The Red Wings’ general manager search is moving, and it’s moving with the clock ticking.
On the latest episode of 32 Thoughts, released last night, Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman said Detroit is already deep into the interview process for its next GM. With more than a month having passed without one in place and the team’s first preseason game now less than a month away, the pressure is building from every direction.
Friedman had more for Red Wings fans, too, starting around the 13-minute mark of the YouTube version. Jeff Greenberg of the Detroit Tigers remains a name to watch and a potential front-runner, although there are still questions about whether the search can really be solved by someone from inside the organization. Even so, Detroit still seems to have multiple candidates lined up for interviews.
Whoever lands the job won’t be walking into a clean slate. The new GM will inherit a long to-do list, and right at the top sits the Dylan Larkin trade request, along with Simon Edvinsson’s next contract extension.
What happens with Larkin will help define the franchise and shape the new GM’s tenure from the start. That’s part of what makes this such a tricky read right now, especially since it’s still unclear whether the Red Wings will end up with both a president and a GM or keep the front office down to one executive.
Elsewhere, the University of Michigan hockey program is putting together what looks like one of the most talented junior hockey rosters around. The Wolverines picked up another major addition for next season with Shaeffer Gordon-Carroll, a top-10 projected 2027 Entry Draft prospect, committing to the program.
Michigan had already landed 2027 prospects Landon DuPont and Dima Zhilkin earlier this summer, and now adds another high-end scoring forward to the mix. The Red Wings will be watching closely in Ann Arbor, especially with 2026 first-round pick JP Hurlbert expected to be on that roster for the foreseeable future.
In Other News...
Red Wings Search Just Took A Surprising Detroit Turn
The Red Wings front office search has taken an unexpected local detour, with Detroit sports circles now overlapping in a way few would have predicted. Hockey insider Elliotte Friedman reported that Andrew Thomas, the Tigers vice president of baseball analytics, has interviewed for the Red Wings director of hockey operations job, putting a baseball executive into the mix as Detroit keeps working through what its next leadership group might look like.
Thomas is not the only name tied to the process, with Tigers general manager Jeff Greenberg, along with in-house options Kris Draper and Sean Horcoff, also said to be in the mix. The bigger question is how the Red Wings want to structure the top of the hockey operations department, since they have not finalized that setup and could still go with both a director of hockey operations and a general manager. [Read more 🡒]
William Wallinder Faces A Huge Red Wings Test This Camp
William Wallinder enters camp with a very different kind of pressure than he has faced before. The 24-year-old defenseman signed a one-way, two-year contract this summer, and after showing steady defensive ability at the AHL level, he now has to turn that into something more tangible in Detroit. The Red Wings are looking at him for a bottom-pairing role, which gives him a real opening, but also puts him in a crowded fight for ice time.
Jacob Bernard-Docker and Axel Sandin-Pellikka are part of that same competition, and the decision figures to be about more than just who looks best in drills and exhibition games. Wallinder still has to prove he can hold up at the NHL level, and the contract he signed only adds another layer to the situation. If he does not carve out a regular spot, Detroit will have to weigh some uncomfortable roster choices before opening night. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Camp Looms With One Huge Mess Still Unresolved
With training camp drawing closer, the Red Wings are still trying to sort out the kind of front-office transition that tends to shape everything else around the roster. The search for a new general manager is ongoing, with the organization looking at both internal and external candidates, and Shawn Horcoff has been handling interim duties in the meantime as the club tries to maintain some stability.
The timing only makes the rest of the uncertainty feel heavier. Dylan Larkins trade request remains unresolved, and Simon Edvinsson is still unsigned as a restricted free agent, leaving Detroit with another important issue hanging in the balance as camp approaches. For a team trying to get its footing after a major leadership change, the list of unanswered questions is still long. [Read more 🡒]