The Hockey Writers

The Detroit Red Wings have reached the next phase of their rebuild. How so? For starters, look at their opening night roster. You’ve got former 30-goal-scorer Dominik Kubalik on the fourth line. Middle-six mainstays Filip Zadina and Pius Suter couldn’t even crack the lineup. And then you have Givani Smith and Jonatan Berggren—NHL-quality forwards—waiting patiently
Last season, the Detroit Red Wings were among the league leaders in salary cap space. General manager Steve Yzerman had been frugal since joining the organization, opting to only sign role players to supplement Detroit’s young core. This offseason, though, he opened up the checkbook. Over the summer, the Red Wings signed several free agents,