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1 trade overreaction Red Wings must make early in NHL season
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Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
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The Detroit Red Wings made a few moves in NHL Free Agency this offseason. Travis Hamonic , James van Riemsdyk , and Mason Appleton were among the names to sign as free agents. Of course, the Red Wings also traded for John Gibson in a deal with the Anaheim Ducks . There are no star-level players here. But Detroit believed they improved the team enough to help it contend for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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So far, its been a mixed bag. Gibson was pulled from his Red Wings debut , and hasn't played since. van Riemsdyk has had personal issues to deal with, and only made his team debut on Monday. Appleton is on fire, though, having scored twice against the Florida Panthers in the team's most recent victory.
Detroit is currently 3-1-0 after a disaster against the Montreal Canadiens to open the season. Head coach Todd McLellan made a few changes to the lineup after the game. Overall, though, Detroit has turned in better performances all around.
However, there is one player whose exclusion from the lineup could not have provided a more positive impact. Hamonic, like Gibson, has not played since Detroit's opening game last week. If the Red Wings were smart, that would be his final game in the Winged Wheel.
Red Wings' Travis Hamonic should never play for Detroit again
Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
Hamonic is in the midst of his first season with the Red Wings. He was a late-summer signing, putting pen to paper on a one-year contract. The idea from the front office was that the veteran defenseman could provide depth on the blueline. He also could have been a mentor to some of the young defensemen on the team whether he made the NHL or went to the AHL.
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His debut with Detroit could not have gone worse. He did make one or two strong defensive plays. Overall, though, the third pairing for the Red Wings was eaten alive by Montreal. In fact, he and Albert Johansson were the two worst players on the ice that night for Detroit.
Following this game, Detroit made a change. Hamonic drew out for Jacob Bernard-Docker . Almost immediately, the Red Wings saw their third defensive pairing improve. Johansson's play skyrocketed in the team's second game of the year, in fact.
On Wednesday night, Johansson and Bernard-Docker once again made a huge impact. They were once again some of the best players on the ice for the Red Wings. The improvement between their pairing and Johansson's time with Hamonic is night and day.
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The signing of Hamonic was questionable to begin with. He did not play overly well with the Ottawa Senators last year. In fact, he hasn't played well in a few seasons. It was a reoccuring discussion about Ottawa trading Hamonic or sitting him in the press box.
Beyond this, Detroit had already signed depth defensemen. Bernard-Docker signed a contract this summer after leaving the Buffalo Sabres . Detroit also had Justin Holl and Erik Gustafsson , who could step in on occasion. William Lagesson , signed last summer, also served as a depth option.
Outside of Bernard-Docker, none of those options were exactly ideal. But Hamonic did not provide a significant improvement to truly justify his signing. It is only one game, but the results speak for themselves. The Red Wings should do their best to trade Hamonic and make sure he does not play another game for Detroit again.
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