- Daily Faceoff ranks Detroit as the Eastern Conference’s biggest offseason loser
- Ottawa and Columbus fill out the top three, with Buffalo taking an honorable mention
- Read below for the full Eastern rundown and what each club let walk this summer
Detroit is the biggest offseason loser in the Eastern Conference, and it is not especially close.
Daily Faceoff’s Anthony Di Marco put the Red Wings at No. 1 on his list of Eastern clubs that came out of the summer worse than they went in. Ottawa slots second, Columbus third, and Buffalo drew an honorable mention after winning the Atlantic Division.
The Red Wings earned it. Captain Dylan Larkin asked out, Patrick Kane left in free agency for a two-year deal back in Chicago, and Sebastian Cossa went to Utah for a first-round pick.
Nothing of consequence came the other way. Steve Yzerman stepped down as general manager in July, and Chris Ilitch has since handed the replacement search to an outside consulting firm.
Larkin’s request is still unresolved, and the betting market has him staying put in Detroit. The reporting out of Michigan says the front office did not take the ask well:
Ottawa lands second after moving Brady Tkachuk. Three first-round picks came back, and only one of them has turned into a player who helps right now in William Eklund.
Steve Staios also never landed the top-four right-shot defenseman he has been hunting since last season, and the Senators are deep at center but thin on the wing behind Eklund and Drake Batherson.
Columbus takes third with a roster that looks a lot like the one that fell apart down the stretch. Valeri Nichushkin arrived from Colorado and Jet Greaves signed a team-friendly deal, but Boone Jenner walked in free agency and Kirill Marchenko still wants out.
Buffalo is the strange one on the list. The Sabres won the division, then lost Alex Tuch and his 33 goals to Washington in a sign-and-trade, sent Bowen Byram to Chicago and shipped Michael Kesselring to San Jose.
Here is how the four shake out:
| # | Team | Biggest loss | What came back |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Red Wings | Steve Yzerman, Patrick Kane, Sebastian Cossa | A first-round pick |
| 2 | Senators | Brady Tkachuk | Three first-rounders, William Eklund |
| 3 | Blue Jackets | Boone Jenner | Valeri Nichushkin, Jet Greaves re-signed |
| HM | Sabres | Alex Tuch, Bowen Byram, Michael Kesselring | Louis Crevier, Olen Zellweger |
Konsta Helenius and Noah Ostlund are the ones Buffalo is asking to cover that gap. Detroit does not have an answer like that lined up, and it does not have a general manager in place to go find one.
