Right-winger Lucas Raymond was one of the most important Detroit Red Wings on the team’s roster for the 2023-24 NHL season. Raymond nearly dragged the Red

Wings to a playoff spot, scoring 31 goals and adding 41 assists in 82 games played for the team. In the last 10 games of the

2023-24 season, Raymond scored 10 goals and added five assists that kept the Red Wings in the playoff race. Raymond has

only missed eight games in the three seasons that he has played with the Red Wings.

Raymond and the Red Wings are reportedly far apart on contract negotiations. General manager Steve

Yzerman said that the team would have to fit other contracts around the contracts that needed to be signed of

both Raymond and defenseman Moritz Seider. These two players are arguably the most important players on the Red

Wings’ current roster. Not re-signing them would call into question Yzerman’s negotiating tactics.

Both Raymond and Seider need new contracts at the same time. As two of the most important players currently on the

Red Wings’ roster, Yzerman needs to get these two contracts right. Pay too much

for these two, and the Red Wings will be up against the NHL’s salary cap. There are many cautionary tales of teams

needing to trade away players due to being up against the cap. The latest example being the Toronto Maple Leafs

recently signing center William Nylander to an eight-year contract with an average annual value of $11.5 million