The Detroit Red Wings extended their Stanley Cup Playoffs drought to 10 games this past season, and with the change in general manager with the departure of Steve Yzerman, they’re no closer to ending that streak right now than they were when the 2025/26 regular season came to a close.
However, there’s still time this off-season, and with the Dylan Larkin situation potentially set to be resolved in the coming weeks, this is a team that could look very different between now and the beginning of the new season. That could include adding a free agent, and with a clear hole left by Patrick Kane’s departure in the top-six, they’ve seemingly narrowed down their search to an intriguing free agent.
Red Wings Expressing Interest in Eeli Tolvanen
GettyEeli Tolvanen of the Seattle Kraken.
There’s still some intriguing free agents remaining like Patrik Laine, Michael Bunting and Kane himself, but it appears as though the team, without a new general manager are expressing interest in another name. That would be former Seattle Kraken and Nashville Predators winger Eeli Tolvanen, according to The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta, who remains a free agent despite coming off a 36-point campaign with the Kraken.
On the latest DFO Rundown podcast, Pagnotta reveals the Red Wings are expressing interest in Tolvanen to fill a role in their top-six, but with other names out there and their new GM potentially wanting to go in a new direction when they’re hired, it’s unlikely that a deal could get done in the coming days. On paper though, Tolvanen could be a great fit for Detroit, as he’s posted 41, 35 and 36 points over the past three seasons in a limited role with Seattle, and with more talent around him in Detroit, there’s a chance that the 27-year-old could shine in the right situation.
How Will the Red Wings Finish Their Off-Season?
Coming into the off-season, Red Wings fans were hoping for sweeping changes and major upgrades, but to this point, all we’ve seen is the departure of Kane and Sebastian Cossa with a first-round pick in return, leaving fans desperately hoping for a major upgrade in the coming weeks.
With no GM currently in place, it’s unclear when moves could start to be made, and with the team looking to sort out the Dylan Larkin saga, it may be some time before this team is ready to make a splash that could help them snap their post-season drought in 2026/27. The pickings were and are slim in free agency in terms of impact players this summer, so while Tolvanen is a good player, the Red Wings may be looking to make a bigger splash involving Larkin.
Ultimately though, in arguably hockey’s best division, the Atlantic Division, it’s going to be hard for Detroit to make a post-season run no matter how the rest of the off-season plays out, but if they still have a hole in their top-six when the new general manager is hired, Tolvanen would be a cheap pickup and likely solid fit for the team.
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