Elliotte Friedman officially links the Detroit Red Wings to division rival's star centerman
The Buffalo Sabres are spiraling in the wrong direction and could be looking to make a major roster change. Per Elliotte Friedman, the Red Wings are targeting one of their young stars, Dylan Cozens.
Back in the 2019 NHL draft, the Detroit Red Wings held the 6th overall pick and the Buffalo Sabres had the 7th pick. Many expected the Red Wings to select Dylan Cozens, a big centerman out of the WHL, but they shocked many by going off the board and selecting Moritz Seider, a German defenseman ranked in the mid to late teens.
Buffalo was quite surprised by this move and happily went up to select Cozens who many thought would be a top-five pick.
Over five years later, it now looks like both were good picks but Detroit made the better selection with Seider at five despite him being ranked lower.
Additionally, with the Sabres still struggling and looking like they are about to contend for the first overall pick in 2025, it looks like they may begin to rebuild again and part ways with talents like Cozens.
Recently, Elliotte Friedman confirmed that the Red Wings were at least looking at Dylan Cozens and could still be targeting him for a trade.
"I believe the Buffalo player the Red Wings were (are?) looking at is Dylan Cozens." - Elliotte Friedman
Cozens has been struggling of late posting only 20 points through 41 games this year which is a far cry from the 68 points he scored in 2022-23 as a 21-year-old.
It does look like a change of scenery could be necessary for the Yukon native and in Detroit he could be the second line centerman behind Dylan Larkin. With Detroit looking to compete for a playoff spot, Cozens could unlock his full potential and be the missing piece for the Red Wings.
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