The NHL Trade Deadline will be here before we know it, and just like in recent seasons, the Detroit Red Wings will once again be poised to sell off assets with their eye on the future.
And they have several tradable commodities that you can bet other NHL teams have been watching. Among the most obvious candidates to be moved include forward Bobby Ryan, goaltender Jonathan Bernier and defenseman Marc Staal. All three are set to become unrestricted free-agents at season’s end and could prove valuable for clubs looking to make deep playoff runs.
However, things could be more quiet on the trade front this time around owing to COVID-19 protocols and logistics.
“It doesn’t feel like there will be much action this year,” Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said. “Listening to a number of reports and knowing the flat salary cap — I know when I talked to other teams how tight everybody is — it’s going to be really difficult for people to make moves.
“The economics of the whole thing, there’s no fans in the stands at most places and it’s hard to just bring in money just to bring in money. You throw on top of that, the whole aspect with the coronavirus and the quarantines that can be required, certainly if you’re going into Canada, I don’t know that the trade deadline this year is as big a deal as it’s been in past years at all.”
In addition to Ryan, Bernier and Staal, the Red Wings could potentially field offers for the likes of Sam Gagner, use Glendening, Jon Merrill and Darren Helm, all of whom are free-agents at season’s end.
The NHL Trade Deadline is this Monday at 3:00 PM EST.
– – Quotes via Ansar Khan of MLive Link – –
