{"id":558417,"date":"2026-04-23T18:55:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T18:55:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/558417\/"},"modified":"2026-04-23T18:55:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T18:55:11","slug":"red-wings-yzerman-says-no-one-is-untouchable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/558417\/","title":{"rendered":"Red Wings Yzerman Says No One is Untouchable"},"content":{"rendered":"

The question was as apparent as the answer provided by Detroit<\/a> Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman<\/a>.<\/p>\n

What do the Red Wings require to get over the hump and make the Stanley Cup playoffs?<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, the most obvious would be we need better players,\u201d Yzerman said.<\/p>\n

What do Red Wings need to do to make playoffs? <\/p>\n

Steve Yzerman: \u201cThe most obvious would be, we need better players. .. it\u2019s incumbent upon me and my staff to improve the team.\u201d pic.twitter.com\/NRZXzPg2KH<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 97.1 The Ticket: (@971theticketxyt) April 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

How do they get better players? Well, that\u2019s the question that isn\u2019t so easily answered.<\/p>\n

Yzerman did reveal one potential solution, though. He acknowledged that no one wearing the winged wheel, whether a current player or a budding prospect, is off the table in trade talks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll certainly look at any way we can to improve our team to take that next step, so to speak,\u201d Yzerman said. \u201cCertainly prepared to do that. We\u2019re absolutely open to doing that.\u201d<\/p>\n

What does all that mean? Should Captain Dylan Larkin<\/a> have U-Haul on speed dial? Might a gaggle of prospects be packaged in a bid to land that second-line center or top-six scoring winger that this team so desperately needs?<\/p>\n

This is where the hard part begins. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to change some things, but it\u2019s not just going to go and get rid of everyone,\u201d Yzerman said.<\/p>\n

Red Wings Must Make Changes<\/p>\n

Clearly, though, something has to change. Running back the same team that just squandered a 12-point lead in late January and missed the playoffs for a 10th successive season just isn\u2019t going to fly. <\/p>\n

That being the case, it isn\u2019t a bumper crop of budding stars that awaits when the UFA class of 2026 becomes available on July 1. Charlie Coyle<\/a> or Boone Jenner aren\u2019t the No. 2 center the Wings need. Alex Tuch could address the need for a scoring winger, but as the Sabres battle in the playoffs and look to be on the upswing, it seems there\u2019s a path to see him stay in Buffalo.<\/p>\n

Certainly, over the summer, Yzerman can revisit the trade talks he had with the New York Rangers regarding Vincent Trocheck<\/a>. Does Detroit dare roll the dice and make a blockbuster move to add the mercurial Elias Pettersson from Vancouver?<\/p>\n

Steve Yzerman said Chris Ilitch and Red Wings ownership is disappointed for the way the season ended up.<\/p>\n

As for his own job security, Yzerman said: \u201cI intend to do my job to the best of my ability and I intend to see this through.\u201d pic.twitter.com\/iKtuy4w16U<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Brad Galli (@BradGalli) April 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

There\u2019s no easy answer in any of these scenarios. So now you get a better understanding of what Yzerman must be considering.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy to say shake things up. But what if the new concoction winds up leaving an even worse aftertaste than the current flavor of Red Wings?<\/p>\n

Yzerman suggested that he is neither optimistic nor pessimistic about what the summer trade market may hold. <\/p>\n

\u201cCertainly something that we\u2019re hoping and are open to and looking to address and see if we can\u2019t somehow fill or address some of the positions we\u2019d like to improve upon,\u201d Yzerman said.<\/p>\n

There was a definite difference in tone with Yzerman at this year\u2019s season-ending media session. The defiance that was evident a year ago was absent, replaced by a more contrite, contemplative version of Stevie Y.<\/p>\n

He knows he needs to upgrade his team. It\u2019s how he can make that happen that remains his perplexing dilemma. <\/p>\n