The Detroit Red Wings are heading into a season where the bigger issue is not who’s gone, but what comes next.
Patrick Kane’s decision to return to the Chicago Blackhawks drew a split reaction around the team. Some fans hated seeing a top-six scorer leave.
Others looked at the opening in the lineup and saw opportunity. Either way, the Red Wings now have to replace what Kane brought offensively, and that’s no small task.
Detroit has already tried to patch things together by signing Viktor Arvidsson and creating room for younger players to step in. But with Kane out of the picture and Dylan Larkin soon to be a former captain, the offense is staring at a serious drop-off. It’s a lot to ask rookies to become everyday NHL players and also match the production of established veterans like Kane and Larkin.
Still, Kane’s departure may end up helping Detroit in the long run.
The reality is that whether Kane stayed or left, the Red Wings were facing a rough season anyway. Before the year even begins, the organization still has major business to handle: hire a general manager, extend Simon Edvinsson, trade or try to trade Dylan Larkin, figure out what to do with Alex DeBrincat, and decide where the franchise is actually headed.
Even with Kane on the roster, the outlook wouldn’t suddenly brighten. Andrew Copp or Marco Kasper as the first-line center is not a comforting solution, and a win or two from Kane wouldn’t mean much if the Red Wings are already 16 points out of playoff contention.
The schedule isn’t doing Detroit any favors either. The Red Wings have one of the hardest slates in the NHL this season, and that only adds to the case for accepting the situation and bottoming out in 2026-27.
That’s where Kane’s exit starts to make sense. If Detroit is going to lean into a reset, this is the time to do it.
The next general manager will want a real look at the prospects already in the system, and a roster full of holes creates chances for young players to matter. Keeping Kane would only clog the top six and block those minutes.
A player like Michael Brandsegg-Nygard could benefit from that kind of opening if Detroit chooses to give youth a real runway.
The offseason has already been messy, and the mood around the team isn’t exactly bright. But change is rarely clean.
Steve Yzerman’s run as general manager wasn’t moving the needle. Larkin’s leadership didn’t get the Red Wings into the playoffs.
Kane’s talent, for all of it, wasn’t enough to carry them there either.
At some point, the organization had to choose a different path.
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