# 2005–06 Detroit Red Wings season

The 2005–06 Detroit Red Wings season was the 80th National Hockey League season in Detroit, Michigan. The Wings once again found themselves having the best regular season record, scoring 124 points for the second-highest point total in franchise history.
The Red Wings began the season with a conflict in goal as recent pickup Chris Osgood was injured in preseason activities and unproven Manny Legace was to start in goal. Legace played great, winning 10 of his first 11 games, and quickly earned the starting goaltender job. The Red Wings decided to start Legace in the playoffs but his inexperience quickly showed and Detroit was knocked out in the first round by the Edmonton Oilers (who'd go on to win the conference) in six games.
Detroit defenseman, Jiri Fischer, suffered a cardiac arrest in the first period of a game against the Nashville Predators on November 21. The game was stopped and eventually called as many fans in Joe Louis Arena either could not see what was going on or looked on in horror. Fischer was given CPR on the Wings' bench and then carried out on a stretcher. Nashville had a 1–0 lead within the game and it was decided that the score would be added onto the rescheduled game later in the season.
The Red Wings sold out all 41 home games in 2005–06, as 20,066 fans packed Joe Louis Arena for every regular season and playoff game played in Detroit.
There was no All-Star Game this year as the Winter Olympics in Turin took place in February 2006, where nine Red Wings players represented their countries. Kris Draper represented Canada, Chris Chelios represented the United States, Robert Lang represented the Czech Republic, Pavel Datsyuk represented Russia, and Nicklas Lidstrom, Mikael Samuelsson, Henrik Zetterberg, Niklas Kronwall and Tomas Holmstrom represented Sweden. Team Canada Head Coach Wayne Gretzky told Steve Yzerman it was his decision as to whether he wanted to play in the 2006 Olympics. Citing his age and playing ability, Yzerman bowed out to give up his roster spot to a "more deserving player."
Sweden won the gold medal in ice hockey, as all three goals scored in the gold medal game were by Red Wing players. Red Wings' Head Coach Mike Babcock decided to give the five gold medal winners from Detroit time to return to Sweden to celebrate. They only missed one game, February 28 against the San Jose Sharks. In that game, Detroit suffered their worst loss of the season, losing by four goals.
For the first time in 10 years, Detroit was not shut out in any of their 82 regular season games. Offensively, Detroit trailed only the Ottawa Senators in scoring and shots on goal, with 301 goals (305 including the four shootout-winning goals) and 2,796 shots, respectively. Furthermore, for the first time since the 1992–93 season, the Red Wings scored more than 100 power play goals during the regular season, this time with 102. Detroit had eight players on its roster that scored at least twenty goals each during the regular season.
Defensively, the Red Wings finished second in most shutouts for, with nine and allowed only 206 goals (209 including three shootout-winning goals), good enough for third overall.

## Regular season

The Red Wings finished the regular season with the League's best power-play percentage, at 22.13% (102 for 461).

