How could Red Wings land Jason Robertson? K’Andre Miller? Mock trade proposals

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With less than two weeks before the NHL Draft, and exactly two weeks until the July 1 opening of free agency, it’s just about go-time for the NHL offseason.

But while the draft and free agency are the two core pillars of the league’s player movement, it’s the side-action those deadlines create that is sometimes the most exciting. We’re talking, of course, about trades — the hardest moves to predict and the most thrilling to dissect.

And for a Red Wings team that could use a few thrills this summer, general manager Steve Yzerman does have the assets to use that avenue to improve.

Yzerman has been clear that he doesn’t want to mortgage Detroit’s future for short-term gain. But he’s also maintained that he’s prepared to use picks and prospects to improve his team, for players who will be part of the organization for the long run.

So today, we’re going to go out on a bit of a limb.

We crafted four trade proposals for a range of potential trade targets, ranging from long-shot big splashes to sensible (if not bland) alternatives. Then, we sent those proposals to writers who cover those teams (or, in one case, a national writer who covered them in the playoffs) for their take on the offers.

There were some hits and some misses, but each of them provided insight into what it might cost for the Red Wings to upgrade to various degrees this summer.

Jason Robertson

The offer: Detroit gets Robertson and RHD Matt Dumba; the Dallas Stars get the No. 13 pick in the 2025 draft, a 2026 second-round pick and LW Elmer Söderblom.

The pitch: It’s tricky formulating an offer for Robertson because of Dallas’ status as a win-now team that can’t take back much present-day salary.

The Stars have just under $5 million in salary cap space going into next season, and only eight forwards under contract. Not among those eight: the team’s leading scorer Matt Duchene, its captain Jamie Benn, and Mikael Granlund, a deadline acquisition who seemed to fit right in. And considering Dallas has signaled plans to keep at least Benn and Duchene, something has to give. If it’s Robertson, Detroit should be highly interested as a team in need of a top-line left wing.

Picks, prospects and cheap, young players seem like logical currency due to that cap crunch — so how about an offer based on the 2022 Alex DeBrincat deal, which sent DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks to the Ottawa Senators for the No. 7 pick, plus a second- and third-rounder?

Granted, Robertson has a 109-point season on his resume, which is one clear difference between the two situations. But that year does look a little anomalous on his career ledger, with more of an 80-point baseline (which, of course, is still excellent). This past season, Robertson had 35 goals and 80 points. In the season leading up to DeBrincat’s trade to Ottawa, he had put up 41 and 78. Both were also two-time 40-goal scorers, and were one year out from restricted free agency (and two years from UFA). There’s a lot of rhyme in the profiles.

To account for the difference in the two players’ high-water marks (and the value gap between the 7th and 13th picks), this proposal upgrades that third-rounder from the Chicago-Ottawa deal to Söderblom, a young forward with upside as a 6-foot-8 winger with great hands. He’d be able to slot into the Stars’ lineup and produce some offense for cheap. Crucially, this offer also lets Dallas wiggle out from the $3.75 million it owes Dumba next season.

This deal would free up $11.5 million in cap for the Stars (before signing RFA Söderblom) and gives them a cheap young forward with room to grow, plus a pair of draft picks to either re-stock the prospect pool or trade in other dealings.

The response: This is a strong offer for someone of Robertson’s caliber, especially when accounting for Detroit taking on Dumba’s cap hit. Stars general manager Jim Nill is in a cap bind thanks to his acquisition of Mikko Rantanen, and Robertson’s name is being bandied about because he’ll be due a massive raise next summer — even as an RFA, his qualifying offer will be $9.3 million because of his backloaded salary — that Dallas might not be able to afford. This trade would allow Nill to re-sign both Duchene and Benn, and maybe add around the edges.

But the problem is, it doesn’t make the Stars better. Yes, Söderblom’s unique mix of size and touch around the net would help fill a need while still fitting the larger model in Dallas, but he probably tops out as a bottom-sixer. And those draft picks won’t be ready to make a real difference for years. After three straight trips to the Western Conference final, Dallas is in win-absolutely-right-now mode.

