Yzerman: Filip Zadina requested a trade from Red Wings

It looks as though the Filip Zadina era with the Detroit Red Wings is coming to an end.

It was announced earlier this afternoon that the Red Wings placed Zadina, whom they made their 1st overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, on waivers while also noting that he had originally requested a trade to a different organization. 

General manager Steve Yzerman said as much during his media availability today, but that he wasn't able to find a suitor willing to take him on.

"A couple weeks prior to the draft, through his agent, he had asked if he could potentially go somewhere else, looking for more opportunity, a fresh start," Yzerman said. "So I’ve tried to find a place for him to play, somebody who was interested in Filip would maybe give him that opportunity. I haven’t been able to do that. So I put him on waivers today, trying to give him an opportunity to go to an organization if he wants to play more. We’ll see if that happens."

"Am I thrilled? Am I happy to put him on waivers? No. I signed him to a three-year contract a year ago because I believed he was going to grow," Yzerman said. "And when he signed that contract, my expectation was that he wanted to grow with us."

However, it sounded as though the door may not be completely shut for Zadina to potentially return to the Red Wings and try and earn a roster spot should no deal in the summer materialize.

"Like I said, personally I like Filip and I think there’s something there as a hockey player," Yzerman said. "If he clears, he’s going to come to training camp and he’s gotta earn a spot on the team. There’s not much more I can do at this stage to help him. He’s gotta go out and earn it."

Zadina went scoreless in the first several games of last season before being injured thanks to a broken bone that was the result of a shot block. He only managed to light the lamp three times in 30 games, a far cry from the potential Detroit saw in him upon his being drafted. 

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