Red Wings UFA Daniel Sprong signed with the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, adding depth to a strong Pacific Division contender
After weeks of sitting in free agency, Daniel Sprong has found a new team.
The former Red Wings forward signed a one-year, $975,000 deal with the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, adding scoring depth to a team that should be among the best in the Pacific Division. Sprong finished last season with 43 points on the fourth line and power play.
Sprong was a big offensive contributor for Detroit, but that came at the cost of his defensive play. As a result, he was healthy scratched late in the season as the Red Wings tried to push for the playoffs. The same defensive liabilities caused his departure from Pittsburgh, Washington and Seattle before he landed with the Red Wings.
The Canucks know what they’re getting into by adding Sprong. At a low cost, he provides a scoring boost to its winger depth. With defensively sound players in the lineup such as former Red Wing Pius Suter in the bottom six or the Selke-ballot trio of J.T. Miller, Elias Pettersson and Connor Garland, Vancouver might be able to make up for a minus-defender in Sprong. For teams that are looking to add sheer scoring and nothing else, Sprong is a proven winning bet.
Sprong’s departure shows a commitment to more defensive hockey by Detroit, who signed penalty kill specialist Tyler Motte to play on the fourth line and traded off fourth-line scorer Robby Fabbri to Anaheim on a salary cap dump. At just $975,000 for a back-to-back 40-point scorer, keeping Sprong on such a cheap deal could’ve added tempting offense to a roster that lost a whole lot of goals last season. Instead, the Red Wings put more defensively minded players on its projected fourth line.
Sprong’s scoring clearly tempted Vancouver enough to sign him, and now he’ll look to add depth to a contender.