Red Wings getting younger, looking toward future after Draft

The Detroit Red Wings have a stronger foundation for their rebuild following the 2018 NHL Draft, especially with the addition of right wing Filip Zadina, the No. 6 pick, and could look a lot younger as soon as 2018-19.

General manager Ken Holland said Monday the Red Wings will give forwards Evgeny Svechnikov, 21, Michael Rasmussen, 19, and Zadina, 18, each a good chance to make the NHL roster in training camp and preseason.
"They're going to play all preseason -- probably five, six games -- and then we'll make the decision," Holland said. "But probably one of those kids … will make the team. Maybe two. Maybe three. We'll see."
That means the Red Wings could have up to eight forwards 25 or younger when they host the Columbus Blue Jackets to open the regular season on Oct. 4. Martin Frk turns 25 on Oct. 5. Andreas Athanasiou and Anthony Mantha will be 24 by then. Tyler Bertuzzi will be 23 and Dylan Larkin will be 22.
Some of it depends on what Holland does when free agency opens July 1. He might add up front to boost the offense, but only if he can find someone on a relatively short, cheap contract.
There is room for youth on defense, too. If Mike Green leaves as an unrestricted free agent, Holland will try to add another veteran. Still, with the buyout of Xavier Ouellet, that leaves at least one spot for a younger player like Joe Hicketts, 22, Vili Saarijarvi, 21, Dennis Cholowski, 20, and Filip Hronek, 20.
"If two kids make it, then we'll carry eight (defensemen) and we'll have two kids on the team," Holland said.
After making the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 25 straight seasons, the Red Wings missed the last two seasons. They sold ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline each time and stockpiled draft picks.
As a result, they drafted higher than they had since they selected center Keith Primeau No. 3 in 1990, picking Rasmussen No. 9 last year and Zadina No. 6 this year. They drafted 11 players last year, including six in the first three rounds, and 10 this year, including seven in the first three rounds and four in the first 36 picks.
They will have about 40 players at development camp at Little Caesars Arena from Tuesday to Saturday.

Not all will make the NHL, let alone become stars. But the more picks, the more chances.
"We're excited," Holland said. "Part of the excitement, obviously, is having lots of picks. … We're in that rebuild mode, and we're trading away established NHL players. But we're looking to the future."
When you're rebuilding, you need to draft and develop well. It helps to be lucky too.
The Red Wings had defenseman Rasmus Dahlin and right wing Andrei Svechnikov first and second, respectively, on their draft board this year, like most people inside and outside the NHL. Dahlin went No. 1 to the Buffalo Sabres, Svechnikov No. 2 to the Carolina Hurricanes.
Third on the Red Wings' draft board?
Zadina.
When the Montreal Canadiens took center Jesperi Kotkaniemi No. 3, the Red Wings thought they might have a shot. After the Ottawa Senators took left wing Brady Tkachuk at No. 4 and the Arizona Coyotes selected center Barrett Hayton No. 5, the Red Wings were ecstatic.
Zadina scored seven goals in seven games for the Czech Republic in the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship, tying for second in the tournament, and had 44 goals in 57 games for Halifax of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in 2017-18, tied for third in the league.
The Red Wings scored 2.59 goals per game in 2017-18, 28th in the NHL, and converted at 17.5 percent on the power play, 24th in the League.
"We need to score goals," Red Wings director of amateur scouting Tyler Wright said. "We need offensive players. Our power play's got to get better. I mean, he's a guy that has the ability to win hockey games because he's got that offensive ability."
The Red Wings selected center Joseph Veleno at No. 30 with one of the picks they acquired in a trade with the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for forward Tomas Tatar on Feb. 26. Wright said the Red Wings had Veleno ranked much higher on their draft board and compared him to Larkin.
"He fits the mold of what we're trying to accomplish," Wright said. "We want to be fast, we want to be competitive and we want to produce more offense. We were real happy. If you would have told me we would have been walking out with Veleno at 30, I would have been shocked."
Detroit selected Jonatan Berggren, another skilled forward, at No. 33 with one of the picks they acquired in a trade with the New York Rangers in exchange for defenseman Brendan Smith on Feb. 28, 2017. They took defenseman Jared McIsaac at No. 36, then two more forwards, two more defensemen and two goaltenders.
Holland values veterans to keep the Red Wings competitive in the short term and mentor the younger players for the long term. But the Red Wings have more prospects now. The future is coming fast.
"We're going to be a fairly young group up front here in a year or so," Holland said.