When I was talking to my former partners who still do evaluations and data collection for teams, they were pretty specific that Philly and Calgary were trying to grab a bunch of data on Detroit prospects, specifically dmen prospects, but also joked that by the time the draft started, Winnipeg probably knew more about Detroit’s prospects than Detroit did. That they’ve heard the Jets really like Rasmussen too.
One thing I’ll say is, Scheifele fits into the “type” of player the Wings love. He’s hard to play against, powerful on his skates, he creates space in traffic as well as anyone, and he’s committed to the game. When I mentioned I was surprised the Wings didn’t go after Dubois more, they laughed and said Detroit likes Scheifele much more, and he’s one player they’d trade Rasmussen for. Also told me Hellebuyck probably had more of a chance to go to Detroit because they’ve heard Yzerman just wants to put an end to any questions in net, and didn’t like the way Husso wore down. That they were surprised he wasn’t traded to Detroit at the draft but maybe that’s because another team is more interested but needed to figure out some salary stuff first OR Hellebuyck wanted to see what Detroit did to add to the team before he’d make the decision to sign a contract extension with Detroit.
I’ve speculated on Pesce, but that’s just me. I think he’s perfect for what they want around their kids.
If I had to guess, I’d say it’s Scheifele and/or Hellebuyck. With Husso obviously going the other way, or Rasmussen if it’s Scheifele. Obviously there’d be other pieces but they could make the cap work with both now.
