Brewer was reunited with former Toronto Maple Leafs teammates Bob Baun, Pete Stemkowski, and Frank Mahovlich.
The Detroit Red Wings acquired Frank Mahovlich, Pete Stemkowski, Garry Unger and Brewer's rights from Toronto in exchange for Floyd Smith, Norm Ullman, and Paul Henderson.
[2] Another important aspect of the season was that Gordie Howe had finally learned how badly treated he was financially by Wings management.
[3] After this information, Howe confronted management and demanded that he received the appropriate compensation.
Former Red Wings' defenceman Doug Barkley was appointed as the head coach of the Fort Worth Wings of the Central Hockey League, which continued to be operated as Detroit's top farm team during the 1969–70 season.