How Did Yzerman Con Ottawa Senators Into Giving DeBrincat To Detroit Red Wings?

The Detroit Red Wings just got a two-time 40-goal scorer who's only 25 years old, and all they had to give up was a decent forward who's in the last year of his contract, an anonymous prospect, and a couple of secondary draft picks?

AND, on top of that, the Wings immediately signed the new player, who had reportedly been demanding an eight-year contract in the neighborhood of $70 million, to a four-year deal worth $7.875 million per year?

If you had told me a week ago that this is the trade Steve Yzerman would ultimately execute in bringing Alex DeBrincat to Detroit from Ottawa I would have said something to the effect of: "Get real — this is real life, not a video game." And yet a lopsided trade, followed up by what appears to be a hometown deal, is exactly what's happened here.

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To recap, the Red Wings sent Ottawa:

• Forward Dominik Kubalik
• Minor-league defense Donovan Sebrango
• Conditional 2024 first-round draft pick
• 2024 fourth-round draft pick

In return they got:

• A 25-year-old pure scorer who's just one season removed from lighting the lamp 41 times.

I honestly don't know how the Senators were OK with this return, if you even want to call it that. I do know that I'd be calling for the firing of Ottawa GM Pierre Dorion if I harbored even the slightest care for the Senators, which I don't, so I won't.

Everybody wins in this deal, except the Senators. Detroit gets some much-needed, top-line goal-scoring oomph, and at an extremely cap-friendly rate. DeBrincat gets almost $8 million per year for four years, which is less than the eight-year term and money he reportedly sought but it allows him to bet on himself, which could result in him getting a second, more-lucrative payday in four years when he's only 29.

And last but not least, Detroit fans win. Congratulations! For the first time in years, one of the four pro sports teams in the Motor City has made a big, bold move and acquired a high-profile player. Make no mistake, getting DeBrincat means Yzerman's Red Wings are officially on the clock. Making the playoffs is now the bare-minimum expectation, and the clock is ticking for this franchise to return to Stanley Cup contention.