Red Wings Predicted to Land Erik Karlsson in Blockbuster Trade Proposal originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The Detroit Red Wings haven’t the playoffs since the 2015-16 season, and it has been dark times for this once-proud franchise. The Red Wings have been trying to build themselves back up, but nothing has worked out yet.

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General manager Steve Yzerman has his work cut out for him, and his tenure has been fairly lackluster thus far. But he has been known to make some big moves in the past.

One idea. forDetroit could be to go after veteran defenseman Erik Karlsson of the Pittsburgh Penguins. NHL writer Adam Gretz of Bleacher Report put together some trade packages for Karlsson, with the Red Wings being one of the teams to land him.

Here is how the deal could look:

Red Wings get: Erik Karlsson

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Penguins get: Carter Mazur or Shai Buium, top-15 first-round pick

“They have the trade assets. They just need the urgency and desire to actually want to try to get better. After missing out on nearly every major free agent, they will have to dip into the trade market to improve. This would be a big improvement, even if Karlsson has some flaws.

“He wouldn’t be required to be the top-defense option (that is Seider’s job) and could really add some much-needed offensive spark to a relatively punchless defense,” Gretz wrote.

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Putting Karlsson into the lineup could help this team take another step forward and possibly end the long playoff drought. Karlsson is still a very productive player, and he would bring some stability to the blueline.

Last season with Pittsburgh, Karlsson scored 11 goals and 42 assists. His offensive production could benefit this team greatly, and Detroit needs something to excite the fan base.

Trading for Karlsson wouldn’t cost the Red Wings too much, and this could be a move to break the drought. It’s something that Detroit may want to consider, especially if Karlsson is made available on the trade front.

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 30, 2025, where it first appeared.