### Season standings

Central Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 82 | 58 | 16 | 8 | 305 | 209 | 124 |
| 2 | 4 | Nashville Predators | 82 | 49 | 25 | 8 | 259 | 227 | 106 |
| 3 | 13 | Columbus Blue Jackets | 82 | 35 | 43 | 4 | 223 | 279 | 74 |
| 4 | 14 | Chicago Blackhawks | 82 | 26 | 43 | 13 | 211 | 285 | 65 |
| 5 | 15 | St. Louis Blues | 82 | 21 | 46 | 15 | 197 | 292 | 57 |
Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.
Western Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | P- Detroit Red Wings | CE | 82 | 58 | 16 | 8 | 305 | 209 | 124 |
| 2 | Y- Dallas Stars | PA | 82 | 53 | 23 | 6 | 265 | 218 | 112 |
| 3 | Y- Calgary Flames | NW | 82 | 46 | 25 | 11 | 218 | 200 | 103 |
| 4 | X- Nashville Predators | CE | 82 | 49 | 25 | 8 | 259 | 227 | 106 |
| 5 | X- San Jose Sharks | PA | 82 | 44 | 27 | 11 | 266 | 242 | 99 |
| 6 | X- Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | PA | 82 | 43 | 27 | 12 | 254 | 229 | 98 |
| 7 | X- Colorado Avalanche | NW | 82 | 43 | 30 | 9 | 283 | 257 | 95 |
| 8 | X- Edmonton Oilers | NW | 82 | 41 | 28 | 13 | 256 | 251 | 95 |
| 8.5 ||||||||||
| 9 | Vancouver Canucks | NW | 82 | 42 | 32 | 8 | 256 | 255 | 92 |
| 8 | Los Angeles Kings | PA | 82 | 42 | 35 | 5 | 249 | 270 | 89 |
| 11 | Minnesota Wild | NW | 82 | 38 | 36 | 8 | 231 | 215 | 84 |
| 12 | Phoenix Coyotes | PA | 82 | 38 | 39 | 5 | 246 | 271 | 81 |
| 13 | Columbus Blue Jackets | CE | 82 | 35 | 43 | 4 | 223 | 279 | 74 |
| 14 | Chicago Blackhawks | CE | 82 | 26 | 43 | 13 | 211 | 285 | 65 |
| 15 | St. Louis Blues | CE | 82 | 21 | 46 | 15 | 197 | 292 | 57 |
Divisions: CE – Central, PA – Pacific, NW – Northwest
P – Clinched Presidents Trophy; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot
For complete final standings, see 2005–06 NHL season

## Playoffs

The Detroit Red Wings ended the 2005–06 regular season as the Western Conference's first seed and played Edmonton in the first round. Edmonton would go on to defeat Detroit and reach the Stanley Cup Finals, losing in Game 7 to the Carolina Hurricanes.

