RED WINGS FREE AGENCY - Arvidsson, Kolesar In, Kane Out? and Larkin/Werenski Debate - July 2nd, 2026
Winged Wheel Podcast - A Detroit Red Wings Podcast
Winged Wheel Podcast
4.9 • 981 Ratings
🗓️ 2 July 2026
⏱️ 86 minutes
🔗️ Recording | Apple Podcasts | RSS
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This Detroit Red Wings podcast breaks down day one of Detroit's free agency & what Steve Yzerman did & didn't do. Hockeytown news & analysis covers the Victor Arvidsson signing, Kolesar trade, & the Dylan Larkin trade request still hanging over the Red Wings.
(00:00) - Intro
(04:50) - Overall Free Agency Vibes
No overpays, no ugly term, no updates on Larkin or DeBrincat - Detroit dodges the landmines & plugs some obvious holes but big questions still remain.
(06:30) - Carter Mazur Extension
A two-year deal gives Mazur runway to stay healthy and grab an everyday roster spot.
(10:05) - Viktor Arvidsson Signing
Two years at $5 million for one of the best 5-on-5 producers on the market - a direct answer to Detroit's scoring woes, but is the timing right?
(16:10) - Daniil Tarasov & the Backup Goalie Spot
A one-year deal for Tarasov and what this means for Postava, Augustine, and John Gibson.
(21:15) - Depth Signings & Kolesar Trade
Keegan Kolesar brings 270 hits of snarl to a bottom six that's been bullied for years. Also, Justin Abdelkader is officially off the books.
(31:40) - What's Next for Kane? Missing Out on Mavrik Bourque
Is Showtime leaving? Patrick Kane updates. Plus, a 24-year-old, 20-goal center moved for a second and a third, and why Detroit didn't pounce on it.
(39:45) - Werenski Drama & Larkin Parallels
Zach Werenski vetoes a trade, then stays put - what it does and doesn't mean for Detroit's captain. Booing, leverage, and the PR legwork required if he's actually at camp in October.
(1:04:00) - Around the NHL
Bowen Byram's monster contract, San Jose's blue line spending spree, and more deals across the league.
(1:14:45) - Overtime
Your questions on Patrick Kane, trade destinations, and the DeBrincat extension timeline.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the Wingwheel podcast, the number one source for news, analysis, and discussion on the Detroit Red Wings, the NHL, and all things hockey. |
| 0:19.2 | Here are your hosts, Brian Hanna, Brad Criscoe, and Evan Lopsinger. |
| 0:28.6 | Well, we have retirement figured out. |
| 0:31.5 | When we hit age, call it, like 37, 38, Ken Holland will just sign us. |
| 0:39.0 | You're just looking at me, right? |
| 0:40.9 | Yes. |
| 0:41.4 | Okay. |
| 0:41.8 | Brad's, Brad might be too old for Ken Holland. |
| 0:43.9 | He's got to pick up the phone. |
| 0:46.2 | We're going to make more money than ever at the twilight of our careers. |
| 0:49.7 | As long as I don't have to do a physical, we'll be fine. |
| 0:52.6 | You don't even have to be good. |
| 0:54.2 | Well, I can guarantee you that. You just have to pass one physical, I think, and then you can just go on LTIR, which is... That's the dream. That's made for you. Yeah. Kenny's got us, man. That guy's still at it. It's so funny. Like, so much changes. you have generations of Red Wings players coming up in the system and then demanding |
| 1:14.4 | trades. at it. It is so funny. Like, so much changes. You have generations of Red Wings players coming up |
| 1:13.1 | in the system and then demanding trades out of it after being captain. You, like, all three of us, |
| 1:19.7 | well, you two have had kids. I have one on the way. Like, life is nuts. The world keeps turning. |
| 1:25.0 | And then you look over there and Ken Holland just, that's still Ken Holland, baby. He's just doing the same thing every damn day. Have you seen |
| 1:31.2 | those AI videos where it's like you wake up and it's Christmas of 1996? It's supposed to be like |
| 1:36.5 | a nostalgia bomb basically. Well, you could do that for Ken Holland, but the year is 20, |
| 1:42.4 | you pick any year you want and it's the same video. The TV in the background of that nostalgia video is Ken Holland, but the year is 20. You pick any year you want, and it's the same video. |
| 1:44.8 | The TV in the background of that nostalgia video is Ken Holland trading for a 34-year-old journeyman. You go, you can do CRT, plasma, 3D TV, OLED. It's all the same. It doesn't just pick whatever year you want. 3D TV. That'll be fun to explain a kid some days. Like, that's a throwback and had like six months. |
| 2:02.6 | Yeah. |
... |
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