Three Burning Questions 1 Month Before Red Wings Training Camp
In the final month before training camp, here are three questions facing the Detroit Red Wings
Count the days down, it’s nearly hockey season. Less than a month from now — Sept. 19, to be exact — the Detroit Red Wings will start their training camp. As the time ticks down, some questions about this season’s team remain unanswered.
Here are three burning questions ahead of Red Wings training camp.
Will the Red Wings sign their RFAs before training camp starts?
This offseason’s biggest story, the restricted free agency of forward Lucas Raymond and defenseman Moritz Seider, has yet to get an ending. As of publication, both are still unsigned RFAs. Detroit’s management and the two RFAs have yet to iron out new contracts, and the same goes for forward Jonatan Berggren.
It’d take a real stretch of the facts to say this is beneficial for the Red Wings, though it’s important for them to get these contracts right. Raymond and Seider are the two most important players to this team that aren’t named Dylan Larkin. The fact that it’s taken until now and beyond to re-sign them is a fault of Detroit. And it’ll be doubly so if the Red Wings can’t get them under contract between now and Sept. 19.
We’ve seen free agency holdouts before in the NHL. Columbus Blue Jackets forward Ryan Johansen (recently in the headlines for a different type of contract dispute) took deep into the 2014 training camp to settle on a four-year bridge deal. In 2018, Toronto Maple Leafs star William Nylander held out until the RFA deadline to ink a new contract, jumping into action midseason. After settling their disputes, Johansen finished with a 71-point career year in 2014-15, while Nylander finished with a statistical worst 0.5 point-per-game pace in his abridged 2018-19 campaign.
These are just examples, and there’s no word whether such holdouts to and/or through training camp are on the table for Seider, Raymond or even Berggren. What’s apparent is that — especially with Seider and Raymond — the Red Wings are a better team with them, and potentially playing games without them would be disastrous. Whether or not both sides can finally come to an agreement is one of the most pressing issues on Detroit’s to-do list.
How will the Red Wings break up their goaltending starts in camp and preseason?
During the regular season, Detroit’s coaching staff will have its hands full figuring out how to divvy up its expected three-goalie rotation. During training camp, the logistics get even tougher.
The Red Wings’ goaltending needs look something like this: They need to get Cam Talbot and Alex Lyon in full game shape, giving them enough reps in training camp and the preseason to also evaluate who among them should be the starter. Detroit also needs to get Ville Husso in the mix, getting a sense of his game readiness after coming back from two major lower body injuries last season.
Then there’s Sebastian Cossa, who’s probably going to get his only minutes against NHL competition this season in his preseason ice time. If he’s the Red Wings’ goaltender of the future, potentially playing for the big club as soon as next season, then getting a sense of where he’s at coming out of this offseason is imperative.
Don’t forget about Jack Campbell, either, as Detroit's fourth-string NHL option expected to stick in the AHL. He'll need reps, too. And if the Red Wings can somehow make room for all five of those goalies to get adequate reps, they would do well to try out minor league prospects Carter Gylander and Gage Alexander in preseason games, too. Easy enough? This logistical problem reads like an SAT question. If it was one, you’d be wise to circle “C” and move along.
Last preseason, Detroit maximized its eight games by splitting the first five games between six goaltenders. Cossa got one period. Jan Bednar played half a game. Michael Hutchinson completed half of two games, James Reimer and Ville Husso each played two halves Lyon got one half and two thirds. In the final three games of the preseason, Detroit gave each of Lyon, Reimer and Husso a start.
A similar prescription could work out this preseason, but putting seven goaltenders in the mix might call for slightly different math. So too might new factors such as the conditioning needs of Husso and a more progressed timeline for Cossa. Dividing goaltending starts will be a major decision for the Red Wings’ coaching staff in September.
Will Detroit sign anyone to PTOs?
Right now, the Red Wings’ roster is mostly complete, and a big contingent of prospects are expected to challenge for any remaining spots. That hasn’t stopped general manager Steve Yzerman from adding reinforcements in the past, and it’s worth asking whether he might do so this offseason, too.
The easiest way for Detroit to test out depth options would be through professional tryout agreements, and there are a number of options that could add skill and/or experience to the lineup. Players such as Max Pacioretty, James Van Riemsdyk or Tyler Johnson could bring experience, and strengthen this year’s Red Wings’ resemblance to a 2016 ultimate team. Detroit could also invest in a low-risk reclamation project: A familiar face in former 2018 first-rounder Filip Zadina is still a free agent, though the Red Wing’ terminating his contract last offseason is a sign that a reunion is unlikely.
Last training camp, the Red Wings brought in forwards Cameron Hillis, Artem Anisimov and goaltender Michael Hutchinson on PTOs. Detroit ended up signing Hutchinson when goaltending depth dwindled during an injury-filled December. The Red Wings also signed forward Zach Aston-Reese to a two-way contract at the conclusion of his preseason PTO with the Carolina Hurricanes.
PTO signings are probably unlikely given how stocked Detroit’s cupboard is from the perspectives of both roster depth and prospect depth. The lack of needs makes signing washed-up NHLers or borderline prospects an unnecessary complication. But given that these tryouts come at virtually no risk, perhaps the Red Wings might ink some.
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