Red Wings not close to signing Tomas Tatar, Danny DeKeyser
The Detroit Red Wings remain in discussions with Tomas Tatar and Danny DeKeyser, but the team isn’t close to signing either restricted free agent soon, reports George Sipple of the Detroit Free Press. Both players seem destined to return to Detroit next season, but GM Ken Holland said Friday that he hasn’t neared agreements with either one.
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"“Tats is overseas, and I’m waiting to hear back,” Holland said. “On the DeKeyser front, we met them in early June. We talked briefly at the draft, and we haven’t really talked much in July. I’ve made what I think are pretty good offers. They haven’t really countered. We’re just in the waiting process.”"
Holland says the Red Wings made Tatar an offer recently, but terms of the deal aren’t clear and there’s been no indication of whether he’ll accept it. The 23-year-old is coming off a breakout season with Detroit, having gone off for 19 goals and 39 points in 73 games (all career-highs), and could be aiming for his first serious payday.
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DeKeyser, a 24-year-old defenseman, appeared in 65 games with Detroit last season, recording four goals and 23 points. He finished 15th in voting for the Calder Trophy, and joins guys like Tatar and Gustav Nyquist as the next generation of key contributors in Detroit.
Given the importance of both players to the Red Wings’ future, the odds that either one ultimately leaves Detroit are pretty low. This is primarily about the terms that each player signs under, and it’ll be interesting to see how much cap space Holland commits to the duo.