While the Detroit Red Wings were among the more active teams in free agency this summer, none of their acquisitions can realistically be considered a major addition.
General manager Steve Yzerman did swing a trade for Anaheim Ducks goaltender John Gibson, who represents their first true starter in the crease since the days when Jimmy Howard carried the bulk of the goaltending workload.
As far as a top-line forward or top-pairing defenseman goes, the Red Wings have yet to fill those needs.
However, smoke continues to swirl around former Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Erik Karlsson, who remains the subject of heavy trade rumors from the rebuilding Pittsburgh Penguins.
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Josh Yohe, who covers the Penguins for The Athletic, recently made a guest appearance on The Kevin Karius Show and tossed another log onto the rumor mill of a potential Karlsson move to the Red Wings.
Yohe began by reiterating the desire by Penguins GM Kyle Dubas to move on from Karlsson, who simply has not worked out with the Penguins since his acquisition from the San Jose Sharks.
"I really think he wants to trade Erik Karlsson, Karlsson has not worked in Pittsburgh and it's been somewhat of a disaster to watch him play," he said. "But I know there are teams that are interested in him."
"The Penguins will have to eat some money if they do trade him, no one wants the $10 million cap hit that he comes with," Yohe continued. "But I wouldn't be shocked if you hear his name pop up sooner rather than later. Detroit is the team I've heard the most, who might be the most interested in him."
Karlsson’s cap hit is actually $1.5 million higher than the $10 million cited by Yohe, and there’s no chance Yzerman would take him on at that number.
For any deal to work, the Penguins would need to retain a significant portion of his salary. Right now, the Red Wings have approximately $11.9 million of available cap space.
It’s true that Karlsson’s best days are behind him, and at 35, he’s not getting any younger. However, a major asset for the Swedish defenseman is that he remains effective on the power play and continues to excel as a puck mover.
With 11 goals and 42 assists, Karlsson would have been Detroit's highest scoring defenseman last season (Moritz Seider scored eight times while adding 38 assists.)
Training Camp is now just over a week away, and there is still time for a major deal to be made. Will it materialize? We'll have to wait and see.
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