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

2005–06 regular season :
October: 11–1–0 (home: 5–1–0; road: 6–0–0)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPtsRecap
1October 5St. Louis1 – 5DetroitLegace20,0661–0–02Recap
2October 6Detroit4 – 3St. LouisLegace15,3182–0–04Recap
3October 9Calgary3 – 6DetroitLegace20,0663–0–06Recap
4October 10Vancouver4 – 2DetroitLegace20,0663–1–06Recap
5October 13Detroit5 – 2Los AngelesLegace18,1184–1–08Recap
6October 15Detroit2 – 0PhoenixLegace17,7995–1–010Recap
7October 17San Jose2 – 3DetroitOTLegace20,0666–1–012Recap
8October 21Anaheim2 – 3DetroitLegace20,0667–1–014Recap
9October 22Detroit6 – 0ColumbusLegace18,1368–1–016Recap
10October 24Detroit6 – 2ColumbusLegace16,0989–1–018Recap
11October 27Chicago2 – 5DetroitLegace20,06610–1–020Recap
12October 29Detroit4 – 2ChicagoOsgood20,65811–1–022Recap :
November: 7–5–2 (home: 4–2–1; road: 3–3–1)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPtsRecap
13November 1Chicago1 – 4DetroitOsgood20,06612–1–024Recap
14November 3Edmonton4 – 3DetroitOTOsgood20,06612–1–125Recap
15November 5Phoenix4 – 1DetroitOsgood20,06612–2–125Recap
16November 6Detroit4 – 1St. LouisOsgood13,21113–2–127Recap
17November 9Los Angeles5 – 4DetroitOTLegace20,06614–2–129Recap
18November 11Minnesota1 – 3DetroitLegace20,06615–2–131Recap
19November 13Detroit1 – 4VancouverLegace18,63015–3–131Recap
20November 16Detroit1 – 3CalgaryLegace19,28915–4–131Recap
21November 17Detroit5 – 6EdmontonOTOsgood20,06615–4–232Recap
22November 19St. Louis3 – 2DetroitLegace20,06615–5–232Recap
November 21NashvillePPDDetroitLegace20,066Recap
23November 23Colorado3 – 7DetroitLegace20,06616–5–234Recap
24November 25Detroit1 – 3AnaheimOsgood17,17416–6–234Recap
25November 26Detroit7 – 6San JoseOsgood17,49617–6–236Recap
26November 28Detroit5 – 2Los AngelesHoward18,11818–6–238Recap
Notes:
$^a$ Game was cancelled with 7:31 left in the first period after Jiri Fischer suffered heart failure on the bench. Nashville was ahead 1–0 and the score would be added to a January 23 rescheduled game. Fischer was tended to and would soon after retire due to an enlarged heart and complications resulting thereof. :
December: 8–3–1 (home: 4–2–0; road: 4–1–1)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPtsRecap
27December 1Calgary3 – 2DetroitHoward20,06618–7–238Recap
28December 4NY Islanders2 – 1DetroitHoward20,06618–8–238Recap
29December 6New Jersey2 – 5DetroitOsgood20,06619–8–240Recap
30December 9Detroit4 – 3WashingtonOsgood18,27720–8–242Recap
31December 12Pittsburgh1 – 3DetroitOsgood20,06621–8–244Recap
32December 13Detroit6 – 7AtlantaOsgood17,55921–9–244Recap
33December 15Detroit2 – 3FloridaOTOsgood17,71621–9–345Recap
34December 17Detroit6 – 3Tampa BayOsgood21,20422–9–347Recap
35December 20Columbus3 – 4DetroitSOOsgood20,06623–9–349Recap
36December 23Detroit3 – 2ChicagoOTOsgood20,54324–9–351Recap
37December 27Detroit4 – 1DallasOsgood18,58425–9–353Recap
38December 31Columbus2 – 3DetroitOTOsgood20,06626–9–355Recap :
January: 8–4–2 (home: 4–3–1; road: 4–1–1)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPtsRecap
39January 3Minnesota4 – 2DetroitOsgood20,06626–10–355Recap
40January 5St. Louis0 – 3DetroitLegace20,06627–10–357Recap
41January 6Detroit3 – 1NashvilleLegace17,11328–10–359Recap
42January 8Dallas6 – 3DetroitOsgood20,06628–11–359Recap
43January 10Detroit2 – 3CarolinaLegace18,73028–12–359Recap
44January 12Philadelphia3 – 6DetroitLegace20,06629–12–361Recap
45January 14NY Rangers3 – 4DetroitLegace20,06630–12–363Recap
46January 18Detroit4 – 0ColumbusOsgood17,08931–12–365Recap
47January 21Detroit4 – 3ColoradoLegace18,00732–12–367Recap
48January 23Nashville3 – 2DetroitLegace20,06632–13–367Recap
49January 24Nashville2 – 1DetroitOTLegace20,06632–13–467Recap
50January 26Vancouver1 – 2DetroitLegace20,06633–13–469Recap
51January 28Detroit1 – 2DallasSOLegace18,58433–13–571Recap
52January 30Detroit5 – 4MinnesotaLegace18,56834–13–573Recap
Notes:
$^b$ Makeup date for the November 21st game that was postponed. Nashville started the game with a 1–0 lead. :
February: 5–1–0 (home: 3–0–0; road: 2–1–0)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPtsRecap
53February 1St. Louis2 – 3DetroitLegace20,06635–13–575Recap
54February 4Detroit3 – 0ColoradoLegace18,00736–13–577Recap
55February 8Nashville0 – 6DetroitLegace20,06637–13–579Recap
56February 9Detroit3 – 2NashvilleLegace17,11338–13–581Recap
57February 12Colorado3 – 6DetroitLegace20,06639–13–583Recap
58February 28Detroit1 – 5San JoseLegace17,49639–14–583Recap :
March: 11–1–3 (home: 4–1–3; road: 7–0–0)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPtsRecap
59March 1Detroit2 – 0AnaheimOsgood16,60640–14–585Recap
60March 4Detroit7 – 3PhoenixLegace18,61941–14–587Recap
61March 7Phoenix5 – 2DetroitLegace20,06641–15–589Recap
62March 9Los Angeles3 – 7DetroitLegace20,06642–15–589Recap
63March 11Chicago4 – 6DetroitLegace20,06643–15–591Recap
64March 12Detroit5 – 3ChicagoOsgood19,13644–15–593Recap
65March 15Anaheim1 – 3DetroitOsgood20,06645–15–595Recap
66March 18Detroit4 – 3EdmontonSOLegace16,83946–15–597Recap
67March 19Detroit7 – 3VancouverOsgood18,63047–15–599Recap
68March 21Nashville3 – 2DetroitSOLegace20,06647–15–6100Recap
69March 23San Jose0 – 4DetroitLegace20,06648–15–6102Recap
70March 25Columbus5 – 4DetroitSOOsgood20,06648–15–7103Recap
71March 27Detroit4 – 1St. LouisLegace12,83449–15–7105Recap
72March 30Detroit4 – 2NashvilleLegace16,57050–15–7107Recap
73March 31Chicago3 – 2DetroitOTOsgood20,06650–15–8108Recap :
April: 8–1–0 (home: 3–0–0; road: 5–1–0)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPtsRecap
74April 2Detroit3 – 2MinnesotaLegace18,56851–15–8110Recap
75April 3Detroit2 – 1CalgarySOOsgood19,28952–15–8112Recap
76April 7Columbus6 – 5DetroitSOLegace20,06653–15–8114Recap
77April 8Detroit4 – 2ColumbusOsgood18,13654–15–8116Recap
78April 11Edmonton0 – 2DetroitLegace20,06655–15–8118Recap
79April 13Detroit7 – 3ChicagoLegace15,11756–15–8120Recap
80April 15Detroit3 – 2St. LouisOsgood16,09457–15–8122Recap
81April 17Dallas2 – 3DetroitLegace20,06658–15–8124Recap
82April 18Detroit3 – 6NashvilleOsgood17,11358–16–8124Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Overtime/shootout loss (1 point) :

