Dobber’s offseason fantasy hockey grades – Detroit Red Wings

For the last 17 years (12 with The Hockey News) Dobber has reviewed each team from a fantasy-hockey standpoint and graded them.

The 18th annual review will appear here on DobberHockey throughout the summer…er, winter. This is not a review of the likely performance on the ice or in the standings, but in the realm of fantasy hockey both for the season ahead as well as the foreseeable future. Offensively, will the team perform? Are there plenty of depth options worthy of owning in keeper leagues? What about over the next two or three years? These questions are what I take into consideration when looking at the depth chart and the player potential on that depth chart.

Enjoy!

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Gone – Dmytro Timashov, Trevor Daley, Justin Abdelkader, Madison Bowey, Kyle Brodziak, Christoffer Ehn, Jonathan Ericsson, Johan Franzen (off the books), Cody Goloubef, Jimmy Howard, Brendan Perlini, Matt Puempel

Incoming – Vladislav Namestnikov, Thomas Greiss, Troy Stecher, Kevin Boyle, Riley Barber, Jon Merrill, Bobby Ryan, Marc Staal, Mathias Brome

Impact of changes – A lot of changes were made and every one of them upgrades, however small. The focus this year was in trimming the fat and bringing in short-term veterans who can get the team more competitive without committing more than a year into them. It buys the prospects time to develop. The Red Wings will still battle for the first overall pick in the summer, but they will have tons of cap flexibility. They can keep whichever veterans they want to keep (probably none), and trade any veterans at the deadline who gain any value. Namestnikov and Stecher are on two-year deals but still could be moved. Ryan, Staal and Sam Gagner are on one-year contracts.

From a fantasy standpoint, these bodies will ease the pressure on a young guy like Filip Zadina (i.e. it will hold down his ice time). It will also keep the likes of Evgeny Svechnikov, Joe Veleno, Michael Rasmussen, Dennis Cholowski and Moritz Seider mostly in the minors for another season. It will be good for them in the long run, and that's the idea.

Ready for full-time – Brome is a 26-year-old winger who was never drafted. He broke out in the SHL in 2018-19 as a 24-year-old when he scored 15 goals and 35 points in 52 games. He followed that up last season with 43 in 52 to finish sixth in league scoring. This year he already has 20 points in 23 games. With all the veteran depth the team added, a spot won't be handed to him. So he won't be the next Dominik Kubalik. But he could make the team as a 13^th forward or at worst a member of the Taxi Squad, and should get into at least half the games. If a couple of key injuries happen and he gets a real shot, there may be some fantasy upside here. Keep your finger on the trigger of the waiver wire for this guy.

Svechnikov started off his pro career huge. Drafted 19^th overall in 2015, he actually got into the Detroit lineup as a teenager for a couple of games and also posted 51 points in 74 games as an AHL rookie. But that's where he peaked. He could never get it going when he got another NHL shot, and then took an AHL demotion hard. To be fair, he was surrounded by a weak Grand Rapids team. But he still only managed 23 points in 57 games as a sophomore. An injury derailed 2018-19, and last season he was again unimpressive when he tallied 25 points in 51 games. As a former first-round pick, the Wings will continue to give him chances, but his fantasy value is down to nil.

Veleno was another first-round pick (30^th overall in 2018) and his AHL debut was less-than-stellar. After posting 104 points in QMJHL, he managed just 23 in 54 games for Grand Rapids to go with a minus-25 rating. He should get a cup of coffee in the NHL this season, but the team will be careful transitioning him. That means – no fantasy value for the near future.

Still another first rounder, Rasmussen was taken ninth overall in 2017. As a hulking 6-6 center, patience is needed. He needs a couple of years more than most players. Doubling his AHL points-per-game average from 0.29 to 0.63 last season was a nice step forward. Pencil him in for maybe a dozen games this season, with a full-time jump as a checking-line center in 2021-22.

Seider is the highest first-round pick on this list, going sixth overall in 2019. The defenseman started pro hockey right away, posting 22 points in 49 games as an 18-year-old with Grand Rapids – one of the youngest players in the entire league. The Wings are wise in keeping him down for one more season and give him more time to fill out his 6-4 body. They'll give him a taste with a few games this year, but will keep his minutes safe and protected. A must-own in keeper leagues.

Cholowski was, you got it, another first-round draft pick. Taken 20^th overall in 2016 (that about covers the full spectrum here: 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019), Cholowski was super-impressive in training camp back in 2018. He actually made the team when he wasn't expected to. Lauded for his poise and creativity, he jumped out of the gate with some impactful hockey. But the adrenalin must have worn off because his play started to deteriorate and the mistakes started compounding. He was eventually sent to Grand Rapids. Last season his time was split between the AHL and NHL, but he never found his footing in the NHL. His minutes were seriously sheltered with mostly offensive zone starts against the weakest quality of competition, and yet he still lost possession while posting just eight points in 36 games. It's no surprise he was a minus-26. He could use a full year in the AHL.

Since we're discussing first-round picks, may as well mention Filip Zadina. Like Seider, he was taken sixth overall (but in 2018 instead of 2019). A goal-scoring winger who thrives with teammates who can get him the puck, he probably looked better in the NHL last season than he did in the AHL for that very reason. I have him as a full-time NHLer now and on Detroit for the entire season.

Detroit Red Wings prospect depth chart and fantasy upsides can be found here

Fantasy Outlook – The rebuild is only just beginning, but GM Steve Yzerman is putting in place a patient and deep development system. The team now has Tyler Bertuzzi, Dylan Larkin, Anthony Mantha and Zadina up front, with Filip Hronek on defense. That is the core that the prospects will be built around. The rest of the team make up a bunch of placeholders. Sure, Robby Fabbri can earn his way up to "core" status with a productive, healthy season. And perhaps Brome's offense translates to North America. But by and large, the rest of the team is there for just a year or two.

The prospects look great – led by Lucas Raymond, Seider, Jonatan Berggren and Jared McIsaac. But they will need a couple of years. Detroit also needs to land a goalie of the future. Greiss is a good goaltender, but he'll be 35 years old at the end of January and after his two-year contract is up he may not have much left.

Fantasy Grade: C (last year was C+)

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2020 Offseason Fantasy Hockey Grades

Winnipeg

Washington

Vegas

Vancouver

Toronto

Tampa Bay

St. Louis

San Jose

Pittsburgh

Philadelphia

Ottawa

NY Rangers

NY Islanders

New Jersey

Nashville

Montreal

Minnesota

Los Angeles

Florida

Edmonton