Red Wings acquire Eric Comrie in one for one trade

Steve Yzerman loves his one for one trades. Since returning to Detroit as general manager, Yzerman has conducted four trades, all of which have been one for one moves involving no NHL roster players going the other way.

Trade No. 5 went down Saturday afternoon, this one being no different than the rest. The trade: Detroit acquires goaltender Eric Comrie from Arizona in exchange for defenseman Vili Saarijarvi.

Seeing Sarrijarvi go is an upsetting move, but maybe for the best in the end. Once a promising prospect, Saarijarvi hasn’t been able to adjust to the speed of the AHL. He’s been passed on the depth chart by Moritz Seider and Gustav Lindstrom already, and presumably Jared McIsaac next season. A talented puck-mover, Saarijarvi deserved a fresh start somewhere else.

Coming to Detroit is Comrie, a 24-year-old goaltender who has only been with the Coyotes for a few months. Comrie originally started the season with Winnipeg but was waived and eventually claimed by Arizona. So far this season with Tucson (AHL), Comrie has posted a .900 save percentage in 4 games.

This trade comes in the wake of Jimmy Howard’s injury. Howard was put on injury reserve earlier this week, however, the severity of the injury has not been disclosed. Bringing in Comrie might signal this being a long-term injury for Howard.

This deal also allows one of Comrie or Calvin Pickard to start in Grand Rapids. Filip Larsson is not ready for the number one job yet, which might be the main factor why this trade occurred. Having a reliable netminder in front of Larsson bodes well for development.