Two Hottest Defensive Trade Deadline Targets for the Red Wings

With the trade deadline rapidly approaching one thing remains abundantly clear: the Red Wings need their defense revamped. There are a few names floating around in trade talks that could be of interest to Detroit in regards to help on the blue line.

The Red Wings have just over $3 million left in cap space at this time but with moving players, prospects, and picks, they could easily make space for some new names on the roster. That being said, here’s a bite-sized rundown of the two hottest candidates who could fill a void in the Red Wings defense!

Noah Hanifin – Calgary

• Cap Hit: $4.95 million
• UFA 2024

In the 2023-24 season thus far, Noah Hanifin has 11 goals and 24 assists through 61 games played. He is a very strong two-way defenseman- a trait that would greatly benefit the Red Wings as they look to continue their push for the playoffs. The Flames are looking to get some fresh, young, NHL-ready faces in return for the 27-year-old defenseman and goodness knows the Red Wings have plenty of those around.

Hanifin is the biggest name on the market as he is not expected to re-sign with Calgary following the end of the season, so the package needed to attain him would be rather sizable. Are the Red Wings looking to give up something along the lines of two high-round picks and a prospect or roster player for Hanifin? Who knows, but I think he would be of great value to a team that consistently struggles defensively.

Jakob Chychrun – Ottawa

• Cap Hit: $4.6 million
• UFA 2025

He has nine goals and 22 assists through 59 games played this season- the most points he has had in a season since 2020-21. The longtime Arizona Coyote made the move to Ottawa in 2023 as he was traded for three picks- a conditional first-round pick in 2023, a conditional second-round pick in 2024, and a second-round pick in 2026. He’s coming off of an injury in the 2022-23 season that had him sidelined for a majority of the 82 game season having only played five games.

It also isn’t a sure thing that the Ottawa Senators will be shopping Chychrun at the trade deadline but they are so far away from playoff contention that a trade wouldn’t be ground shattering. He still has one year remaining on his contract with the Senators so there would be more of a load to take on than a player that would be an unrestricted free agent following this season like Hanifin or Walker. This being said, Chychrun is a seasoned yet still young defenseman at just 25 years old and would be a huge addition for the Red Wings if the opportunity presents itself.

Overall, the defenseman market heading into the trade deadline is sparse yet there are still some strong candidates available. There have not been any moves made by Yzerman and Co. at this point yet I know as soon as this gets published they’ll cook something up (naturally). But hey, it’s always fun to speculate and have unrealistic dreams of getting players in situations like this!