Maybe This Explains Why Red Wings Yzerman Signed Tralmaks

There certainly were a number of reaons why Eduards Tralmaks was an attractive free agent addition for the Detroit Red Wings.

First off, at 6-foot-4 and 209 pounds, the Latvian forward offers size and physicality to a team in need of both qualities. The left shot can play wing or center. Tralmaks is a proven scorer, leading the Czech Extraliga in scoring in 2024-25.

Nice anticipation and pass by Eduards Tralmaks on this one. #LGRW https://t.co/CN2Mpo4q3U

— Red Wings Prospects (@LGRWProspects) May 18, 2025

He’s also well-versed in North American hockey and lifetstyle. Tralmaks has played youth, college and pro hockey on this side of the Atlantic Ocean. During the 2021-22 season, Tralmaks scored 14 goals in 51 games for the AHL Providence Bruins. He’s Latvia’s leading scorer at the current IIHF World Championship with 2-4-6 totals in six games.

Oh, and there’s another interesting character trait that Tralmaks is sharing with Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman. Neither of them appear to be all that fond of referees.

Red Wings Prospect Critical of World Tourney Officiating

If you’d have expected a Red Wings prospect to be berating the work of the officiating at the IIHF World Championship, Michael Brandsegg-Nygard probably would’ve been first pick. The Norwegian forward, Detroit’s first-round selection in the 2024 NHL entty draft, was ejected from the country’s game with Denmark for what was certainly a relatively tame hit by NHL standards.

Following Latvia’s game against Finland, Tralmaks was taking the officiating to task after Latvia was left shorthanded six times.

“I don’t really know how people here feel about talking about referees, so maybe I won’t say anything,” Tralmaks started out telling Finnish website Ilta-Sanomat. “I don’t want to get into trouble.”

His contrite tone quickly would be fading.

Eduards Tralmaks pirmo reizi pēc savainojuma trenējās kopā ar visu komandu. Roka jāpārbauda dažādos veidos un situācijās – ne tikai ar metieniem, bet arī grūstoties pic.twitter.com/whKXmV1abt

— Ulvis Brože (@UlvisBrozhe) April 21, 2025

“The line was leaning a little in the other direction,” Tralmaks suggested. He was the Latvian player in the penalty box when Finland netted the eventual game winner of what would be a 2-1 victory on a third-period power play.

“I’m not going to question every one of our penalties, because some of them were clear penalties, but not all of them,” Tralmaks said. “Some plays were just normal. Those wouldn’t be penalties in the NHL playoffs.”

Somewhere, you could imagine Yzerman smiling, maybe even nodding in agreement. Yzerman is definitely someone who doesn’t keep referees on his Christmas card list. And he’s never been one to keep his feelings in those regards a secret.