Red Wings: Three takeaways from Steve Yzerman’s first trade deadline

The Red Wings did not have a roster stacked full of rentals, but there were some players Yzerman opted to hang on to who could have been moved at the trade deadline.

Standing far and alone as the most valuable player on the Red Wings right now is Jonathan Bernier, who has played incredibly well in the absence of Jimmy Howard. Even after Howard returned and struggled greatly, Bernier has been able to keep the Red Wings in some games during this scary season. It was more of a longshot to move him, being that they would be down to one goalie on the roster, but if a team like the Carolina Hurricanes or Vegas Goldenknights (traded for Robin Lehner) panicked they may have tried to snag him minutes before the deadline.

There had been some rumors about the Pittsburgh Penguins being in on Trevor Daley prior to the deadline, but ultimately he will remain a Red Wings blueliner. Daley was open to being moved, but his low trade value was not going to produce much of a market for himself, so with the Penguins rumors being false or falling through, he will stay in Detroit. However,  at the end of the 2019-20 season, Daley will become an unrestricted free agent, so Yzerman will not have to worry about his salary being on the books for next year.

The plethora of forwards who were mostly role players like Darren Helm, Luke Glendening, or Frans Nielsen would all stay put. This was not surprising that Yzerman did not move any of these players since they possessed small markets, but they were all either candidates to be moved or possible rumored players around the deadline buzz. All-in-all, Yzerman did a great job moving the players he did and netting an exceptional return of draft picks as well as keeping the team in good standing with salary cap room.