{"id":164071,"date":"2025-09-23T15:13:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-23T15:13:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/164071\/"},"modified":"2025-09-23T15:13:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-23T15:13:10","slug":"red-wings-building-young-nucleus-for-a-brighter-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/164071\/","title":{"rendered":"Red Wings building young \u2018nucleus\u2019 for a brighter future"},"content":{"rendered":"

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. \u2013 In the eight years the Detroit Red Wings<\/a> has called Little Caesars Arena home, the building hasn\u2019t held an NHL playoff game.<\/p>\n

Yet, despite the ongoing pressure from fans around Hockeytown, general manager Steve Yzerman is sticking with his plan of developing a winning team through the draft and prospects.<\/p>\n

During a live Q&A prior to the Red Wings\u2019 Red & White Game in Grand Rapids on Sunday, Yzerman acknowledged that the team certainly wants to make the postseason, but not at the expense of the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re still in a phase where we\u2019re not prepared \u2013 I\u2019m not prepared \u2013 to trade high picks or top prospects for guys that aren\u2019t going to be here for a long time,\u201d Yzerman said.<\/p>\n

Over the past couple of years, Detroit has been on the cusp of finally ending its long playoff drought. But whether it be missing out on the final day of the season or having an ill-timed slide late in the season, the Original Six team has failed to reach its goal.<\/p>\n

Some, including the team\u2019s captain, Dylan Larkin<\/a>, believe the Wings would have become certified contenders if they were willing to go get a needed piece at the trade deadline<\/a>. On Sunday, he pointed out that he doesn\u2019t believe it\u2019s right to give up key prospects and draft capital for short-term benefit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t believe in giving up premium assets at the deadline or at any point, just to make it [to the playoffs]. We\u2019re getting closer. We\u2019ll look at opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

While supporters for the club have been losing faith in the current administration, there have been signs of optimism with some of the young talent that have come up from the Grand Rapids Griffins, the Red Wings\u2019 American Hockey League affiliate. Defensemen Simon Edvinsson and Albert Johnasson, along with forward Jonatan Berggren, are part of young core that has complemented stars such as Larkin, Patrick Kane and Lucas Raymond.<\/p>\n

\"\"Simon Edvinsson \u00a9 Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Yzerman noted the solid group that comes up through the minors and European ranks, with each player expected to be a key asset heading into the 2025-26 season as the team makes another run at a postseason berth.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re encouraged by certainly the play that we\u2019ve seen in the Lucas Raymond\u2019s, Moritz Seider\u2019s. I mean, Albert Johansson was here in Grand Rapids for two years. Marco Kasper, who had a big role in the second half and down the stretch for us. \u2026 Simon Edvisson played extremely well for us last year. \u2026 I look at more of the big picture. I\u2019m excited to where we\u2019re going and the group that we have.\u201d<\/p>\n

There\u2019s excitement in some other prospects <\/a>that are on a path to becoming Wings in the near future. Winger Michael Brandsegg-Nygard and defender Axel Sanin-Pelikka each had some flashes of promise after joining the Griffins in the stretch run last season, and are expected to be key players in Grand Rapids this season, and might get a call-up or two to Motown.<\/p>\n

\"\"Michael Brandsegg-Nygard (Nicolas Carrillo\/Grand Rapids Griffins)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re forming a nucleus, a competitive team,\u201d Yzerman added. \u201cWe need that in the next wave. They may or may not play this year. I\u2019m not sure yet. And not only do we need them to play, we need them to have an impact.\u00a0\u2026 The next group is coming, it\u2019s just a question of whether it\u2019s this year or a year from now or two years from now.\u201d<\/p>\n

