The NHL offseason is upon us and one of hockey's most successful franchises will be trying to return to the top of the standings in 2014-15.
The Detroit Red Wings dealt with all sorts of crippling injuries in 2013-14, but still managed to extend their league-leading playoff streak to 23 consecutive years. Unfortunately, the season still may go down as a disappointment for some Red Wings fans after they watched their team go down in just five games against the Boston Bruins.
This offseason will be a perfect opportunity for general manager Ken Holland to build up his team around a great young core including Gustav Nyquist and Tomas Tatar. Here are Detroit's three biggest needs this offseason.
1. Solid defensemen
The Red Wings' weakest area last season was their defense. Now-free agent Kyle Quincey and inexperienced rookie Brendan Smith were turnover machines in their own zone, leading to many unnecessary goals. Smith will mature this year, and Quincey likely will not return to Detroit.
Detroit's lack of depth on the blue line was magnified when Jonathan Ericsson went down for the season and the Wings needed to use guys like Brian Lashoff and Jakub Kindl in bigger roles than they should have.
There is some good defensive talent on the free agent market this year. Do not be surprised if Detroit goes after someone like Matt Niskanen, Willie Mitchell, Brooks Orpik or Anton Stralman.
2. A veteran scorer
Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk are still two of the top players in the NHL, but with Johan Franzen being so inconsistent and plenty of young players that need mentors, Holland would be smart to go after someone who has been around and can still put the puck in the net.
From the free agency front, Mike Cammalleri and Ales Hemsky could both be options, but Detroit could also make a trade for someone like Joe Thornton.
3. Physicality
We have seen physical teams like the Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings dominate the NHL the past three seasons, and we also saw the Red Wings get brutally out-muscled by the Bruins in last year's playoffs.
The Red Wings are making the right decisions by letting Todd Bertuzzi and Jordin Tootoo go, but they need to add someone who can be an intimidating presence on the ice while also producing in other ways. Someone like Steve Ott or even Brenden Morrow could fit the bill.