Instead of “puck luck,” Red Wings prospect Carter Bear pulled some “pack luck” at the NHLPA Rookie Showcase in Chicago this Friday:
Carter Bear 🤝 Emmitt Finnie@upperdecksports x #nhlparookieshowcase pic.twitter.com/rYvx1Xh0Mf
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) July 31, 2026
Former Red Wings free agent signing Alexandre Doucet has signed a contract with Assat Pori of the Finnish Liiga, ending Doucet’s time with the Grand Rapids Griffins:
"Hyökkäyssuuntaan taitava pelaaja, joka löytää tilan tehdä peliä muille ja itselleen."
— Porin Ă„ssät (@PorinAssat) July 31, 2026
Tiedote:https://t.co/EDTxmYX3dc#Ässät #Liiga
The Hockey News’s Andre Leal makes offseason predictions today, including two regarding Red Wings restricted free agent defenseman Simon Edvinsson and disgruntled captain Dylan Larkin:
Detroit Red Wings: GM, Edvinsson, Larkin
There is a pile of significant issues that the Detroit Red Wings must address, and that starts at the top of the chain.
Before Detroit decides to dive deeper into Dylan Larkin’s trade request from earlier this off-season and RFA Simon Edvinsson’s new contract, the organization must hire a new GM.
The next GM must present their vision for the squad that’s missed the playoffs for 10 straight seasons.
Once that piece of business is taken care of, the organization can work toward signing Edvinsson to a new contract. And with the state of the Red Wings, they’ll need to retain the 23-year-old defenseman at all costs.
With Larkin, it remains to be seen whether his stance will change with a new GM coming in to replace Steve Yzerman, who’s transitioning to an advisory role.
If Larkin remains firm on wanting out of Detroit, there isn’t much else the Red Wings should do other than try to recoup the best assets they can for the 30-year-old center.
Prediction
After the Red Wings hire a new GM, Edvinsson will get re-signed to a big contract extension, similar to Moritz Seider’s current deal, which is $8.55 million per season through 2030-31.
As for Larkin, it’s hard to see him remaining with the Red Wings for this coming season. Even if his biggest issue was Yzerman’s lack of activity to improve the roster, that doesn’t change the fact that he’s entering his 30s with just one playoff campaign in 2015-16, and Detroit hasn’t notably improved on paper since his request.
Continued; my best guess is that Edvinsson’s contract will be equal to or slightly higher than Moritz Seider’s deal as well, and, regarding Larkin…
I just don’t see a reunification happening. He’s burned too many bridges with the organization as a whole, and ownership, and that prodigal son’s ship has sailed.
Per the Toledo Walleye:
Toledo Walleye to host Great Lakes Showcase featuring future NHL talent
TOLEDO, OH – The Toledo Walleye are proud to announce the Great Lakes Showcase, a special two-game American Hockey League exhibition weekend coming to the Huntington Center in downtown Toledo on Saturday, September 26, 2026, and Sunday, September 27, 2026.
The Great Lakes Showcase will feature the Grand Rapids Griffins, primary affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings, taking on the Cleveland Monsters, primary affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets, in a unique weekend showcase at the Huntington Center.
Game Schedule
Saturday, September 26 | Time TBD Sunday, September 27 | Time TBDThe two-game series will give hockey fans a rare opportunity to watch tomorrow’s NHL stars compete today. As the top development league for the NHL, the American Hockey League serves as the final step for many players on their journey to hockey’s biggest stage.
This is more than a hockey series. It's a celebration of the Great Lakes hockey tradition and a tremendous opportunity for Toledo sports fans," said the Toledo Walleye. "The Grand Rapids Griffins and Cleveland Monsters, representing two of hockey's most passionate NHL organizations, have chosen Toledo as the home for this special showcase. We are honored to welcome these teams, their fans, and some of the most talented young players in the game to the Glass City.The Great Lakes Showcase represents a unique moment for the region. With connections to the Detroit Red Wings and Columbus Blue Jackets organizations, the event will bring together hockey fans from across Ohio and Michigan while reinforcing Toledo’s reputation as one of the premier hockey communities in North America.
For long-time hockey fans, the showcase offers an opportunity to see elite prospects before they reach the NHL. For families, casual fans, and first-time attendees, it provides a chance to experience high-level hockey in an exciting and welcoming atmosphere. Building memorable experiences and creating community connections are central to the event’s vision.
The Hockey News’s Tony Ferrari examines the Red Wings’ prospect pool this afternoon:
Strengths
The Wings have always valued finding players with higher floors, even if that means their upside is limited at times.
Missing the playoffs for 10 seasons has left them with an impressive group of prospects in terms of depth.
Detroit has multiple players at every position who should be at least challenging for NHL jobs in the near future. They have built a deep prospect pool from center to goaltender and everything in between.
Weaknesses
Despite having all of that depth, the Red Wings lack true difference-making star power.
Hurlbert has some potential if he hits his ceiling, but picking him this year was the first time Detroit leaned into skill over a safe floor in the first round in quite some time.
Bear and Brandsegg-Nygard could be top-of-the-lineup skaters if they are complementary players on that line, but are they true stars? And Sandin Pellikka is a skilled puck-mover, but he’s likely to be just short of being an elite defenseman in the NHL.
Hidden Gem: Michal Svrcek, RW
Although he struggled in the pro game last season, Svrcek was still quite an impressive scorer at the junior level in Sweden.
