Red Wings’ Steve Yzerman has a perfect storm forming before 2026 NHL Trade Deadline

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Red Wings’ Steve Yzerman has a perfect storm forming before 2026 NHL Trade Deadline

Tristin McKinstry, ClutchPoints · ClutchPoints

Sat, Jan 17, 2026 ·

4 min read

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The Detroit Red Wings have missed the playoffs in each of the last nine seasons. This is the longest playoff drought in franchise history. Detroit has not made the Stanley Cup Final in nearly 20 years. For a franchise with the history the Red Wings have, this sort of run is simply unacceptable.

However, the Red Wings appear to be turning a corner. Detroit defeated the San Jose Sharks on Friday night by a score of 4-2. The goal featured contributions from established stars such as Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Larkin. It also saw young stars such as Lucas Raymond and Marco Kasper step up.

General manager Steve Yzerman has long had his stamp placed on this team. Of the aforementioned players, Larkin is the only one the former Detroit captain didn't bring to the Motor City. The core of this team has been built by the Hall of Famer. And his core has brought the Red Wings into a tie for first in the Atlantic Division at this time.

Barring a collapse, Detroit should be able to snap its postseason drought. And the path to a collapse isn't entirely out of the realm of possibility. The most realistic path to a collapse is Yzerman maintaining his policy of reticence when it comes to making splash moves to improve the team.

Red Wings can't follow Tigers blueprint

The focus of the sports world in Michigan is squarely on the Red Wings and Detroit Pistons. It remains to be seen how the Pistons, who are first in the NBA's Eastern Conference , will operate this trade season. However, we have seen how the city's other counterparts — the Detroit Tigers and Detroit Lions — have operated.

The Lions have made the necessary moves when the time has come more often than not. The Tigers, however, have not met the moment. President of Baseball Operations Scott Harris has largely maintained an ultra-conservative philosophy when it comes to adding talent. In fact, they have yet to sign a free agent to a contract longer than two years since Harris has taken over.

Moreover, Detroit has gone more for quantity than quality when addressing its depth. This was on full display at the MLB Trade Deadline, when they acquired multiple pitchers with question marks. The strategy didn't work, as the Tigers suffered a historic collapse and failed to win the AL Central Division.

Now, the Tigers are busy nickel-and-diming their best player, Tarik Skubal . The Red Wings cannot afford to operate with this sort of reticence. There is a perfect storm in place for Detroit to strike now.

The pieces are in place for Steve Yzerman

Let's be clear: Yzerman has made notable moves in the past. He traded for John Gibson in a deal with the Anaheim Ducks this past summer. A couple of years prior, he traded with the Ottawa Senators for Alex DeBrincat . And he has splashed the cash for J.T. Compher, Andrew Copp, and Ben Chiarot in NHL Free Agency.

However, the Red Wings general manager has stopped short of making a true blockbuster move. The trades for Gibson and DeBrincat are impactful, but neither player represents an aggressive move to push Detroit into postseason contention. They raised the floor, but not the ceiling.

Yzerman has insisted he's willing to trade future assets for star players. However, that player has to be more than a rental. And the team has to be in a position to contend for more than getting into the playoffs.

Right now, all of those conditions have been met. The Red Wings are competing for first in the Eastern Conference. There are multiple players who can raise this team's ceiling. Everything is in place for Yzerman to make his move.

Whether the Red Wings go for one player or chase multiple, the time is now to act. If they don't, it could send the wrong message to the locker room. And it could derail all the hard work the team has put in to put themselves in this position.

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