There has been a lot of discourse about Steve Yzerman's performance as general manager of the Detroit Red Wings since taking over in 2019. This discourse has seemingly split the fanbase between those who believe Yzerman should be fired because the rebuild is taking too long and those like me who still have faith in the vision that Yzerman has for the Red Wings.
That's not to say I don't agree with some of the criticisms. There have been good and bad in Yzerman's stint as general manager, but as a whole, It's been mostly a positive tenure.
Unfortunately, the length of the rebuild and lack of a playoff berth have started to weigh on more and more fans as the seasons go by. This leads many fans to largely point out Yzerman's mistakes, such as the Jake Walman Trade, his free agency signings in recent years, and, of course, his decision to keep former head coach Derek Lalonde for so long. A decision that possibly cost the Red Wings a playoff berth this season.
He's drafted extremely well since becoming general manager, with already six of his draft picks playing more than 50 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) with several prospects like Nate Danielson, Axel Sandin-Pellikka, and Michael Brandsegg-Nygård are all "waiting in the wings," with several other second round+ prospects who look like they're going to be NHL caliber.
The true rebuild for the Detroit Red Wings has been shorter than you think
In reality, while the Red Wings have missed the playoffs since 2016, the true rebuild has really only been happening since 2019. Yes, Ken Holland was technically drafting to rebuild the team, but boy, did he make every wrong move he possibly could. From his top draft picks being Filip Zadina, Dennis Cholowski, and Michael Rasmussen to paying Justin Abdelkader $4.25 million for 7 years, there are plenty of mistakes that were made.
Needless to say, Yzerman showed up and had to essentially gut the entire franchise of horrible contracts. Then, he had to figure out what to do with everything else that he had left. That gave us one of the top five worst records in NHL history during the 2019-20 season. Contrast that with Holland in his last three seasons, still trying to make the playoffs while rebuilding instead of just rebuilding.
— Justin (@tradeincoming) November 20, 2024Ken Holland, as Red Wings GM, famously said it takes 8-10 years to rebuild.
This is year 6.
I get that people want this rebuild to end, but Holland wasn’t lying in his assessment of how long rebuilds take.
Last year’s playoff push was an anomaly in a rebuild phase. https://t.co/bSYmAH2DqX
As expected, Yzerman's first three seasons were rebuild-focused and getting high-end prospects. While I agree with the criticism that he should've tanked for at least another season, we can't change the past. So, let's look ahead at what's to come for the Red Wings.
We've seen several of Yzerman's draft picks make the Red Wings' roster. First-round picks like Moritz Seider, Raymond, and more recently, Simon Edvinsson and Marco Kasper have all made their mark on the team, and later-round draft picks like Albert Johansson and Elmer Soderblom burst on the scene and stuck a claim to a permanent spot in the lineup.
Some of his Free Agents may be a bit overpaid, but they all serve a purpose, and all their contracts end at the exact time when prospects will be looking for either an extension or to join the main roster. Contracts like J.T. Compher and Ben Chiarot end at the exact time when Kasper and Edvinsson would be looking for extensions. Meanwhile, Andrew Copp's contract ends when a player like Amadeus Lombardi would be looking for a permanent spot.
While his recent trades haven't been groundbreaking, he has more successes than failures. Moves like trading Nick Leddy for Oscar Sunqvist and Jake Walman, Gustav Lindstrom for Jeff Petry, and of course, the Alex DeBrincat Trade. All of which had become net positives for Detroit.
Even trading Anthony Mantha for Jakub Vrana (and the pick that would eventually turn into Sebastian Cossa) was seen as a great move for the Red Wings. Obviously, due to various circumstances that we don't know the full details of, the only players left from these trades are DeBrincat and Petry. But that doesn't change that, at the time, all of these trades were undoubtedly the right move.
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) July 10, 2023
I know it's hard to see it right now, but the way Yzerman is currently building this team is ultimately what's best for the long-term of the franchise. Sure, I would like and hope for him to acquire a star player, and I do believe that he will. Yzerman hasn't given me much of a reason to doubt his ability to build a team from the ground up.