### Playoffs

2006 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Western Conference Quarterfinals: vs. (8) Edmonton Oilers — Edmonton wins 4–2
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceSeriesRecap
1April 21Edmonton2 – 3Detroit2OTLegace20,066Red Wings lead 1–0Recap
2April 23Edmonton4 – 2DetroitLegace20,066Series tied 1–1Recap
3April 25Detroit3 – 4Edmonton2OTLegace16,839Oilers lead 2–1Recap
4April 27Detroit4 – 2EdmontonLegace16,839Series tied 2–2Recap
5April 29Edmonton3 – 2DetroitLegace20,066Oilers lead 3–2Recap
6May 1Detroit3 – 4EdmontonLegace16,839Oilers win 4–2Recap :
Legend:
  Win
  Loss :

## Player statistics
### Scoring

* Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Red Wings only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Red Wings only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 13 | Pavel Datsyuk | C | 75 | 28 | 59 | 87 | 26 | 22 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Henrik Zetterberg | LW | 77 | 39 | 46 | 85 | 29 | 30 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 | −2 | 2 |
| 14 | Brendan Shanahan | LW | 82 | 40 | 41 | 81 | 29 | 105 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| 5 | Nicklas Lidstrom | D | 80 | 16 | 64 | 80 | 21 | 50 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −4 | 2 |
| 20 | Robert Lang | C | 72 | 20 | 42 | 62 | 17 | 72 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 | −2 | 2 |
| 96 | Tomas Holmstrom | LW | 81 | 29 | 30 | 59 | 14 | 66 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 12 |
| 23 | Mathieu Schneider | D | 72 | 21 | 38 | 59 | 33 | 86 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 8 | −1 | 6 |
| 29 | Jason Williams | C | 80 | 21 | 37 | 58 | 4 | 26 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −3 | 6 |
| 37 | Mikael Samuelsson | RW | 71 | 23 | 22 | 45 | 27 | 42 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 6 |
| 19 | Steve Yzerman | C | 61 | 14 | 20 | 34 | 8 | 18 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 | −2 | 4 |
| 33 | Kris Draper | C | 80 | 10 | 22 | 32 | 3 | 58 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| 15 | Jason Woolley | D | 53 | 1 | 18 | 19 | 3 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 39 | Johan Franzen | C | 80 | 12 | 4 | 16 | 4 | 36 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 44 | Mark Mowers | RW | 46 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Daniel Cleary | RW | 77 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 5 | 40 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| 3 | Andreas Lilja | D | 82 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 98 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −4 | 6 |
| 22 | Brett Lebda | D | 46 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 9 | 20 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| 18 | Kirk Maltby | LW | 82 | 5 | 6 | 11 | −9 | 80 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 |
| 24 | Chris Chelios | D | 81 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 22 | 108 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| 55 | Niklas Kronwall | D | 27 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 28 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| 2 | Jiri Fischer | D | 22 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 4 | Cory Cross† | D | 16 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 42 | Donald MacLean | C | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 41 | Valtteri Filppula | C | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 34 | Manny Legace | G | 51 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 4 | Jamie Rivers‡ | D | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Jimmy Howard | G | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 26 | Jiri Hudler | C | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 32 | Tomas Kopecky | RW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Chris Osgood | G | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 45 | Kyle Quincey | D | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |

