The Detroit Red Wings have a little north of $17 million in salary cap space, but as they shop for players to strengthen their hopes of becoming a playoff team in 2025-26, competition will be intense.
The Florida Panthers, still basking in the glow of winning a second straight Stanley Cup, ensured Brad Marchand and Aaron Ekblad wouldn’t even hit the market on July 1 by signing them the day before. Both players were high on the Wings’ list of targets.
The Wings are looking for a defenseman to play in their top four, and a winger to play on the second line, with Marco Kasper and newly re-signed Patrick Kane. (He agreed to a very cap-friendly $3 million deal on June 30; the deal includes $4 million in performance bonuses.)
Follow along for the Free Press’ coverage of the NHL free agency as the market opens at noon ET.
Alex Lyon lands in Buffalo
Former Wings goaltender Alex Lyon parlayed his two seasons with the Wings into two seasons with the Buffalo Sabres, complete with nearly doubling his salary. Lyon was coming off earning $900,000 a year in Detroit; the Sabres gave him $1.5 million a season.
Jeff Petry lands in Florida
Former Wings defenseman Jeff Petry, 37, landed a one-year deal for the league minimum, $775,000, with the Panthers. So that adds up to a warm winter, no state income tax, excellent odds of being part of a Stanley Cup championship run, and hitting 1,000 games (he’s 19 games short).
Red Wings sign James van Riemsdyk
With the market growing sparser by the hour, the Wings signed left wing James van Riemsdyk for one year, $1 million, about two and a half hours after opening. The 36-year-old is a veteran of 1,082 games. He spent last season with the Columbus Blue Jackets, recording 16 goals and 36 points in 71 games.
Wings add a couple depth defensemen
The Wings signed minor league defensemen Ian Mitchell (Ian Mitchell (one-year, $775,000) and Jacob Bernard-Docker (one year, $875,000). Mitchell, 26, has played 110 NHL games and ernard-Docker, 25, has played 144 games.
Vladislav Gavrikov heads to the Big Apple
Defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov, a top Wings target, was snapped up by the New York Rangers, for seven years at a $7 million annual average value. With Ekblad having re-upped in Florida and Ivan Provorov negotiating to stay in Columbus, that really leaves a meager market for defensemen.
Brock Boeser staying put
Brock Boeser, a regular 20-goal scorer and who reached 40 goals a season ago, is staying with the Vancouver Canucks for seven years at a $7.25 million annual average value.
Why the Wings want to add a defenseman
Moritz Seider, Ben Chiarot, Simon Edvinsson, Albert Johansson, Erik Gustafsson, Justin Holl and William Lagesson are under contract for 2025-26. Lagesson was a bit player last season, and Holl spent time in the minors last season after being put on waivers. Axel Sandin Pellikka is in the pipeline, but he’s only just arrived in North America and earmarked for the Grand Rapids Griffins.
Vladislav Gavrikov, most recently of the Los Angeles Kings, tops the list as the market opens.
Why the Wings want to add a top six winger
Steve Yzerman managed to find a taker for Vladimir Tarasenko (the Minnesota Wild took his entire $4.75 million contract off the Wings’ hands on June 30), clearing a roster spot. Ideally, the Wings want a left winger, to play on a line with Kane and Marco Kasper and give the team a bonafide second scoring line besides Dylan Larkin’s line with Lucas Raymond and Alex DeBrincat.
With the Panthers keeping both Marchand and Sam Bennett, Nikolaj Ehlers looks like the top fit, but he won’t lack for suitors.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her books: “The Franchise: Detroit Red Wings, A Curated History of Hockeytown,” and “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” and “The Big 50: The Men and Moments that made the Detroit Red Wings” are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings in NHL free agency: Veteran forward, depth defensemen signed
Reporting by Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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