Last week, I took a stab at ranking the top 25 prospects in Detroit’s system. In the intro, I mentioned that the Red Wings’ depth is about as good as I can remember it, and there were a decent number of players after the 25 mark that I still felt were worth keeping tabs on. In the interest of completion, today I’ve compiled some progress reports on other players in the system.
Most of these are long shots for sure, but some are recent late-round picks on a longer timeline anyway, others are just buried on the depth chart of their respective team. I do my best to check out everyone a few times a season, but with this many players in the system, it’s tough to feel you’ve given everyone a fair view. Some are just not getting the ice time that makes tuning in worthwhile. Specifically, Detroit is heavy on defensive defensemen, and I find it hard to judge those types with just a handful of viewings – it takes a much closer eye to notice players who are consistently solid in their end for extended stretches. So that’s a potential blindspot worth pointing out.
Note that these players are listed alphabetically.
Gage Alexander, Goalie
5th round (148th overall), 2021 by Anaheim
2024-25 Stats: Reading (ECHL) – 4 GP, 3-1-0, 2.76 GAA, 0.918 SV%
It felt like Detroit needed to take a contract back when they traded Robby Fabbri to Anaheim over the summer, and Alexander was goalie toiling in the ECHL for the Ducks. Sure enough, the Red Wings prioritized Carter Gylander and Griffins-contracted Jan Bednar to tend the net in Toledo, so Alexander saw no game action for the Walleye. They recently loaned him to Reading in the same league, and he’s put up decent numbers in three appearances there. That’s just doing right by a kid in a tough spot trying to find his footing in pro hockey, as there are too many bodies ahead of him in the Red Wings system. He’ll likely find a new organization this summer.
Brennan Ali, Winger
7th round (212th overall), 2022
2024-25 Stats: Notre Dame (B10) – 32 GP, 6-12-18, +1, 12 PIM
There are a few players I hoped to find a spot for in the top 25, and Ali was one of them. He’s generally on the second or third line, but he’s easily noticeable to me when I watch Notre Dame. He has elite speed and is slowly finding his scoring touch, already slightly above his freshman-year totals for the Irish. He has the tools to be a depth player with a bit of scoring touch, but the net step is becoming more of a consistent offensive threat in college, and he’ll have two more years to do that.
Kyle Aucoin, Defense
6th round (156th overall), 2020
2024-25 Stats: Harvard (ECAC) – 21 GP, 1-2-3, -4, 6 PIM
Harvard has quietly become more and more of a destination for NHL draft picks (as if it wasn’t already, y’know, Harvard), and Aucoin is one of six drafted defensemen on the roster. He’s a senior now and has generally settled in as a depth defenseman over his collegiate career. Unless he can count last season as a redshirt (playing only eight games), I think his rights will lapse this summer and he’ll pursue pro hockey elsewhere or see if he can get anywhere in life with that Harvard degree.
Austin Baker, Winger
7th round (203rd overall), 2024
2024-25 Stats: Sioux Falls (USHL) – 40 GP, 7-12-19, +6, 17 PIM
As far as seventh-round picks go, you could do a lot worse than taking a chance on a kid who was pretty productive at the NTDP and represented Team USA on the international stage. Baker was mostly in a depth role on a team that usually sees the majority of its roster get drafted, so a year in the USHL was a good choice to afford him a chance to play a bigger role. I’ve caught a few games and his size and speed combination stand out, but the overall offense is still a work in progress. He’s committed to Michigan State for next season, a great spot to continue to develop.
Kevin Bicker, Winger
5th round (147th overall), 2023
2024-25 Stats: Lowen Frankfurt (DEL) – 20 GP, 0-5-5, +3, 15 PIM
Bicker’s a guy I don’t have much visibility on – the German league requires teams to play a certain number of homegrown players, so each team has players like Bicker who play pretty sparingly and, in my opinion, would be better served in other leagues. I did see him last year at the WJC and he was one of Germany’s most impressive players – all around the puck and capable of producing offense. Unfortunately, he was injured and could not reprise his role this year. I’m not sure what the options are other than leaving him in the DEL and hoping he can adapt to a league heavy with experienced AHL players, but he’s worth keeping an eye on.
