It’s a great time to be a Detroit Red Wings fan. There were positives even after a very tough loss to Andrei Vasilevskiy, who pretty much single-handedly took down Detroit in Saturday night’s matchup.
The Detroit Red Wings are fighting. They battled through Saturday night’s matchup and continue to keep themselves in tough games. It’s been good to see the Red Wings continue to play this way, making it seem like the team will be a cautious buyer this upcoming week.
As the week progresses, the Red Wings may be looking to grab a defenseman, add a forward, or pull the trigger on a deal to further their hopes of clinching a Wildcard spot in 2022-23. Something that sounded out of the question as little as a month ago.
While they may not be able to afford the Patrick Kane’s or Timo Meier’s of the world, there are some players the Red Wings can bring in to help on a budget cost. A reunion with a former Red Wings defenseman might be worth considering for the team to add a depth defender.
Detroit Red Wings should consider a reunion with Nick Jensen.
Since the Red Wings were able to grab a win over the Capitals, their season was earmarked as over. They made some deals and have started listing their assets on the trade block. One of the players being shopped around is 32-year-old defender Nick Jensen.
The former Red Wings defenseman has a $2.5 million cap hit in 2022-23 and is an unrestricted free agent this off-season. He’s played seven seasons total in the NHL after spending his first 2+ seasons with the Red Wings.
In 2019, he was shipped to the Capitals with a fifth-round pick in exchange for Madison Bowey and a 2020 second-rounder. He’s been in Washington ever since. In 2022-23, Jensen had two goals and 20 assists for 22 total points over 60 games played.
He’s averaging nearly 21 minutes a night and is a clear upgrade over Robert Hagg and Gustav Lindstrom. He could easily slide in alongside Ben Chiarot or Olli Maatta and boost the defense core.
He’s got a touch of offense in his game, and the Red Wings may be able to squeeze some quality use out of him the rest of the way. The Red Wings are not going to shell out a massive trade package to go and get Erik Karlsson or do something crazy like that, but it’s reasonable to think about making a move for someone like Jensen.
After all, he was not horrible in Detroit, but he was able to be moved when the team was a clear seller. If he even makes a move, Steve Yzerman will mull over his options before he does anything. But, with Jensen on the block, it’s worth kicking the tires on what seems like a very attainable deal.