### Goaltending

| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | GP | W | L | OT | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 34 | Manny Legace | 51 | 37 | 8 | 3 | 1244 | 106 | 2.19 | .915 | 7 | 2905 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 155 | 18 | .884 | 2.65 | 0 | 1029 |
| 30 | Chris Osgood | 32 | 20 | 6 | 5 | 828 | 85 | 2.79 | .897 | 2 | 1846 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Jimmy Howard | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 104 | 10 | 2.99 | .904 | 0 | 201 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (annual) | James Norris Memorial Trophy | Nicklas Lidstrom |
| League (annual) | Lady Byng Memorial Trophy | Pavel Datsyuk |
| League (annual) | Lester Patrick Trophy | Steve Yzerman |
| League (annual) | NHL First All-Star Team | Nicklas Lidstrom (Defense) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Defensive Player of the Month | Manny Legace (October) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Defensive Player of the Week | Manny Legace (October 24) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Defensive Player of the Week | Manny Legace (February 13) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Offensive Player of the Week | Brendan Shanahan (December 19) |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Johan Franzen | October 5, 2005 |
| First game | Brett Lebda | October 5, 2005 |
| First game | Kyle Quincey | November 25, 2005 |
| First game | Jimmy Howard | November 28, 2005 |
| First game | Valtteri Filppula | December 15, 2005 |
| First game | Tomas Kopecky | February 28, 2006 |
| 1,000th game played | Mathieu Schneider | October 21, 2005 |
| 600th assist | Brendan Shanahan | November 9, 2005 |
| 600th assist | Nicklas Lidstrom | March 7, 2006 |

## Transactions

The Red Wings were involved in the following transactions from February 17, 2005, the day after the 2004–05 NHL season was officially cancelled, through June 19, 2006, the day of the deciding game of the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details | Ref |
| March 9, 2006 (2006-03-09) | To Phoenix Coyotes Jamie Rivers | To Detroit Red Wings 7th-round pick in 2006 | |
| March 9, 2006 (2006-03-09) | To Pittsburgh Penguins 4th-round pick in 2007 | To Detroit Red Wings Cory Cross | |

### Players acquired

| Date | Player | Former team | Term | Via |
| August 8, 2005 (2005-08-08) | Chris Osgood | St. Louis Blues | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 12, 2005 (2005-08-12) | Kent McDonell | Columbus Blue Jackets | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 16, 2005 (2005-08-16) | Andy Delmore | Adler Mannheim (DEL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 16, 2005 (2005-08-16) | Michael Hackert | Frankfurt Lions (DEL) | | Free agency |
| August 25, 2005 (2005-08-25) | Andreas Lilja | Nashville Predators | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 25, 2005 (2005-08-25) | Don MacLean | Espoo Blues (Liiga) | 1-year | Free agency |
| September 18, 2005 (2005-09-18) | Mikael Samuelsson | Sodertalje SK (SHL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| October 4, 2005 (2005-10-04) | Daniel Cleary | Phoenix Coyotes | 1-year | Free agency |

### Players lost

| Date | Player | New team | Via |
| July 26, 2005 (2005-07-26) | Derian Hatcher | Philadelphia Flyers | Compliance buyout |
| July 26, 2005 (2005-07-26) | Darren McCarty | Calgary Flames | Compliance buyout |
| July 26, 2005 (2005-07-26) | Ray Whitney | Carolina Hurricanes | Compliance buyout |
| August 2, 2005 (2005-08-02) | Pete Vandermeer | Montreal Canadiens | Free agency (VI) |
| August 3, 2005 (2005-08-03) | Mathieu Dandenault | Montreal Canadiens | Free agency (V) |
| August 10, 2005 (2005-08-10) | Paul Ballantyne | Phoenix Roadrunners (ECHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| August 15, 2005 (2005-08-15) | Nathan Robinson | Boston Bruins | Free agency (UFA) |
| August 17, 2005 (2005-08-17) | Curtis Joseph | Phoenix Coyotes | Free agency (III) |
| August 25, 2005 (2005-08-25) | Danny Groulx | Kassel Huskies (DEL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| October 4, 2005 (2005-10-04) | Andy Delmore | Columbus Blue Jackets | Waivers |
| December 9, 2005 (2005-12-09) | Michael Hackert | Frankfurt Lions (DEL) | Free agency |

