Red Wings Release Bobby Ryan from Professional Tryout

The Detroit Red Wings opted to not offer forward Bobby Ryan a contract, and released him from his professional tryout:

Ryan was a player so many Wings fans wanted to see back on the roster and was apparently well liked both in the organization and the locker room. Despite some good performances in the preseason, the Red Wings are now most assuredly keeping Joe Veleno and Lucas Raymond on the roster.

But for now, this will sum it up for many Wings fans:

Red Wings Show a Shift in Roster

For so long, it was veterans who received the benefit of the doubt on the roster, but this move shows again, Yzerman and head coach Jeff Blashill are going with who they believe will help the team immediately. Yzerman started by buying out the contracts of Justin Abdelkader and Frans Nielsen, and has whittled the roster down to players he believes are ready to play.

The Athletic Max Bultman listed some practice notes on Twitter and the top six are certainly interesting:

With Raymond on practicing with the top line, it gives Red Wings fans a double dose of hope and what they wanted in that Raymond will not only make the roster, but be given prominent minutes. Though Ryan doesn’t make the squad, the Red Wings are now embracing their future and finally moving forward with the top picks making the opening night lineup.

Blashill’s press conference from this morning indicated that they’re still monitoring the health of some players before they make their final decisions. He was also very non-committal about final roster choices. But it certainly feels that the youth has a great chance of making it.

What does it mean going forward?

The rebuild is taking the next step forward. There’s still going to be a lot of patience required and the process won’t change over night. But what Red Wings fans really wanted–which was to see the team rebuilt and then led the kids take their rightful place is now occurring.

Whether it’s both Veleno and Raymond, or just one of them, with Moritz Seider making it and possibly two other first round picks–the future is slowly finding its way into the present.