Sprong Signs With Vancouver For Half as Much

Former Red Wings forward Daniel Sprong was considered the most desirable player still in the free agent market and yet he didn’t benefit much from that status.

Sprong signed with the Vancouver Canucks for one year at $975,000 — that’s a salary cut from the $2 million he earned last season with the Red Wings. Based on his 18 goals and 43 points last season, AFP Analytics projected Sprong might get a two-year deal worth $2.5 million this season.

The Netherlands native netted his 18 goals averaging 12 minutes of playing time for Detroit. The season before, Sprong netted 21 goals in less than 12 minutes of playing. His offensive production per minutes played is among the best in the NHL.

Daniel Sprong, signed 1x$1M by VAN, is an efficient scoring winger who creates scoring chances and goals at extremely high rates in depth minutes, but never seems to gain the trust of his coaches to move up the lineup. #Canucks pic.twitter.com/shpnX6BuJm

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) July 20, 2024

However, his coaches, particularly over the past two seasons, found his overall game lacking. He was a healthy scratch sometimes in Seattle in 2023-24. Coach Derek Lalonde played him 76 games last season in Detroit, but he wasn’t always happy with his play from the puck.

However, a main objective for the Red Wings this season is to be more responsible defensively. That’s why they signed Tyler Motte to play on the fourth line next season. And that move meant there was no place in the lineup for Sprong.

Sprong Can Find The Net

But there is no denying Sprong’s offensive consistency. He has 89 points and 307 shots on goal over the past two seasons. Sprong was primarily a fourth liner in both Seattle and Detroit, but received power play time on both teams. He has nine power play goals over the past two seasons.

The Canucks put together a potent offensive group, and they clearly feel his versatility adds to their might. He is the kind of scorer who can be spotted in higher lines if a team had injuries.

At one point, Detroit GM Steve Yzerman said he had interest in all of his UFAs. But given the Red Wings salary cap issues and their hope to better defensively, Sprong wasn’t a good fit. The team was more interested in adding a fourth line defensive forechecker like Tyler Motte.