DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings could be making more moves this weekend ahead of Monday's trade deadline.
General Manager Ken Holland traded defenseman Nick Jensen to the Washington Capitals on Friday, but that likely isn't all he's going to do in these final hours.
Holland could move forward Gustav Nyquist or goalie Jimmy Howard. With the Ottawa Senators dealing both Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel to the Columbus Bue Jackets, things might start to open up for more teams looking to boost their lineup ahead of the playoffs.
Holland waiting it out
According to NHL insiders Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman, Holland is likely looking to make last-minute deals. Friedman said during his podcast Thursday that Holland did a good job of waiting everyone down to the deadline last year when he swung Tomas Tatar for 1st, 2nd and 3rd-round draft picks from the Vegas Golden Knights. That's the same strategy he could be using this season.
"I've been told that's what Ken Holland is going to do. He is going to keep it tight, wait it down and see who gets desperate and see if he can take advantage of anybody," said Friedman. "Holland, it serves him well to wait after what he got for Tatar."
Jensen signs with Capitals
But Holland let Jensen go on Friday in a deal for defenseman Madison Bowey and a 2nd-round draft pick in 2020. The Red Wings also coughed up a 5th-round draft pick that they got from Buffalo.
It's a decent haul for Jensen, who had little trade value just a season ago. The once 5th-round pick himself played his way into a trade and subsequent lucrative deal with Washington at 28 years old. They promptly signed him to to a four-year, $10 million contract extension, with an average annual value of $2.5 million.
Zadina called up
Of note is Detroit's decision to recall top prospect Filip Zadina from the AHL on Saturday. This could be a sign Holland is working to trade away one of his forwards.
Meanwhile, goalie Harri Sateri was sent back down after he backed up Jonathan Bernier on Friday night. That could mean Howard isn't going anywhere before Sunday's game (3 p.m. puck drop).
Zadina could be playing Sunday afternoon when the Red Wings host the San Jose Sharks in Detroit.
Follow all NHL trade rumors and updates right here:
(function(d, s, id) {var js,ijs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(d.getElementById(id))return;js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//embed.scribblelive.com/widgets/embed.js";ijs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, ijs);}(document, 'script', 'scrbbl-js'));