To pry Robertson away from them, it’ll take a higher-caliber or higher-ceiling NHLer than Söderblom — someone on an entry-level deal, if at all possible. Kind of like what Dallas gave up for Rantanen in Logan Stankoven. It’s asking a lot, yes, but Dallas knows it can at least contend as currently constituted. Nill can keep Robertson and mostly run it back next season if he has to, kicking the cap can down the road another year. — Mark Lazerus

The takeaway: The kind of player Lazerus is describing there in Dallas’ ideal Robertson swap sounds a lot like Nate Danielson, the Red Wings’ ninth overall pick in 2023 and Detroit’s top center prospect. Including him instead of Söderblom would be quite steep, though — and probably past the point where it makes sense for Detroit big-picture, even with some real urgency to improve now. There’s just too much value in young, two-way centers on entry-level deals.

Rangers defenseman K’Andre Miller is a pending restricted free agent. (Danny Wild / Imagn Images)

K’Andre Miller

The offer: Detroit gets Miller; the New York Rangers get the No. 13 pick in the 2025 draft and Jonatan Berggren.

The pitch: The key here is beating what the compensation would be for a projected offer sheet to Miller, which would likely come in the band covering AAVs from $4.68 million to $7.02 million, costing a first- and third-round pick.

Detroit’s No. 13 pick this year is likely to be higher than any first-round pick the Rangers would get in an offer-sheet scenario, and has the benefit of coming a year sooner. And while Berggren doesn’t have huge value, his potential to be a plug-in depth scorer is probably more valuable to the win-now Rangers than a third-round pick would be, though Detroit does own New York’s 2025 third-round pick and could give that back, if it were preferred.

For the Red Wings, this would also be a win-now move, but it still fits for the longer-term future as Miller is only 25. He could be a strong option next to Moritz Seider on the top defense pairing, or the second pair if Detroit wanted to move Simon Edvinsson back up with Seider.

For the Rangers, it gives them draft flexibility, more cap room to chase a big splash in free agency, and another big change in their ongoing shake-up.

The response: I’m not convinced trading Miller is a wise decision — he’s a 25-year-old strong-skating defenseman who can log heavy minutes — but if the Rangers are dead set on moving him, this could be what the package looks like.

This proposed Detroit return would be similar to what New York would get if a team offer-sheeted Miller. Because of a past trade, New York also has to decide whether it wants to give the No. 12 pick this year to Pittsburgh or give the Penguins an unconditional first-round pick in 2026. If it has Detroit’s No. 13, giving up this year’s pick could be more palatable for the Rangers. If Miller is gone, the Rangers will have to pursue a defenseman in either free agency or a trade. — Peter Baugh

The takeaway: Well, that’s not a “no.” The idea of the flexibility it would create for the Rangers with this year’s draft pick seems to resonate in New York, though I do wonder if there’s a more win-now angle the Rangers could take in a potential Miller trade if they can identify another young “D” they covet, or even make him part of a bigger package for a major splash.

Detroit shouldn’t trade the No. 13 selection lightly. But as with Robertson, this is the kind of deal I think it would take for Detroit to part with the pick, bringing back a young player who can help them both now and in the future.

Nicolas Hague would help shore up Detroit’s defense by adding a player who might flourish with more minutes. (Ethan Miller / Getty Images)

Nicolas Hague

The offer: Detroit gets Hague; the Vegas Golden Knights get Berggren and a 2026 second-round pick.

The pitch: I don’t even know if we can talk about Vegas being in a cap crunch anymore. The Golden Knights are so savvy, they always seem to find a way to make it all work. But as things stand, they have less than $10 million to extend RFA Hague, fill out their forward lineup (they only have nine signed for next year) and make that quintessential surprise Vegas splash that has become their brand.

That all makes Hague an offer-sheet candidate, and his modest offensive production means the compensation would likely be a second-round pick ($2.34 million through $4.68 million). That’s going to be a tempting offer for many teams to make for a 26-year-old who stands 6-6 and has Stanley Cup pedigree.

This offer would allow Detroit to jump the line for that bidding by giving Vegas the second-rounder and Berggren, who could be one of those inexpensive forwards they need for 2025-26. I considered a 2025 second-rounder instead, but in Vegas’ case, it might make more sense to be a 2026 pick because then the Golden Knights can trade it at the deadline for something to help them in the present.

