Why Steve Yzerman’s Next Bold Move Could Make or Break the Detroit Red Wings’ Future

Detroit’s hockey faithful were brimming with hope this season, certain the Red Wings were ready to finally shake off nearly a decade of postseason absence. The chatter was all about Detroit stepping into the playoff picture — ideally swapping places with a struggling Montreal Canadiens squad. But here we are, nine years deep in a playoff drought, watching the Red Wings on the outside looking in yet again. It’s a bitter pill, especially for a city that lives and breathes hockey.

And now, the heat is coming hard for Steve Yzerman. The GM’s usually cool composure has been tested sharply after captain Dylan Larkin publicly voiced frustration over the quiet trade deadline, calling out the front office for missing an opportunity to ignite the club. Larkin’s candor underscores a deeper unease — can this roster, led by Yzerman’s vision, really break free from rebuild purgatory? Or is it time to rethink the whole blueprint? Fans and insiders alike are wondering if Motown needs a fresh approach to reclaim its spot on hockey’s biggest stage.

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The Detroit Red Wings were supposed to take the next step this season. It was supposed to be the Red Wings in the spot the Montreal Canadiens are occupying in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But unfortunately, the Red Wings are watching the playoffs on the sidelines for the ninth straight season, instead of playing in them.

Many are starting to wonder if a new direction is needed in Motown. General Manager Steve Yzerman‘s seat is getting warm, if not already hot. That pressure and heat were turned up back on April 19th when Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin, during the team’s locker clean-up day, called out his GM for not doing much at the trade deadline to improve the club.

“It was hard that we didn’t do anything, and then I felt the group kind of, we didn’t gain any momentum from the trade deadline,” Larkin told the media. “Guys were kind of down about it, so it’d be nice to add something, and bring a little bit of a spark on the ice and maybe a morale boost as well.”

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There should be no surprise that Dylan Larkin is upset. He has not seen playoff action since the 2015-16. His rookie season was the last year the Red Wings made the playoffs. Prolonged playoff droughts, like the Buffalo Sabres at 14 years and now with the Red Wings at nine years, are not a good thing. Especially in a place like Detroit, where fans could lose interest if the team is not successful.

While winning cures all, Detroit missed the playoffs in 2024 because it did not have enough regulation wins, as they were tied with the Washington Capitals with the same number of points. Not having Larkin for a stretch of games cost the Red Wings a chance at the playoffs.

This year, the Red Wings were just not talented enough. There were too many prolonged losing streaks, especially the one entering the 2025 Stadium Series game and coming out of it. But the team, led by Steve Yzerman and company, was not good enough.

While Patrick Kane is still a good player, he is on the older side of 35. Vladimir Tarasenko signed a two-year deal last summer, and he is nowhere near the player he used to be. Goaltending continues to be a revolving door for the Red Wings. Not to mention, he signed too many of the same players like J.T. Compher and Andrew Copp.

The Red Wings have a nice young core of Larkin, DeBrincat, Lucas Raymond, Marco Kasper, Moritz Seider, and Simon Evidsson. And before people get out of control, Larkin isn’t going anywhere. He signed an eight-year deal with a full no-movement clause that runs through the 2027-28 season.

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However, people are asking, how come Steve Yzerman can’t make lightning strike twice again? Well, for one, the guys he drafted in Tampa Bay, like Ondrej Palat, Tyler Johnson, and Nikita Kucherov, are better than what he has in Detroit. They were perfect for Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman, who were already there. Oh yeah, he drafted Andrei Vasilevskiy.

If you look at a team like the Montreal Canadiens, they took steps in drafting, developing, and playing their young players. Similar to the Lightning during their rise to being a contender. Detroit has failed to do that unless there was an injury. This is not the late 1990s or early 2000s, when kids could stay in the AHL and overdevelop. There were 12 Hall of Famers on the team blocking their way up to the big leagues.

Despite what many thought entering the season, there was a legitimate case to be made that the Canadiens had a better team than the Red Wings. In the end, those who made the argument were right. Those young Canadiens were able to take advantage of good teams having a bad season to make the playoffs. Maybe with a move or two, the Red Wings do the same thing.

However, based on his comments last year, at the start of the season, and at the deadline, it’s possible that Yzerman doesn’t feel his team is ready to be a sustainable playoff contender. Whether that is true or not, players are sensing it and getting frustrated, seeing others go through rebuilds and return to the playoffs over these nine years.

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At some point, the Detroit Red Wings need to get off the rebuild plan and take the next step, which is making the playoffs.

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