In First Deadline Trade, Detroit Sends Klim Kostin to San Jose
The Detroit Red Wings traded forward Klim Kostin to San Jose, receiving New Jersey's seventh round pick and AHL defenseman Radim Simek in return
© James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports - In First Deadline Trade, Detroit Sends Klim Kostin to San JoseThis story was updated to include comments from Steve Yzerman's post-deadline press conference.
After a quiet trade deadline thus far, Steve Yzerman made a tiny splash in the deadline's final hours.
In their first move of the trade deadline, the Red Wings traded forward Klim Kostin to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for AHL defenseman Radim Simek and a seventh round pick in 2024. That pick originally belonged to New Jersey, being one of the assets swapped when the Devils picked up Timo Meier at last year's deadline.
"Klim and I and his agent had some discussions about possibly trading him to where he could get a bigger role," Yzerman said in his post-deadline press conference, "He's a young player, he's trying to try and establish himself in the NHL. So there was a little bit more communication and a little bit more ... upfront. This doesn't come as a surprise whether Klim or myself is real happy about it — neither of us, really, because we were hoping it would work out in Detroit."
Kostin's departure comes after Detroit traded for him during the offseason, hoping he would add grit to the bottom six. While he did make his presence known to opponents with 60 hits and a pair of fights, Kostin found himself increasingly out of the lineup as the season has wore on. In 33 games with the Red Wings this season, Kostin had three goals and one assist to his name, marking his lowest scoring season ever. Increasingly, Detroit opted to make him a healthy scratch.
The return doesn't look like anything that will push the needle for Detroit. Simek is a 31-year-old defenseman who plays physical hockey, and he has spent the entire season with the Sharks' AHL affiliate, recently as its captain. The Red Wings sent him down to their own Grand Rapids affiliate as soon as they acquired him. While Yzerman was rumored to be in the market for a defenseman with some snarl, Simek doesn't seem likely to fill that role.
Rather, this move was more a maneuver to drop Kostin's $2 million contract signed through next season, saving money for an offseason that will see contract extensions for stars in defenseman Moritz Seider and forward Lucas Raymond. Simek's deal, at $2.25 million, expires this offseason and will be off the books.
"In the role that he was being used, it doesn't make sense to have a $2 million player," Yzerman said. "I really honestly have mixed emotions about trading him. We brought him in last year, big guy, physical, but has some ability too. Just, it didn't work here. For whatever reason, it didn't work."
Such a move illustrates the patience with which Yzerman has approached this deadline. Moving Kostin doesn't change much for the current roster, but it frees up cap space to improve the team next season and beyond. The future is the priority, even if this Red Wings team is currently in a playoff spot.
Kostin's departure means that there's a spot open on Detroit's roster, particularly at forward. With Dylan Larkin still injured, the Red Wings are rolling with seven forwards and 11 defenseman in tonight's game against Arizona. Now, Yzerman is likely to call up a forward. It seems likely that someone such as Jonatan Berggren or Austin Czarnik could get the call-up from Grand Rapids in the next 24 hours.
This deal did little to change the tempered nature of Yzerman's deadline moves thus far. As the Red Wings work toward clinching a playoff spot, he is letting this roster stay put rather than selling the future to improve it.