Where did Yzerman go wrong with the rebuild?

Rzombo4 prez

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May 17, 2012
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Where exactly did Yzerman go wrong since taking over? I thought it would be good to have a centralized location for these discussions. It is very clear that some think we should already be back in the playoffs at this point.

Here is the roster he inherited:
 

saska sault

Registered User
Jun 5, 2010
4,415
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Team has improved every year.

Season 2024-25 - ?? points
Season 2023-24 - 91 points
Season 2022-23 - 80 points
Season 2021-22 - 74 points
Season 2020-21 - 48 points
Season 2019-20 - 39 points

I could argue, that the team direction is right - not wrong.

Sticky this to the top. Close the topic. Improving every year, regardless of everyone's personal opinion on the roster make up is progress. If the team goes over 91 points, with Petry, Husso, Fabbri, Copp, Holl.. I'll still be a pretty happy fan.
 

better Red than Dead

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Apr 23, 2021
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Team has improved every year.

Season 2024-25 - ?? points
Season 2023-24 - 91 points
Season 2022-23 - 80 points
Season 2021-22 - 74 points
Season 2020-21 - 48 points
Season 2019-20 - 39 points

I could argue, that the team direction is right - not wrong.


You can, but a lot of that was the veterans they brought in.
 

better Red than Dead

Registered User
Apr 23, 2021
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I actually think they have done very good with drafting and developing. I think Yzerman has been decent in trades. I think he’s been awful with free agent signings . You can argue that the last few free agencies were what cost them this free agency. Becisse I’d have rather we signed Stamoks for the 4 years instead of paying Copp for the next few years at his cap hit. Or paying Holl for sitting in the press box.
 
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Hockeyville USA

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Dec 30, 2023
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Where exactly did Yzerman go wrong since taking over? I thought it would be good to have a centralized location for these discussions. It is very clear that some think we should already be back in the playoffs at this point.

Here is the roster he inherited:
I follow Detroit pretty closely and as someone who was a fan of Yzerman as a player & then Tampa GM, I would say he's done a pretty good job with the Red Wings rebuild for the most part.

I would say his biggest mistakes are:

- Holl & Copp UFA signings, you can argue Chiarot was a bad signing as well

- Petry trade

- Draper director of amateur scouting/organizational draft strategy to most picks beyond the 1st round (2024 Draft strategy was mostly good though)

- 2024 Trade Deadline inaction (although it's not the worst mistake)

- Walman cap dump trade
 

izlez

Carter Mazur Fan Club
Feb 28, 2012
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I don't think he went wrong with the rebuild.

He's rebuilding through the draft. I think that's the right thing to do. That takes time. Draft picks have either been really good, on track to be good, or too early to tell.

I can still criticize individual moves when he pays to trade away what I think are good players or blocks kids that are fully overripened and out of options for further ripening.
 

Bench

3 is a good start
Aug 14, 2011
21,417
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You can, but a lot of that was the veterans they brought in.

Top defender, Seider. Top winger, Raymond. This last year was their best season in ages. Not simply stopgap veterans leading the way. This team is going to be in the hands of a young group of talented players sooner than later. It's already happening.

Let Yzerman cook.
 

Ed Ned and Leddy

Brokering the Bally Sports + Corncob TV Merger
Apr 1, 2019
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Detroit to DC to Chicago
I think the most important part of the rebuild are your first round draft selections and I think his work there is encouraging. The two major items I’d have liked him to handle differently:

In Seider’s D+2 in Sweden, when it was becoming apparent that he was a pretty unique talent, I think we needed to identify a way to get him a legitimate top 4 LHD as a partner, even if that meant overpaying in FA.

The half-measures in net (Ned, Greiss, Husso, Reimer, arguably Lyon, tbd Talbot) haven’t paid off and that’s made everybody’s job harder.
 

Axel Sandy Pelikan

Sugar-free Rock Star
May 11, 2023
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Where exactly did Yzerman go wrong since taking over? I thought it would be good to have a centralized location for these discussions. It is very clear that some think we should already be back in the playoffs at this point.