Brady Cleveland, Defense
2nd round (47th overall), 2023
2024-25 Stats: Colorado College (NCHC) – 33 GP, 0-2-2, -1, 33 PIM
I’m a fan of the ongoing Brady Cleveland experiment. The Red Wings reached for a player with one specific hard-to-find attribute, which is just the overall aggression and mean streak that Cleveland plays with. He never found footing in Wisconsin as a freshman (having committed to a different head coach than the one who came in for that season), so he transferred to Colorado College, where he’s played every game, generally on the second pair. As a college player, the project has always been to finetune the overall game and learn to play on the edge without crossing it, and the PIM total shows that he’s been able to keep it in check. He does still seem very raw when I’ve checked in, especially with the puck skills, but the skating seems improved and the physical element is very much there. He’s likely on a long-term track but could wind up a unique player in the future.
Alexandre Doucet, Winger
Undrafted, signed 2023
2024-25 Stats: Grand Rapids (AHL) – 46 GP, 7-10-17, +0, 12 PIM
Doucet has taken a sizeable step forward as a second-year pro. He spent almost all of last season in Toledo and produced good numbers – albeit on a loaded team that generally used him more as a second-line player. He earned an AHL job this year and hasn’t looked back, generally playing a second- or third-line role. He’s probably a guy the Griffins’ injuries have benefitted, as he’s getting powerplay looks which plays to his strength as a former 58-goal scorer in the QMJHL. His footspeed is ultimately what holds him back for me, but he has another year on his entry-level deal to continue clawing towards the next level.
Liam Dower Nilsson, Winger
5th round (134th overall), 2021
2024-25 Stats: Bjorkloven (Swe-2) – 48 GP, 19-20-39, +24, 22 PIM
Dower Nilsson, older brother of 23rd-ranked Noah, was another player I had right on the edge of my list. Since being drafted, he wasn’t able to establish himself as an SHL regular and bounced around a couple of second-tier teams. This season, his offensive game has come alive, and he leads his team and sits 14th in Allsvenskan scoring (first among prospects). That’s excellent, but it’s hard to know what to make of that happening four years after he was drafted. It’s not apples-to-apples because the country uses a relegation system, but it’s a bit like being in the ECHL after not cracking the AHL – most of his peers are established in the SHL or in North America. Either way, Allsvenskan players scoring at that level generally get another SHL chance sooner or later. The problem for LDN is Detroit will have to decide whether or not to sign him this summer. It’d be a great story to continue having both brothers in the system, but I think other players have a better chance of earning contracts.
Kienan Draper, Winger
7th round (187th overall), 2020
2024-25 Stats: Michigan (B10) – 29 GP, 7-2-9, -4, 37 PIM
Now a junior, Draper has evolved from a seldom-used forward as a freshman to a lineup staple for Michigan. He’s not likely to become a top scorer at this level, though he is sixth in goals on a team that probably expected it would be able to generate more offense from its typically NHL draftee-heavy lineup. Playing in Draper’s favor is that he plays a pro-style game, he’s fast, he doesn’t shy away from physical play, he competes. If I had to make up a word for his style, I would call him a “grinder.” Has anyone used that before? Either way, for a late seventh-round pick, he still faces long odds, but he’s a fun story to follow… NHLer? Unlikely, but could he play pro? I could see it.
Charlie Forslund, Winger
6th round (176th overall), 2024
2024-25 Stats: Mora (Swe-Jr.) – 43 GP, 9-13-22, +6, 6 PIM / Mora (Swe-2) – 2 GP, 0-0-0, -1, 0 PIM
Forslund is one of the classic Swedish picks the Red Wings used to make in the late ‘00s, as he was playing between the third-tier of Swedish pro hockey and outside the top Swedish junior leagues. He moved to Mora this season, whose junior team does play in the top under-20 league, and results have been mixed. The production is a little low for players already drafted to the NHL, but he’s hit two milestones of late: a two-game debut in the Allsvenskan with Mora’s senior team and a monster five-point game back in the junior ranks. He’s a project, but maybe those accomplishments indicate he’s getting more comfortable.
