The Detroit Red Wings may not light up the scoreboard this season, but they could be sitting on one of the NHL’s most attractive piles of cap space.
That matters because the franchise’s new director of hockey operations is looking at a future built on flexibility. Even if restricted free agent defenseman Simon Edvinsson lands an average annual salary north of $9 million, Detroit could still open the season with more than $10 million in cap room. Depending on what salary comes back in a Dylan Larkin trade, that number could climb as high as $18.7 million.
And that’s just the beginning of the runway.
By next summer, the Red Wings could have a major war chest to work with. The 2027 unrestricted free agent class could feature names like Cale Makar, Nikita Kucherov and Quinn Hughes, along with Mark Stone, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Erik Karlsson, Drake Batherson and Vince Dunn.
Of course, not every one of those stars is realistically headed anywhere. Hughes could re-sign with Minnesota this week, and nobody expects Makar or Crosby to leave their current teams. Still, Detroit’s new management will be in position to go after whoever does hit the market.
The opening is there because so much money is set to come off the books. Alex DeBrincat’s $7.75 million cap hit is one of the biggest pieces expiring next summer, and he’d be a highly sought-after UFA if he doesn’t re-sign. Justin Faulk ($6.5 million), John Gibson ($6.4 million), Andrew Copp ($5.625 million), Mason Appleton ($2.9 million), Daniil Tarasov ($2 million) and Jacob Bryson ($850,000) are all also headed toward free agency.
That adds up fast. In all, the Red Wings could have an additional $34 million to deploy, giving Steve Yzerman’s replacement plenty of room to reshape the roster.
The top priority would almost certainly be keeping DeBrincat. Based on the Jason Robertson or Kyle Connor comparables, Detroit may need to go as high as $12 million per season to get it done.
The cap environment makes that easier to imagine. The salary cap is expected to rise from $104 million in 2026-27 to $113.5 million in 2027-28, and that increase gives Detroit even more breathing room.
If Edvinsson and DeBrincat both get paid, the Red Wings could still head into the 2027 free agent signing period with close to $40 million available, even after getting restricted free agents Marco Kasper and Anton Johansson under contract. Neither is projected to command major money right now, though Kasper’s price tag could rise significantly if his goal total keeps climbing.
Detroit may also have reasons to retain some of its own veterans. Gibson is a possibility if he performs next season the way he did last year. Faulk and Copp could also be back depending on how their seasons unfold.
Copp, in particular, could fit nicely if the Red Wings want his smart two-way game in a third-line role rather than asking him to carry second-line minutes.
In Other News...
Red Wings May Have Let Needed Scoring Help Slip Away
As Detroit looks for ways to add offense, one of the more interesting near-misses from the offseason was a reunion that apparently got close enough to matter. Reports said the Red Wings had a deal lined up to bring back Anthony Mantha as an unrestricted free agent, a move that would have added a familiar, needed scoring presence to the roster before the talks stalled out and the winger ended up with the New Jersey Devils on a two-year contract.
The wrinkle is where the process hit a wall, with internal deliberations slowing things down at a time when Detroit could have used a cleaner decision. It is the kind of missed opportunity that lingers because it sits right alongside the clubs broader hunt for finishing help, especially now that other teams keep circling available scoring options and the Red Wings are left to wonder how different the depth chart might look if that one had gotten over the line. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Fans Have One Big Question About Theo Rochette
Theo Rochettes move to Detroit brings an intriguing layer of added competition to the Red Wings depth picture, and it is the kind of signing that can pay off quietly if the players development keeps trending the right way. The European free agent has already linked up with the organization and, just as important, he is approaching the opportunity with a clear plan to stay in North America and make his case for an NHL job rather than treating this as a stopover.
Rochette has also done his homework on what it takes to bridge that gap, leaning on former Red Wings players for perspective as he settles into a new challenge. He has drawn inspiration from Pius Suter, whose own path from Switzerland to the NHL offers a familiar blueprint for the kind of jump Rochette is trying to make, and the next question for Detroit is whether that background can translate into a real roster push. [Read more 🡒]