The Detroit Red Wings offseason has been anything but smooth sailing as the Original Six franchise looks to regroup after a disastrous conclusion to the 2025-2026 season. The summer has been busy with the removal of Steve Yzerman from the general manager position following team captain Dylan Larkin’s request for a trade from the organization. Assistant GM Shawn Horcoff has taken over Yzerman’s former duties for now until the team finds a permanent replacement. Yzerman transitions into an advisory role after having held the manager position since 2019. This group, led by president Chris Illitch, needs to find a new GM soon by the time this next season rolls around in a month’s time.
Discouraging Update Emerges on Detroit’s GM Search
Unfortunately for Detroit fans, it does not appear that the team is close to filling the GM vacancy. According to Red Wings reporter Bob Duff on NHL Tonight the club is still very early on in the process of searching for their next manager. Duff had this to say on the show: “As far as we know there hasn’t even been any interviews started with any candidates yet.”
If true, this is not a great update for the team. The 2026-2027 season is fast approaching and their are still plenty of other important matters that need to be dealt with before the campaign gets going. The main dilemma revolves around Larkin as the new GM will have to make a crucial decision on how to handle that situation. If Larkin is moved, that will create a leadership void that will need to be filled as well. In addition to Larkin, defenseman Simon Edvinsson is a player to watch as he needs a contract extension. That likely will not get done until the new regime takes over in the front office.
The Red Wings still have time to sort out this matter. However, considering the Yzerman decision took place a month ago, it is surprising how slow this process has taken so far. Detroit needs to increase the sense of urgency when it comes to conducting this search.
Who is in the Running for Detroit’s Next GM?
With respects to who could be in line for Detroit’s next GM, that would appear to be hard to say since their have not been any reported interviews to this point. With that said, there have been a few notable names linked to the role.
That big one is Jeff Greenberg, the current assistant GM of the MLB’s Detroit Tigers. Greenberg has worked managerial positions in the NHL as well, having previously served as an associate GM of the Chicago Blackhawks from 2022-2023. Greenberg’s resume is unique as he has an approach that centers around analytics, which would be a change compared to Yzerman.
Greenberg has been the most heavily linked, but there has been some noise around other figures. Those players involved include their effective Interim GM Horcoff, assistant GM Kris Draper, and VP of hockey operations Niklas Lidstrom. These three candidates all have a background in the game similar to Yzerman, having all played at the NHL level.
Report: Red Wings Have Not Started Interviewing New GM Candidates