Rudy Guimond, Goalie
6th round (169th overall), 2023
2024-25 Stats: Moncton (QMJHL) – 11 GP, 11-0-0, 1.61 GAA, 0.944 SV%, 2 SO / Cedar Rapids (USHL) 6 GP, 1-5-0, 2.88 GAA, 0.887 SV%, 1 SO
If you’re skimming this, stop here a sec. Guimond is having one of the weirdest seasons of any Red Wings prospect I can remember. First, he’s the answer to the trivia question of the first Detroit prospect to take advantage of the new rule that allows players playing in the Canadian Hockey League to commit to NCAA schools. Guimond had been in the USHL for Cedar Rapids since the start of 2023-24 but fell out of favor early this season, playing just six games and winning once. So he jumped at the chance to join the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats (which would have previously broken his commitment to attend Yale next season) and his numbers are jaw-dropping. He’s undefeated in 11 starts and is first in the league in GAA and SV%.
Historically, the QMJHL has always been a higher-scoring league, but the USHL has become the better talent producer of late… I still would not have guessed the gap between the two would play itself out like that statistically. He is on the top team in the Q, and Cedar Rapids is middle-of-the-pack in the USHL, so maybe it’s just the quality of shots he’s seeing, or maybe, being a native Quebecker, it’s easier playing in a league closer to home. Either way, good on him for facilitating that flip, as he’ll likely get a long postseason run out of it and is still slated to get his Ivy League education next year.
Cross Hanas, Winger
2nd round (55th overall), 2020
2024-25 Stats: Grand Rapids (AHL) – 45 GP, 6-6-12, +1, 26 PIM
A third-year pro, Hanas is still chasing the solid rookie season he authored in 2022-23, scoring just above a half point-per-game before injury limited him to just 30 games played. Over the last two seasons, he hasn’t been near that mark, floating between the bottom six and the press box at times. There are games where you can see the intriguing blend of skill, speed and grit that made him a second-round pick, but it doesn’t come together often enough to earn him a bigger role in the lineup. Even though he’s coming off of his entry-level this season, I’d expect Detroit will keep him around for another year or two and see if he can figure it out, but if this exercise has revealed anything, it’s that spots in Grand Rapids could be at a premium in the next year or two.
Larry Keenan, Defense
4th round (117th overall), 2023
2024-25 Stats: UMass (HE) – 32 GP, 2-5-7, +9, 16 PIM
Keenan is a freshman on a UMass team that has been a tournament regular more often than not in recent years. He’s low on the depth chart, but he’s producing and playing every game. Of the many defensemen in this section, Keenan’s separating skill is easily his skating. He’ll continue growing into his role over the next two or three years and see if he can add some offense and strength. He has the size and mobility to become a puck-moving depth defenseman at the next level, but has always carried that “raw” tag.
Maximilian Kilpinen, Winger
4th round (129th overall), 2022
2024-25 Stats: Ostersunds (Swe-2) – 23 GP, 2-1-3, -7, 0 PIM / Hudiksvalls (Swe-3), 8 GP, 0-2-2, +2, 0 PIM
Kilpinen’s first year of pro has not gone as expected. Drafted as a skilled forward, his numbers never really stood out at the junior level and ice time was scarce with second-tier Ostersunds. He was recently loaned to a third-tier Swedish club, Hudiksvalls, looking for a bigger opportunity and so far the numbers have not been much different there. While a short stint in a lower league is not a death sentence, I can’t really think of a prospect that made the NHL after spending extended time in Sweden’s third league – he’ll want to work his way back up into the Allsvenskan to stay on the radar.
Owen Mehlenbacher, Center
7th round (201st overall), 2022
2024-25 Stats: Wisconsin (B10) – 22 GP, 3-1-4, -2, 2 PIM
It’s been a slow start for Mehlenbacher through nearly two years at Wisconsin, where he’s in and out of the lineup and not producing much offense. He’s a seventh-round pick, so it’s hard to be disappointed, but he looked to have a little more offense in his game in the USHL and looked like a college-ready player after winning a USHL championship in 2023. The college landscape has rapidly changed in the last few years, so it’ll be interesting to see if some guys on this list, like Mehlenbacher, are candidates to transfer for more playing time, or if he sees a path to a bigger role as a junior next year depending on the Badgers’ forward departures.