One player that everyone seems to be excited about is forward Emmitt Finnie<\/a>. The former Kamloops Blazer has made an impression on Yzerman and others around the organization with his performance late last season with the Griffins, as well as the first few days of training camp, with his speed and work ethic.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Finnie\u2019s] really impressive,\u201d Yzerman said. \u201cHe\u2019s got Larkin speed, but we\u2019ll see how he does (in the preseason).\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a very nice player,\u201d Larkin said after the game. \u201cHe\u2019s got some speed, young legs. Aside from that, he thinks the game very well. It was our second day with him, and I thought there was countless foot races won and puck battles won, and he\u2019s smart to bump it to [Raymond] and I and know that we\u2019re coming and we\u2019re looking to get it back to him\u2026He\u2019s been impressive all camp.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Emmitt Finnie (Nicolas Carrillo\/Grand Rapids Griffins)<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a good skater. He\u2019s a good puck retriever,\u201d remarked assistant coach Alex Tanguay. \u201cHe showed that in the games in Dallas. He showed that in the game here. \u2026 We put him on a good line, and he showed that he was able to retrieve pucks and drive the pace with his speed and his size for a line.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another growing prospect is defenseman Anton Johansson<\/a>. The 2022 fourth-round pick played a handful of games in Grand Rapids last year, and really caught the eye of many in West Michigan with his two-way ability.<\/p>\n

Detroit assistant general manager Shawn Horcoff explained what makes the 21-year-old a touted prospet.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t say we were surprised,\u201d Horcoff said. \u201cI think the surprise was how well [Johansson] played and how quickly he was able to adapt to the North American game. I think he\u2019s got kind of everything he needs to be a successful defenseman in the NHL. \u2026 So, we\u2019re optimistic\u2026we\u2019ll be excited to see him in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even with veteran goaltenders such as John Gibson and Cam Talbot, Detroit\u2019s brass is hopeful Griffins backstop Sebastian Cossa and Michigan State standout Trey Augustine can be the team\u2019s future between the pipes.<\/p>\n

Tanguay, who has been behind the Wings\u2019 bench since 2021, says the franchise\u2019s development system is working, and is properly grooming players to help Detroit become a winner.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve seen growth, you know, there\u2019s no doubt,\u201d Tanguay said. \u201cI started with Lucas and Moritz, and you look at the growth that those guys have had. Last year, we added Marco to this group, and Marco had a tremendous growth from the time we\u2019ve had him. Almo has been part of this group, you know. Now you see the generation of [Nate] Danielson, [Carter] Mazur, Finnie\u2026Those guys are coming. I don\u2019t know when that time is for them. Only them will dictate when that time happens. \u2026 You have to earn your ways, and our guys are getting there, and certainly it\u2019s exciting for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Larkin has seen a plethora of prospects earn their stripes in his decade with the Red Wings. From the first few days of training camp and the intersquad scrimmage on Sunday, he admits there\u2019s a lot to like about the current pool of future NHLers in the system.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of them look really good,\u201d Larkin said. \u201cYou see speed, you see skill. I think they all have very good attributes, whether it\u2019s a shot or skating or a brain, but they all seem eager to want to learn, and they\u2019ve really been impressive with how their work ethic on and off the ice\u2026It\u2019s exciting to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Red Wings will continue their preseason on Tuesday night at home against the Chicago Blackhawks<\/a>. Detroit\u2019s first game of the regular season is scheduled for Oct. 9 against the Montreal Canadiens<\/a>.<\/p>\n

PRESENTED BY THE DAILY FACEOFF SURVIVOR POOL<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Think you\u2019ve got what it takes to outlast everyone else? Test your hockey smarts in the Daily Faceoff Survivor Pool \u2014 a high-stakes game of elimination with a $2,500 grand prize for the last fan standing. The contest continues until there\u2019s only one survivor \u2014 and that winner takes it all. Are you ready to survive? Sign up now and make your picks!<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. \u2013 In the eight years the Detroit Red Wings has called Little Caesars Arena home,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":164072,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[433],"tags":[49,48,448,82],"class_list":["post-164071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nhl","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-nhl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=164071"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164071\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/164072"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=164071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=164071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=164071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}