the Atlantic Division title, it’s a brutal injury. The timing is the only saving grace – Detroit only has five games left before the schedule goes on pause for most of February, so even if Edvinsson is out for over a month of real time, he’ll only miss seven games. Whether he’s able to suit up when the Wings hit the ground running against the Senators on Feb. 26 remains to be seen, but considering he was only listed as day-to-day to start, it seems likely.
Edvinsson, who’ll turn 23 over the break, hasn’t upped his offensive stats from last season’s breakout showing but is taking on increased responsibility as the Wings’ top blue-line support piece to Norris candidate Moritz Seider. That was due in part to a slow start – just one goal and a -3 rating through his first eight games – but his play has stabilized now. Past the halfway point, the 6’6″ Swede has contributed six goals and 11 assists for 17 points in 48 outings with a +6 rating. He’s averaging 22:35 of ice time per game, up more than a minute from last year and top-45 in the league overall.
Selected sixth overall in 2021, Edvinsson’s two-way play has been outstanding. Instead of having him slot in separately from Seider as the Wings did last year, the two have played together at even strength for most of this season with spectacular results. The duo controls 55.3% of expected goals at 5-on-5, per MoneyPuck, and have outscored opponents 31-21. Only Seider has a better shot attempt share on the Wings at even strength beyond Edvinsson’s 51.7%.
Detroit’s gone 1-0-1 so far without Edvinsson, and they’ll hope to keep that record up in the interim. They don’t have many great options to elevate alongside Seider. For now, they’re back to relying on overtaxed veteran Ben Chiarot in those top-pairing duties. He has the worst possession numbers among any Detroit regular on the blue line this season, although his two-way results with Seider have been much improved on years past, with a 53.1 xGF%. If the Wings can keep getting that level of chemistry out of them in the short term, they should be able to navigate this stretch fairly well.
The Wings technically remain in first place in the Atlantic Division with a 32-16-5 record and 69 points, but they’ve trailed the Lightning in points percentage for the last several days by virtue of the Bolts having multiple games in hand. They’ve yet to pull away from them and, with the streaking Sabres hot on both their tails for a top-two spot in the division, an extended losing streak can still spell significant doom with only an eight-point cushion between them and the outside of the playoff picture.