A look at where Red Wings stand in NHL free agency

"Black Friday" has arrived for NHL teams, the day everyone goes shopping in hopes of finding something good to take home.

Management and scouts for the Detroit Red Wings are gathered at Joe Louis Arena for the event, which begins at noon. The Wings would like to get bigger, and they would like an offensive defenseman who shoots right - but unfortunately, the fact that teams resign stars means this is summer market is bleak.

Let's take a look at where things stand with the Red Wings:

Wings go Green: The Red Wingssigned Mike Green to three years and $18 million. At 6-foot-1, 207 pounds Green, 29, adds size, and he's got the offense the Wings have so badly needed to add to the back end since losing both Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski to retirement the past few years.

Green had 10 goals and 45 points and a plus-15 defensive rating in 72 games last season. He had 38 points 70 games in 2013-14, and 26 points in 35 games in 2013. He has played a full season only once in nine NHL seasons because of a history of being injury prone, and he's got shortcomings defensively, but he's in the prime of his career and he was the best option for the Wings as they sought to add a right-shot offensive defenseman to their lineup.

Read more about Mike Green signing

What about Ward: Joel Ward (like Green, spent last season with Washington) is 6-1, 226 pounds, and he shoots right. He had 19 goals last season, 24 the year before. He'd add size and skill up front, but again it's a matter of making him fit.

On the front lines: The Wings have 10 forwards signed plus RFAs in Nyquist, Jurco, Pulkkinen and Ferraro. That's 14. Subtract Pavel Datsyuk (ankle surgery) for the start of the season, and that still leaves a full lineup. Plus there's Dylan Larkin, the 2014 first-round pick, who the Wings are giving a chance to make the team. To bring in a fresh outsider, somebody would have to be traded.

Looking at the back end: The Wings have six defensemen signed to NHL contracts (Niklas Kronwall, Jonathan Ericsson, Danny DeKeyser, Kyle Quincey, Brendan Smith, Jakub Kindl). They have four prospects - Alexey Marchenko, Xavier Ouellet, Ryan Sproul and Nick Jensen - who are entering their last season of waiver exemption. That means the Wings have to find out this coming season whether those four guys are NHL-worthy. That'd be hard to do if they sign a UFA defenseman - it would mean someone would have to be moved. They've tried for two seasons to trade Kindl, with no takers. Kronwall, Ericsson and DeKeyser aren't going anywhere, and Quincey is up in a year.

Would Alexander Semin make sense?

The future: Spending now has to be considered against next year's budget, when the Wings will be faced with resigning potential UFAs Justin Abdelkader and Darren Helm, along with RFAs in DeKeyser, Riley Sheahan and Petr Mrazek. In 2015-16, those five cost about $8 million. They'll be closer to upwards of $20 million starting in 2016-17. Take DeKeyser as an example - if Jeff Petry and his 22 points and minus-28 defensive rating last season are worth $5.5 million annually, DeKeyser and his 31 points and plus-11 rating won't be worth any less.

The Franzen factor: This is a bind for the Wings. Maybe their big man with multiple head injuries is able to play this fall. Quite likely, even if he does, he's one big hit from another lengthy absence. But here's the thing - the Wings couldn't have bought him out before Tuesday's deadline because he's hurt. They can't force him to retire. They can't force him on Long-Term Injured Reserve. So they are stuck with having to count his $3.9 million against the cap and counting him as a roster spot for now.

Contact Helene St. James: hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.