Red Wings Unfiltered: Time for the Youngsters to Make Their Way to Detroit

With a number of pending free agents, it may be time to let the kids get a shot.

The Red Wings continue to find themselves in a playoff spot with only a few weeks left in the regular season. But the Grand Rapids Griffins have a handful of prospects on their roster who are helping lead them to a solid season that will likely end in a playoff run once again for the Red Wings AHL affiliate.

But, with the organization having a handful of pending free agents this upcoming offseason, it is just about time that some of these youngsters get their shot in a winged wheel jersey next season.

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Pending Free Agents to Decide On

Last offseason, GM Steve Yzerman brought in a few players on one-year deals, and they also have a few players who will be UFA’s at season end as well. I, for one, do not necessarily envy Yzerman when it comes to having to decide on some of these pending free agents, but there should be a few that he lets walk when the season concludes, and this is for a few reasons.

At the top of the list of pending FAs are Daniel Sprong, Patrick Kane, and Shayne Gostisbehere. Each of these guys has filled the roles that they were fully brought in to fill for the season. Sprong and Gostisbehere have played well enough to earn more money and terms with their next deals, which will likely be elsewhere. With Kane comes the “Showtime” factor he has once again brought to the ice after being out for the first part of the year while recovering from hip surgery. He has easily outperformed many people’s expectations at his age and should be one of the guys Yzerman looks to bring back next season.

But with guys like David Perron and Christian Fischer, once again guys who have filled their roles admirably, there are also prospects who could fill those roles and end up becoming a bigger part of the organization's future.

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Don’t Let the Kids Fester in GR

Throughout the years of the Kenny Holland era as GM, Red Wing fans became accustomed to prospects sitting in Grand Rapids far longer than many felt they should have before getting their shot in a Red Wing jersey. Yzerman should avoid history repeating itself.

While some of these “vets” he has brought in have done what they have been expected to, leaving kids like Marco Kasper and Carter Mazur in Grand Rapids will only complicate things further as they continue to add to their farm system, which ranks towards the top of the league.