Landon Miller, Goalie
4th round (126th overall), 2024
2024-25 Stats: Soo (OHL) – 32 GP, 10-15-1, 4.19 GAA, 0.874 SV%, 1 SO
Junior hockey is cyclical, and Miller is a bit of a victim of circumstance in that regard this year. Last season, he was a 1B goalie for the third-best team in the league, but those teams are generally loaded 19- and 20-year-old players who are set to turn pro or age out of the league, and this year, the Greyhounds are in a playoff spot, but are also just three points out of the basement in their Conference. So Miller’s numbers have been rough, and the Soo have deployed five different goalies this season. The bad news is that his GAA has shot up by almost two, but that’s reflective of the team’s situation. The good news is that the cycle dictates they should be more competitive next season, with Miller in a great spot to be the starter after seeing so much rubber this season.
Jack Phelan, Defense
5th round (137th overall), 2023
2024-25 Stats: Wisconsin (B10) – 33 GP, 0-4-4, +2, 12 PIM
Of the glut of collegiate depth defensemen working through Detroit’s system, I think Phelan is the one I’m most intrigued by. There’s very little offense in his game, and his numbers reflect that even pre-NCAA, but he’s big (6’3”), skates well, plays physically, and blocks shots. As I indicated in the intro, it’s hard to assess how effective a defensive defenseman is after seeing only a handful of their games, but I’ve not seen a ton of missed assignments for Phelan. He’s a freshman, so his role will continue to grow, but I think the ceiling is pretty clear here – Phelan will be defensive depth at every level he plays at.
Jakub Rychlovsky, Winger
Undrafted, signed 2024
2024-25 Stats: Grand Rapids (AHL) – 36 GP, 3-4-7, -1, 12 PIM
I hope every year that Detroit will take a flyer on a college or European free agent, and Rychlovsky was just that when he signed last spring following a breakout year in the Czech league where he netted 26 goals. It’s been slower going in North America with just three goals on the campaign for the Griffins, but he did show some chemistry when paired with countryman Ondrej Becher before Rychlovsky vanished from the lineup recently with an undisclosed injury. Still, it’s a risk-free gamble to take a guy like this every year or two, and he’s on a two-year deal. It’s not too unusual to see the Europeans especially have a much stronger second season when they’re a little more used to the style of play and off-ice lifestyle. Earning a little more trust from the coaches once he returns from injury will be his first step to getting the better minutes that will hopefully allow him to get back to the goal-scoring role he played in Czechia.
Fisher Scott, Defense
7th round (208th overall), 2024
2024-25 Stats: Colorado College (NCHC) – 29 GP, 3-5-8, +0, 8 PIM
A teammate of Brady Cleveland’s at Colorado College, Scott’s a much different breed on the Tigers’ blueline, a slender, speedy defenseman who jumps into the play more often than Cleveland. It’s a solid collegiate debut so far, posting respectable offensive totals as a freshman. It seems like a good spot for a seventh-rounder to be, as Colorado College hasn’t been strong of late but they play in the highly competitive NCHC, so being able to adapt quickly to that competition is a positive.
Eemil Viro, Defense
3rd round (70th overall), 2020
2024-25 Stats: Grand Rapids (AHL) – 46 GP, 1-3-4, -8, 26 PIM
Viro’s developed into a reliable piece for Grand Rapids after a fairly limited role in his first two years in North America. He’s a smart player but is stuck in some ways. With just average size, strength and speed, he’s generally behind the likes of Wallinder, Buium and Lagesson when all three are in the lineup. The strength of the Griffins team has definitely been the defensive core, and Viro’s a regular part of that, but this will be a big summer to determine if he’s content trying to hold onto that role going forward or if he’d prefer to go back to Europe if he doesn’t see and NHL call-up in his future.
John Whipple, Defense
5th round (144th overall), 2024
2024-25 Stats: Minnesota (B10) – 28 GP, 0-3-3, +4, 6 PIM
Like a few others on this list, patience is key for Whipple, who is a freshman on a Minnesota team with a staggering 16 NHL picks, including six on the blueline. They’re also one of the top collegiate programs, so not typically a situation where freshmen are walking into significant minutes, unless they’re a very high pick. Whipple does have an interesting pedigree to me, as early in his draft cycle he was projected as a higher draft pick as a hard-hitting defenseman who had shown some offensive touch at the prestigious Shattuck St. Mary’s program. That didn’t translate during his two-year stint with USA Hockey’s NTDP, so he slid down the mid-rounds, but he’ll definitely be surrounded by high-end talent as long as he’s at Minnesota if he can tap back into that offensive element.
