Ken Holland addresses media

Detroit Red Wings general manager Ken Holland isn't seeking depth at the Feb. 29 trade deadline.

(Mike Mulholland/MLive.com)

DETROIT - Detroit Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said he expects to be working the phones as the Feb. 29 trade deadline approaches. But whether a deal happens depends on several factors.

"Before we do anything we got to get close to the trade deadline and see where we're at in the standings," Holland said on Thursday.

The Red Wings have eight games remaining before the trade deadline. If they're still in the playoff hunt, which seems likely, then Holland will see if he can upgrade the roster.

"For us to explore the trade deadline it has to be a player we think is a dramatic upgrade on one of our players," Holland said. "Then we have to get creative with the cap."

The cap could be the biggest hindrance to a move. The Red Wings aren't working with the maximum $71.4 million cap due to their inability to get the full relief when placing players on long-term injured reserve at or near the start of the season. He said they're closer to $67 million and they're up against it.

So they would need to clear almost an equal amount of cap space to acquire a player.

Holland said he's happy with the goaltending. Petr Mrazek leads the NHL in goals-against average and save percentage. Jimmy Howard has struggled since December but gives the club an experienced alternative in case of injury. With three more years at a $5.3 million cap hit, Howard would be virtually impossible to trade at this stage of the season even if the team wanted to move him.

On defense, Holland said they are "eight or nine deep," including Jakub Kindl, who's up as an injury replacement, and Xavier Ouellet, who's in Grand Rapids.

At forward, Holland mentioned they have sufficient depth with the likes of Teemu Pulkkinen, a healthy scratch the past four games; Joakim Andersson, who was assigned to Grand Rapids on Thursday; and Andreas Athanasiou, who's played the past three games. They've also looked at Griffins Tomas Nosek and Eric Tangradi this season.

"From a depth standpoint, we got some players we think we can put in the lineup," Holland said.

The Red Wings have scored 14 goals in their past four games but offense has been their biggest issue. They rank 19th in goals per game (2.52) and are tied for 17th on the power play.

If they deal, chances are it would be for a forward with offensive ability.

"I expect to talk to lots of teams, see what they're thinking, let them know what we're thinking," Holland said. "If there's a fit we'll do something. If we don't have the assets or don't want to part with the assets we won't."

No contract talks planned

Holland said he doesn't plan on having contract discussions with any of his free agents, restricted or unrestricted, until after the season. He wants their focus to be on the playoff push.

The club's restricted free agents include Mrazek, Danny DeKeyser, Riley Sheahan, Alexey Marchenko and Pulkkinen. Darren Helm, Kyle Quincey, Brad Richards, Drew Miller and Andersson are unrestricted.

Injury updates

DeKeyser (bruised leg) is expected to play Friday against the Colorado Avalanche at Joe Louis Arena. Mike Green (groin) is possible for Sunday or Monday. Niklas Kronwall (knee), who's skated on his own this week but hasn't practiced, is eligible to come off LTIR on Sunday but isn't likely to return until next week.

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