Here is the roster he inherited:
I don't think we need this. This is a silly topic.
 

eojsmada

Registered User
Oct 23, 2022
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There was always going to be one year where the approach that Yzerman took was going to have some consequences to it, once he started to remove the "training wheels" and started to let the kids play more. The only real significant loss is Perron, because of his ability to retrieve pucks, but its a safety blanket that Lalonde no longer has and will have to be made up for by someone or multiple players. Raymond took a huge step in assuming this role on the PP, but his value is more as the shooter and less as the down low position, so I think they will need to figure out who that player will be.

This being said, the team is not in a bad position, nor moving in the wrong direction
 

ZDH

Registered User
Mar 6, 2008
9,192
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Was more unhappy last offseason with Petry, Holl, etc. I'll take this offseason over that any day of the week.

Honestly I don't think it's really gone wrong anywhere. Look at that roster he acquired. Dont know what people were expecting.

Unbelievably bad lottery luck and still building a team through the draft where they are consistently targeting particular player types and and a team identity which has me very excited for the future.
 
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Henkka

Registered User
Jan 31, 2004
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Tampere, Finland
I would say his biggest mistakes are:

- Holl & Copp UFA signings, you can argue Chiarot was a bad signing as well

- Petry trade

- Draper director of amateur scouting/organizational draft strategy to most picks beyond the 1st round (2024 Draft strategy was mostly good though)

- 2024 Trade Deadline inaction (although it's not the worst mistake)

- Walman cap dump trade

Could you also list his best moves?

It's like people seem always inform about the GM mistakes, or player giveaways, but could care less about a good move or play.
 
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RedHawkDown

still trying to trust the yzerplan
Aug 26, 2011
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I wouldn't say he's "gone wrong with the rebuild" just yet.

But he has made some bad moves, and between the Walman trade and missing out on most FAs, his offseason so far has been quite poor. Holl was a bad signing. Copp was a bad signing. Petry was a bad trade. Fabbri's renewed contract is/was bad. The Husso experiment has been a failure.

Hope is not lost and there is still lots of time for things to go right. But in the last 1-2 years, it's fair to begin to question Yzerman's vision and plan, or at least the execution of said plan.

As far as good moves:
He has drafted very well in the first round every year. Seider was a great pick. Raymond was a great pick. Ed looks like a great pick. Kasper looks like a good pick. Danielson looks like a good pick. Cossa looks like a good/great pick.

A big part of Holland's failure near the end of his tenure in Detroit was messing up the 2016/2017/2018 1st round picks in Cholowski/Ras/Zadina, and Yzerman has been significantly better in that respect. It's easy to hit on top 10 picks, but it's not easy to hit on top 10 picks 5 years in a row. As long as Danielson and Kasper do well, Yzerman has done that. That deserves commendation.

Beyond that, DeBrincat was a good trade, as far as capitalizing on something that fell into our laps.

I don't really think he's made many commendable moves beyond that. Squeezed out some decent value for Mantha, I guess. Compher was an average signing. Kane, I'm still not the biggest fan of, but it's acceptable. That's really all.
 
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ricky0034

Registered User
Jun 8, 2010
15,476
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he lost the lottery a few times then got bored and decided to take his ball and go home and try to force things with middling free agents right before a once a decade level draft

the Wings should bare minimum have Michkov right now but they don't and will never get a player of that level until they eventually blow things up and start over
 

stillwater

cellar door
Mar 17, 2011
1,014
843
The rebuild is fine. Perhaps the top prospect system in the NHL. Incremental standings improvements every year. Bonafide group of good NHL players.

Never will you find much logical discourse on this forum. Every thread is comparable to a game thread, filled with extreme overreaction.

This thread is started one day in free agency. Its frivolous at best. Downright moronic at worst.
 

Hockeyville USA

Registered User
Dec 30, 2023
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Central Ohio
Could you also list his best moves?

It's like people seem always inform about the GM mistakes, or player giveaways, but could care less about a good move or play.
Yzerman's best moves:

- Fabbri for De La Rose trade

- M. Staal & a 2nd for nothing

- 1st, 2nd, Vrana, Panik for Mantha

- 1st & 2nd for Hronek & 4th

- DeBrincat for Kubalik, Sebrango, 1st, and 4th

- Compher, Gostisbehere, & Sprong UFA signings

- Kane UFA signing

- Perron UFA signing

- Kubalik buy low UFA signing

- Seider & Raymond picks (scouts deserve credit as well)

- Edvinsson & Sandin Pellika picks (most likely); (I would argue Eklund & Guenther were slightly better fits than Edvinsson)
 

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