Detroit’s search for Steve Yzerman’s replacement is already pointing in two directions: stay inside the organization, or swing big and look beyond it.
On SiriusXM NHL Network Radio’s Power Play Segment on Wednesday, Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press said Shawn Horcoff, one of Yzerman’s assistant general managers, would be the obvious internal name. But she also questioned whether that move would have already been made if he were the clear choice.
“their Swedish guy is very happy in Sweden, Nicklas Lidstrom, so I don’t think he’s coming over,” St. James said. She added that Horcoff “might be kind of an obvious choice from the standpoint that he was in charge of the AHL team and such.”
Still, St. James made her strongest pitch for someone else already in Detroit hockey.
“I think they should. We already have a great hockey GM in Detroit: Manon Rhéaume.
She has put together a fantastic Detroit PWHL team in three months. So her and Ellen Hughes.
Her and Ellen Hughes. I’m telling you.”
The conversation then shifted to whether Detroit should follow a more outside-the-box model, similar to Nashville’s approach. Jim Biringer of NHLRumors.com and Full Press NHL said that’s the route he would take.
“I think they should go the Nashville route, to be honest. Go outside the organization.
I think you’ve got to bring in somebody, and you’ve got to hire the right guy. If it takes a while, then that is how long it takes to hire the right person,” Biringer said.
He pushed back on the idea that a quick hire is the goal, saying the real task is avoiding a mistake. “No, but if you do your due diligence, and I think if you look at the Nashville situation, I’m not sure, like Detroit has that Nick Saban guy inside, but if you had a guy like that who knows how to interview. Ask the right questions, know what you’re looking for in a winning organization, you can land a guy like Chris McFarland from Colorado, which was a great hire by Nashville.”
Biringer also agreed with St. James that if Horcoff were the answer, the move likely would have happened already.
“As much as I think Shawn Horcoff would be a great hire. I agree with Helene St.
James, who I was listening to on the off the top of the show, if it was him, it would have been done today.”
In Other News...
Dylan Larkin Suddenly Looms Over One Massive Red Wings Question
The Red Wings have spent the summer watching a lot of noise swirl around other teams and other names, from Montreals reported lack of real interest in Anthony Mantha to the Predators having to trim a crowded roster and sort through trade possibilities. Even the Patrick Kane speculation has kept the rumor mill busy elsewhere, while Detroit has remained in a familiar spot where the biggest questions are still about the shape of its own roster and whether the club has done enough to move closer to contention.
What makes Dylan Larkin suddenly loom over all of it is the possibility that the dynamic around Detroit could change if Steve Yzerman is no longer the one steering the front office. The Red Wings have not exactly made offseason moves that scream playoff push, so any shift at the top would naturally send a ripple through the organization and back toward its captain. For a team still trying to define its next step, that kind of uncertainty is hard to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Steve Yzerman Just Forced A Massive Red Wings Turning Point
The offseason around the Red Wings keeps getting busier, and one of the more notable moves came in Winnipeg, where Cole Perfetti landed a five-year extension that keeps him in place through the 2030-31 season. It is the kind of long-term commitment that helps a team settle its core, and it comes as Detroit continues to navigate a very different kind of uncertainty at the top of its own organization.
Edmonton also made a significant swing in reshaping its goaltending picture, adding Tristan Jarry, Devon Levi and Frederik Andersen to a roster that now looks markedly different in net. For Detroit, the bigger question is what comes next in its front office search, with the organization now weighing its options and trying to determine who will guide the next phase of the rebuild. [Read more 🡒]
Three Forgotten Red Wings Defense Prospects Still Matter More Than Fans Think
A few of the Red Wings 2023 draft defensemen have kept moving along in college hockey this season, even if they have slipped out of the daily conversation around Detroits prospect pool. Larry Keenan at UMass, Jack Phelan at Wisconsin and Brady Cleveland at Minnesota Duluth have all carved out meaningful roles, with each one showing the kind of defensive growth that keeps pro teams watching closely.
Keenan has added offense to his game while still handling the work that matters most in his own end, Phelan has settled in as a dependable stay-at-home presence, and Cleveland continues to bring the size and edge that made him such an intriguing pick in the first place. None of that guarantees a quick path to the NHL, but it does mean Detroit still has three blue-line projects worth tracking as their college seasons unfold and the club weighs future contract decisions. [Read more 🡒]