### Signings

| Date | Player | Term | Contract type |
| July 28, 2005 (2005-07-28) | Brendan Shanahan | 1-year | Option exercised |
| July 29, 2005 (2005-07-29) | Ryan Oulahen | 3-year | Entry-level |
| July 29, 2005 (2005-07-29) | Kyle Quincey | 3-year | Entry-level |
| August 2, 2005 (2005-08-02) | Steve Yzerman | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 4, 2005 (2005-08-04) | Chris Chelios | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 4, 2005 (2005-08-04) | Johan Franzen | 1-year | Entry-level |
| August 4, 2005 (2005-08-04) | Mathieu Schneider | 2-year | Re-signing |
| August 11, 2005 (2005-08-11) | Tomas Kopecky | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 16, 2005 (2005-08-16) | Darryl Bootland | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 16, 2005 (2005-08-16) | Jason Williams | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 19, 2005 (2005-08-19) | Valtteri Filppula | 3-year | Entry-level |
| August 24, 2005 (2005-08-24) | Matt Ellis | 2-year | Re-signing |
| August 25, 2005 (2005-08-25) | Jimmy Howard | 3-year | Entry-level |
| August 27, 2005 (2005-08-27) | Niklas Kronwall | 2-year | Re-signing |
| September 7, 2005 (2005-09-07) | Henrik Zetterberg | 4-year | Re-signing |
| September 26, 2005 (2005-09-26) | Pavel Datsyuk | 2-year | Re-signing |
| October 8, 2005 (2005-10-08) | Jason Woolley | 1-year | Re-signing |
| March 25, 2006 (2006-03-25) | Mikael Samuelsson | 3-year | Extension |
| April 18, 2006 (2006-04-18) | Andreas Lilja | 2-year | Extension |
| May 31, 2006 (2006-05-31) | Chris Chelios | 1-year | Re-signing |
| May 31, 2006 (2006-05-31) | Jonathan Ericsson | 2-year | Entry-level |
| May 31, 2006 (2006-05-31) | Stefan Liv | 1-year | Entry-level |
| May 31, 2006 (2006-05-31) | Evan McGrath | 3-year | Entry-level |

## Draft picks

As there was no 2004–05 season to set the order for the draft, a lottery was held in which teams were assigned a number of balls, between one and three, based on the number of playoff appearances the team had had in the past three seasons. As the Red Wings had made the playoffs three consecutive seasons, they were given only one ball in the lottery. The Red Wings ended up with the 19th overall pick.
Detroit's picks at the 2005 NHL entry draft in Ottawa, Ontario:
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 19 | Jakub Kindl (D) | Czech Republic | Kitchener Rangers (OHL) |
| 2 | 42 | Justin Abdelkader (LW) | United States | Cedar Rapids RoughRiders (USHL) |
| 3 | 80 | Christofer Lofberg (C) | Sweden | Djurgardens IF |
| 4 | 103 | Mattias Ritola (C/W) | Sweden | Leksands IF Jr. (Sweden) |
| 5 | 132 | Darren Helm (LW) | Canada | Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL) |
| 5 | 137 | Johan Ryno (RW) | Sweden | Kumla Jr. (Sweden Jr.) |
| 5 | 151 | Jeff May | Canada | Prince Albert Raiders (WHL) |
| 6 | 175 | Juho Mielonen | Finland | Ilves (Finland Jr.) |
| 7 | 214 | Bretton Stamler | Canada | Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) |

## Farm teams
### Grand Rapids Griffins

The Griffins were Detroit's top affiliate in the American Hockey League in 2005–06.

### Toledo Storm

The Storm were the Red Wings' ECHL affiliate for the 2005–06 season.