The response: The Golden Knights may have their sights set on extending Hague, just like they’ve done with the rest of the blue line recently, but if they did consider a trade, this one makes sense for them.

The team’s biggest priority this summer should be adding scoring on the wing, and Berggren can provide that. He’s young, skilled and fits a need. Meanwhile, Vegas’ blue line is deep, and Kaedan Korczak appears ready to step into the every-night role, so they could afford to lose Hague to strengthen other areas. The second-round pick would just give them more ammunition for trades, be it this summer or at the deadline. — Jesse Granger

The takeaway: Another potential winner, and another one that involves Berggren.

I wasn’t going out of my way to include the skilled winger in multiple offers here, but the Golden Knights needing cheap, depth offense made him a natural candidate, and it went over well.

Hague might not be as exciting an add as Miller, but for the difference in cost, there’s a case for it. Miller has much more of a big-minute track record than Hague — who has never averaged more than 19 minutes a night in an NHL season — but Hague has been highly successful in his 17- to 18-minute role for the Golden Knights, which could be an indicator he’s ready for more of a look on a second pair.

It’s also a relatively low cost, both for the trade and the contract, so it would be OK even if he did have to stay as more of a strong No. 5.

Connor Murphy isn’t young, but he could offer solid defense for a relatively low price. (Carmen Mandato / Getty Images)

Connor Murphy

The offer: Detroit gets Murphy; the Chicago Blackhawks get Justin Holl and a 2025 second-round pick.

The pitch: This one is a little different than the others on this list. Murphy isn’t young (at 32) nor under much team control with only one year until free agency. And the Blackhawks’ malaise hasn’t done any favors to his numbers the last few years, though his underlying numbers did rebound a bit this past season.

He could still be a fit, though, because of a relatively low cost and his track record as a solid defensive defenseman on a second pairing. A 6-4 veteran who can take 20 minutes on the right side could be a pretty compelling partner for Edvinsson.

Murphy, being a year out from free agency, also provides the incentive for the Blackhawks to start listening on him, especially with an emerging stable of young right-handed defensemen, headlined by Artyom Levshunov and Sam Rinzel. If Murphy is just there to be a veteran on the third pair on a lottery team, then getting a second-round pick for him could be tidy business. Holl is here mainly to fill the third-pair veteran vacancy for Chicago, and to replace the lost salary as Chicago works to get to the cap floor, but clearing his cap hit would also be part of the appeal for Detroit.

This wouldn’t be an outlook-changing deal for either team, but it could be advantageous to both.

The response: Murphy is the longest-tenured Blackhawks player by a mile and is a valuable veteran mentor for a blue line that’s incredibly young. And while he’s hardly untouchable — in fact, I expect him to be dealt by the trade deadline, so he can finally play in a real playoff game in his 13th season — I don’t think Kyle Davidson jumps at this one.

The Blackhawks are at the stage of the rebuild where they’re looking for actual young players, not more lottery tickets. After years of selling off players for picks, Chicago has more lottery tickets than it knows what to do with. Unless Davidson sees an opportunity to move up or back into the first round and desperately needs that second-round pick as part of a package to send elsewhere, I don’t think this one moves the needle enough.

It’s a fair deal — Murphy is very solid, but not drastically better than fellow pending UFA Holl, and the pick is enough to make up the gap between the two. I just think the Blackhawks are done with these kinds of distant-future trades. At least, they should be. — Lazerus

The takeaway: I’m 0-for-2 with GM Lazerus, but I think his reasoning is sound. There is such a thing as having too many draft picks, at least outside of the first round.

And really, losing out here isn’t the end of the world. Murphy would upgrade the Red Wings’ right side as a solid second-pair defender, but he’s also still a one-year rental and will turn 33 before the end of that deal. The second-rounder would have been worth it to get him while only adding a million in net cap hit over Holl, but if the price is much higher, it starts to lose its appeal.

That said, Murphy is a solid veteran at a position that’s always in demand. And if Detroit can make itself a buyer by the deadline in 2026, maybe this could be a name to keep on file.

(Top photo of Jason Robertson: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)

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