Red Wings Release 2016 NHL Prospect Tournament Roster

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today released their 2016 NHL Prospect Tournament roster, a group of 24 recent draft picks, free agent signees and tryouts who will compete against seven other NHL prospect teams for the Matthew Wuest Memorial Cup from Friday, Sept. 16 to Tuesday, Sept. 20 at Centre Ice Arena in Traverse City, Mich.

Highlighting Detroit’s roster are five first- or second-round draft picks, including 2015 first-round pick and right wing Evgeny Svechnikov, who won silver with Russia at the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship and racked up 79 points in 50 games with the QMJHL’s Cape Breton Screaming Eagles in 2015-16; left wing Tyler Bertuzzi, a 2013 second-round pick who notched 30 points as a first-year pro in Grand Rapids and has 14 goals in 23 career AHL playoff games; center Zach Nastasiuk, a fellow 2013 second-round draftee who skated in 27 games for Grand Rapids and produced 20 points in 25 games with the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye; and a pair of 2016 second-round picks in left wing Givani Smith and defenseman Filip Hronek, two of the three participating players from the Red Wings’ most-recent draft class along with fifth-round pick and defenseman Jordan Sambrook.

Other roster highlights include defenseman Joe Hicketts, a former undrafted tryout who earned a contract after his performance at the 2014 NHL Prospect Tournament and went on to represent Canada at back-to-back IIHF World Junior Championships, winning gold in 2015; defenseman Robbie Russo, who led the AHL with a plus-40 rating in 2015-16 and earned a spot on the AHL All-Rookie Team and Second All-Star Team; left wing Dylan Sadowy, a 45-goal scorer with Barrie and Saginaw in the Ontario Hockey League acquired in a trade by Detroit from San Jose in May; and goaltender Jake Paterson, who spent most of his rookie professional season with Toledo and helped the Walleye to the best record in the Eastern Conference at 47-20-2-3.

Twenty-four players who skated for the Red Wings during the 2015-16 campaign have participated in the tournament during its 18-year history, while 522 total players have played in the tournament and moved on to skate in at least one NHL game. Prospects from the Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues will also be competing in this year’s tournament.

Tickets are available for $10 per day and can be purchased at Centre Ice Arena or at www.centreice.org. Each ticket is good for all four games per day. Teams are divided into two divisions and will play each team within their division once during the round robin before a crossover on the final day of the tournament, with the first-place finishers in each division meeting for the championship on Tuesday, Sept. 20. For more information and a complete tournament schedule, visit www.centreice.org.

[Editor's note: The absence of Vili Saarijarvi is due to wrist surgery following an injury in development camp]