Does he cash in on Athanasiou's mini resurgence by Feb. 24? Does he hold off and hope for a better payout this summer? Or does he eschew trade talks completely and bet on a bounce-back next season?
For Yzerman, there's risk at every turn. Ultimately he has to decide whether Athanasiou's value in a trade exceeds his own potential. What pushes the ceiling higher for the Red Wings?
The answer would have seemed clear Tuesday night, when Athanasiou scored two third-period goals to lift Detroit to a 4-3 win over Montreal. The first was a forehand-backhand move that he deposited over Carey Price's glove, the second a wrister he wired past his blocker. Athanasiou has five goals in his last six games, matching his total over the first 39 games of the season.
"It's kind of a crazy game," he said.
As Athanasiou brought the fans out of their seats, he likely caught the eyes of a few scouts in the press box. They got to see him do what he does best -- convert chances into goals. They also got to see him commit a hellacious turnover in his own zone that gifted Montreal a 1-0 lead, immediately calling to mind his minus-43 rating. With Athanasiou, the answers are never all that clear.
Is he a legitimate top-six forward in the NHL, or a streaky, one-way scorer? Is he a center or a wing? Is he part of Yzerman's vision, or a reject from the previous regime? Is he worth, say, $5 million in restricted free agency this summer? Is he worth, say, a young defenseman in a trade?
If Yzerman does trade Athanasiou, either in the next week or in the offseason, it doesn't seem like he'll do so for draft capital. He'll want a known commodity in return, a piece the Wings can immediately fit into their rebuild. Only 14 NHL players under the age of 25 scored goals at a higher clip last season than Athanasiou. His price tag will reflect that as an RFA, and so it should in a trade.
"Double-A can finish. We've seen that before and it was great to see it tonight," said Dylan Larkin. "He's coming. He's had some tough bounces with injuries and trying to find traction this year, but he did a great job tonight. That's the player he can be -- a game changer -- and we need him to be that. It's exciting.
"These last 20 games hopefully he can build and build and then next year we're flying with two lines that can score."
It's a tantalizing thought, and Yzerman has surely entertained it himself. We saw what it could look like at the end of last season when the Wings, buoyed up front by Athanasiou, Larkin, Anthony Mantha and Tyler Bertuzzi, won eight of their final 11 games. Add Filip Zadina to the picture now. Maybe Robby Fabbri, too. It's tempting to see what they could do as a group.
But it's hard to know if this version of Athanasiou is here to stay.
"Honestly nothing," he said when asked what's clicked for him in the past few games. "Just sticking to the same thing. Doing what I try do out there, not trying to do too much. Just trying to work my way through tough times, and fortunately enough been finding the net lately. Not much more I can say about that."
And at this point, there's not much more we can say about Athanasiou. He's been a 30-goal scorer in a league where goal scorers are at a premium. And he's been mired in a brutal slump for much of this season. He's a 25-year-old who plays high-risk, high-reward hockey.
In the right system, namely one where he doesn't need to be one of his team's best players, where his primary charge is to put the puck in the net, Athanasiou could thrive. He doesn't have that luxury in Detroit, and it's not clear if he ever will. With his value on the rise again, and with trade talks picking up around the NHL, maybe he'll soon find it somewhere else.
"Those things are out of our control," Athanasiou said. "The business side takes care of it. You just have to come on the ice and play hockey."