# 2020–21 Detroit Red Wings season

The 2020–21 Detroit Red Wings season was the 95th season for the National Hockey League (NHL) franchise that was established on September 25, 1926. It was the Red Wings' fourth season at Little Caesars Arena.
On December 20, 2020, the league temporarily realigned into four divisions with no conferences due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing closure of the Canada–United States border. As a result of this realignment the Red Wings returned to the Central Division for the first time since 2012–13 and only played games against the other teams in their new division during the regular season.
On April 26, the Red Wings were eliminated from playoff contention for the fifth consecutive season, after the Nashville Predators defeated the Florida Panthers.

## Standings
### Divisional standings

Central Division :
| Pos | Team v t e | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | y – Carolina Hurricanes | 56 | 36 | 12 | 8 | 27 | 179 | 136 | +43 | 80 |
| 2 | x – Florida Panthers | 56 | 37 | 14 | 5 | 26 | 189 | 153 | +36 | 79 |
| 3 | x – Tampa Bay Lightning | 56 | 36 | 17 | 3 | 29 | 181 | 147 | +34 | 75 |
| 4 | x – Nashville Predators | 56 | 31 | 23 | 2 | 21 | 156 | 154 | +2 | 64 |
| 5 | e – Dallas Stars | 56 | 23 | 19 | 14 | 17 | 158 | 154 | +4 | 60 |
| 6 | e – Chicago Blackhawks | 56 | 24 | 25 | 7 | 15 | 161 | 186 | −25 | 55 |
| 7 | e – Detroit Red Wings | 56 | 19 | 27 | 10 | 17 | 127 | 171 | −44 | 48 |
| 8 | e – Columbus Blue Jackets | 56 | 18 | 26 | 12 | 12 | 137 | 187 | −50 | 48 |

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

2020–21 game log 19–27–10 (Home: 12–11–5; Road: 7–16–5) :

## Awards and honours
### Awards

Regular season :
| Player | Award | Awarded |
| Thomas Greiss | NHL First Star of the Week | May 3, 2021 |

### Milestones

Regular season :
| Player | Milestone | Reached |
| Tyler Bertuzzi | 200th career NHL game | January 14, 2021 |
| Frans Nielsen | 900th career NHL game | January 22, 2021 |
| Marc Staal | 900th career NHL game | January 28, 2021 |
| Darren Helm | 700th career NHL game | January 30, 2021 |
| Dylan Larkin | 400th career NHL game | February 3, 2021 |
| Troy Stecher | 300th career NHL game | February 9, 2021 |
| Sam Gagner | 300th career NHL assist | March 11, 2021 |
| Thomas Greiss | 300th career NHL game | March 18, 2021 |
| Anthony Mantha | 300th career NHL game | April 8, 2021 |
| Danny DeKeyser | 100th career NHL assist | April 15, 2021 |

## Transactions

The Red Wings have been involved in the following transactions during the 2020–21 season.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| December 11, 2020 (2020-12-11) | To New York IslandersDmytro Timashov | To Detroit Red WingsFuture considerations |
| April 9, 2021 (2021-04-09) | To Colorado AvalanchePatrik Nemeth | To Detroit Red Wings4th-round pick in 2022 |
| April 10, 2021 (2021-04-10) | To Columbus Blue JacketsBrian Lashoff | To Detroit Red WingsDavid Savard |
| April 10, 2021 (2021-04-10) | To Tampa Bay LightningDavid Savard | To Detroit Red Wings4th-round pick in 2021 |
| April 11, 2021 (2021-04-11) | To Montreal CanadiensJon Merrill | To Detroit Red WingsHayden Verbeek 5th-round pick in 2021 |
| April 12, 2021 (2021-04-12) | To Washington CapitalsAnthony Mantha | To Detroit Red WingsRichard Panik Jakub Vrana 1st-round pick in 2021 2nd-round pick in 2022 |

### Free agents

| Date | Player | Team | Contract term |
| October 9, 2020 (2020-10-09) | Bobby Ryan | from Ottawa Senators | 1-year |
| October 9, 2020 (2020-10-09) | Jon Merrill | from Vegas Golden Knights | 1-year |
| October 9, 2020 (2020-10-09) | Riley Barber | from Pittsburgh Penguins | 2-year |
| October 9, 2020 (2020-10-09) | Kevin Boyle | from Anaheim Ducks | 1-year |
| October 9, 2020 (2020-10-09) | Kyle Criscuolo | from Anaheim Ducks | 1-year |
| October 10, 2020 (2020-10-10) | Thomas Greiss | from New York Islanders | 2-year |
| October 10, 2020 (2020-10-10) | Troy Stecher | from Vancouver Canucks | 2-year |
| October 11, 2020 (2020-10-11) | Vladislav Namestnikov | from Colorado Avalanche | 2-year |

### Signings

| Date | Player | Contract term | Ref |
| October 28, 2020 (2020-10-28) | Tyler Bertuzzi | 1-year | |
| November 3, 2020 (2020-11-03) | Anthony Mantha | 4-year | |

## Draft picks

Below are the Detroit Red Wings' selections at the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, which was held on October 6 and 7, 2020, via video conference call due to the COVID-19 pandemic
| Round | # | Player | Pos | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 4 | Lucas Raymond | LW | Sweden | Frölunda HC (SHL) |
| 2 | 32 | William Wallinder | D | Sweden | Modo J20 (J20 SuperElit) |
| 2 | 51 | Theodor Niederbach | C | Sweden | Frölunda J20 (J20 SuperElit) |
| 2 | 55 | Cross Hanas | LW | United States | Portland Winterhawks (WHL) |
| 3 | 63 | Donovan Sebrango | D | Canada | Kitchener Rangers (OHL) |
| 3 | 70 | Eemil Viro | D | Finland | TPS (Liiga) |
| 4 | 97 | Sam Stange | RW | United States | Sioux City Musketeers (USHL) |
| 4 | 107$^1$ | Jan Bednar | G | Czech Republic | HC Baník Sokolov (Czech 2.liga) |
| 5 | 132 | Alex Cotton | D | Canada | Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL) |
| 6 | 156 | Kyle Aucoin | D | Canada | Tri-City Storm (USHL) |
| 7 | 187 | Kienan Draper | RW | United States | Chilliwack Chiefs (BCHL) |
| 7 | 203 | Chase Bradley | LW | United States | Sioux City Musketeers (USHL) |
Notes:
* The Edmonton Oilers' fourth-round pick went to the Detroit Red Wings as the result of a trade on February 23, 2020, that sent Mike Green to Edmonton in exchange for Kyle Brodziak and this pick (being conditional at the time of the trade).