Despite their relative inactivity this offseason, the Detroit Red Wings have been a constant presence in the rumor mill since the 2024-25 season concluded. First, there were a handful of pending free agents they were connected to. Then they were connected to some of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ veterans, specifically Erik Karlsson.
That brings us to the latest rumor involving the Red Wings. A report from last week mentioned the Red Wings as “a team to keep an eye on” in regards to restricted free agent Mason McTavish of the Anaheim Ducks. McTavish, the third selection in the 2021 NHL Draft, and the Ducks seem to be at a stalemate in contract negotiations, and some are starting to wonder if Ducks general manager (GM) Pat Verbeek will opt to pull the plug a deal the young forward instead.
At just 22 years of age, McTavish is certainly an intriguing young player. The Red Wings are still trying to accumulate as many good, young players as possible, and this player absolutely qualifies and would seemingly push them in the right direction. However, this shouldn’t be a “McTavish or bust” situation as this potential move will force the Red Wings to consider which of their young and future assets they are willing to move and which ones they are not.
McTavish Would Help the Red Wings
It must first be established that, depending on the cost, McTavish would make the Red Wings a better team. He is an ascending talent coming off of his best season (so far) in the NHL. His 22 goals last season would have ranked fourth on the Red Wings last season, and his 52 points would have ranked him fifth. Furthermore, his faceoff win-percentage of 50.7 would have placed him third behind Dylan Larkin and Andrew Copp.
Even at his young age, McTavish plays a mature game. He captained Team Canada to a gold medal in the World Juniors back in 2022, and the Ducks haven’t really sheltered him since he joined them on a full-time basis in the fall of 2022. While his two-way game is still developing, he brings a certain intensity all over the ice; he’s an absolute force when he is on his game, and that’s how he earned “Second Star of the Week” honors this past season for the week of Jan. 20-Jan. 26.
While McTavish was drafted as a center and has performed well down the middle to this point in his career, he also has the ability to slide over to the wing. Given that he has already established himself as a capable top six forward, it’s easy to see how he would fit in the Red Wings’ lineup. He would essentially be another Marco Kasper in the sense that he could play between Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane on the second line or on the left wing alongside Larkin and Lucas Raymond on the first line. His style of play would help bring either of those lines together whike Kasper completes the other line.
McTavish turns 23 at the end of January, so any team acquiring him from the Ducks is doing so expecting to have him around for a long time. If the Red Wings pull the trigger on acquiring him, they would likely lock in a future center group of Kasper, McTavish and Nate Danielson. That’s a foundation Detroit could build around for the next decade as they build towards becoming one of the most difficult teams to play against in the NHL.
Ducks Want High-End Prospect
When you have a good, young player that is trending in the right direction, the cost to acquire that player isn’t going to be low. To that point, the Ducks reportedly would want defensive prospect Axel Sandin Pellikka from the Red Wings in a move involving McTavish. Sandin Pellikka is the best prospect in Detroit’s prospect pool and one of the very best prospects in the entire sport.
Related: Red Wings Top 25 Prospects: Post-2025 NHL Draft
From the Ducks’ perspective this makes sense. Not only are they (theoretically) giving up the type of asset that allows them to set a high asking price, but they have a long-term need on the right side of their blue line. After trading right-handed defenseman Jamie Drysdale to the Philadelphia Flyers in January of 2024, Verbeek has yet to fill that hole with another long-term piece. Their need on the right side of the blue line is also why the Ducks reportedly asked the Red Wings for prospect Anton Johansson during trade talks for goalie John Gibson.
Johansson, the Red Wings’ 14th-ranked prospect, is another right-handed Swedish defenseman, though his skillset is different from Sandin Pellikka’s. Johansson is big, mobile, and his offensive game is underrated though not as prominent as his Swedish counterpart’s. Johansson is a bit of a hidden gem within Detroit’s prospect pool, so it is easy to understand why Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman negotiated away from moving Johansson in the Gibson trade.
Given Sandin Pellikka’s potential, the Red Wings probably aren’t moving him unless it’s a slam dunk acquisition. The Red Wings still have a number of enticing assets to offer in a potential McTavish trade – and they theoretically already have an idea of what pieces they could use to entice the Ducks thanks to their earlier negotiations that landed Gibson in Detroit – but if Verbeek holds out for Sandin Pellikka or a prospect of his caliber, Detroit’s interest probably won’t amount to anything.
Let’s Make a Deal
Detroit’s interest in McTavish makes sense. He would essentially complete the Red Wings’ offense for this season, and he would almost certainly become a foundational piece of their future. However, there are a few things for Yzerman to consider while pondering this potential move:
- McTavish is a restricted free agent, meaning that he needs a new contract before he can suit up this season. They have a little over $12 million in salary cap space right now, so they can afford to go long-term with McTavish if they acquire him, but that would obviously reduce their flexibility to make moves elsewhere, especially on defense.
- The Red Wings are slowly building up an arsenal of young forwards. Aside from Kasper and Danielson, they have recent first round picks Carter Bear and Michael Brandsegg-Nygård that both project as wingers, Dmitry Buchelnikov looks to have top six potential on the wing, Carter Mazur will look to make an impact in the NHL starting this season, and several other forward prospects are either knocking on the door or will be soon. There are only so many roster spots to go around, and adding McTavish means one less spot to go around for the foreseeable future.
- The Ducks have over $20 million in available cap space and McTavish is their only piece of outstanding business. If negotiations are getting to a point where Verbeek is considering moving the player, would Yzerman see that as a potential red flag? After all, Verbeek worked alongside Yzerman since the latter was hired as the GM of the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2010 all the way until the former was hired as the GM of the Ducks in February of 2022. Their relationship is both why this deal might happen and why it may not happen.
- These discussions aren’t happening in a vacuum; a significant number of teams will have some level of interest in McTavish if he is available, and they are free to make their own offers as well. Yzerman will have to decide what his best offer is if a bidding war commenses.
The Ducks already own the Red Wings’ fourth round pick in 2026 as well as their second round pick in 2027. If Detroit is going to land McTavish, their offer probably starts with their first round pick in ’26 (with some degree of protection) and a B-level prospect. An offer of their first and Johansson should at least give Verbeek something to think about, though it probably doesn’t get the deal done simply because other teams are interested too.
However, if the Red Wings and Ducks can find some common ground, the possibility if there for both parties to help each other move forward in their respective timelines. Like the original report suggests, the relationship between Yzerman and Verbeek is fertile ground for trade talks, and McTavish fits into the type of team the Red Wings are trying to become. It may simply come down to whether or not anyone can entice the Ducks to move on from him.