This season, Svrcek will be across the river from the Wings, playing for the OHL‘s Windsor Spitfires. He’ll play North American hockey for a very strong OHL team while staying close enough to the Wings for any support.
Svrcek is a highly intelligent forward who plays the game with gusto. Despite his size, he’s a worker who is all over the ice. He should be a treat to watch in junior.
Red Wings prospects Trey Augustine and Carter Bear are taking part in the NHLPA Rookie Showcase in Chicago this week, and they’re answering questions from the media and engaging in a sort of media training as the PA encourages the players to serve as ambassadors for the game.
This morning, ESPN’s Emily Kaplan asked the NHLPA’s 20+ participants to answer “burning questions,” and here are Augustine and Bear’s answers:
Continue reading ESPN’s Kaplan asks Trey Augustine and Carter Bear ‘burning questions’ at the NHLPA Rookie ShowcaseIf someone is watching you for the first time this season, what do you hope they say after the game?
Trey Augustine (Detroit Red Wings, No. 41 pick in 2023): I hope they would say that he’s in control.
Carter Bear (Detroit Red Wings, No. 13 pick in 2025): You can tell he has passion for what he wants to do out there and the career he wants to have.
What’s something that your oldest buddies and teammates always chirp you about?
Bear: They always chirp me about my voice. They just say I’m always faking it, like how deep it is.
Team USA lost 3-2 to Finland at the World Junior Summer Showcase on Thursday, but Red Wings Prospects on Twitter reports (through video) that Victor Plante registered another assist in the process:
Victor Plante(2nd round’26) assist🍎. Good battle win. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/3hmNaWX4da
— Red Wings Prospects (@LGRWProspects) July 31, 2026
Detroit Hockey Now’s Max Smith wonders which player will have to step up to replace one Dylan Larkin, presuming that Larkin is traded by the team:
The most obvious answer to the question of replacing your top center is to go with the next guy down the depth chart. However, one of the Red Wings main needs going into the offseason was a true no. 2 center to help drive offense in the Red Wings top six.
Andrew Copp, who has been in the position for the past three years, hasn’t proven to be an effective goal-scorer. His career high in points was set last year with 43. When compared to Larkin, who has scored 35 goals alone in each of the last five seasons, makes for a rather bleak outlook.
The other option Red Wings fans should prepare for is Marco Kasper to step into the role. While the young Austrian center had a rough sophomore outing by just about every metric, it isn’t actually out of place for young Red Wings centerman to struggle in their second season.
Larkin himself went from 45 points in his rookie campaign to 32 total points and a -28 rating in his second year in the league. Kasper doesn’t pop with nearly the same offensive numbers, with just 37 points in his first year and a precipitous dropoff to 19 points the following. However, he won over 50% of his faceoffs and led the Red Wings forward group in hits last year as well.
At just 22, Kasper also still has plenty of room to grow, and perhaps locking him into the center position instead of trying him out on the wing on various lines throughout the season will help him to better hone his shooting ability.
Smith also believes, as I do, that the Red Wings may target Elias Pettersson of Vancouver to “fill a hole,” though my gut feeling is that the Wings may “flip” some future assets acquired for Larkin for Pettersson and his $10 million salary; Smith believes that the Red Wings would have to make a player-for-player trade instead:
Continue reading The Red Wings’ ‘number one’ problem up the middleThe WHL’s Cami Kepke examines the Red Wings’ pool of 4 prospects drafted from the CHL’S Western Hockey League today:
Continue reading The WHL examines its Red Wings prospect poolCarter Bear
After a season that ended with injury and heartbreak, Carter Bear clawed his way to the top of the WHL mountain. The 2025 13th-overall pick iced 36 goals (including seven game-winners and three hat tricks) and earned a berth on Team Canada at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship, where he was part of a bronze medal-winning effort. Bear finished second on the Silvertips in goals and ninth among all WHLers in points-per-game before taking off for 22 points (7G-15A) in 18 playoff games. The 6-foot, 177-pound winger from West St. Paul, Man., helped the Silvertips clinch the Ed Chynoweth Cup for the first time in franchise history and, with Captain Tarin Smith injured, was the first Tips skater to lift the WHL’s top prize. Bear, 19, was named to the WHL Western Conference Second All-Star Team and is expected to turn pro with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins next season. Not bad for a guy who was selected in the sixth round of the 2021 WHL Prospects Draft!
During a summer of spiraling salaries, MLive’s Ansar Khan attempts to discern how much money it will cost the Red Wings to extend Alex DeBrincat:
Only 10 players scored more goals than DeBrincat last season and he’s coming off a career-high 85 points. DeBrincat’s 80 goals over the past two seasons is tied for sixth in the NHL, only eight behind leader Cole Caufield of Montreal during that stretch.
DeBrincat is a proven goal-scorer, having tallied 27 or more in eight of his nine seasons, scoring 41 three times. He’s also durable, having played 456 consecutive games, the third-longest active streak in the league behind Brent Burns (1,007) and Nick Suzuki (537).
Put all these factors together and the end result is DeBrincat will be the highest-paid player in franchise history in 2027-28, up from his current $7.875 million AAV to perhaps around $12 million a season.
That’s what Winnipeg’s Kyle Connor signed for at the start of last season (eight years, $96 million). He might be the closest comparison to DeBrincat.
The NHL salary cap increased from $95.5 million in 2025-26 to $104 million this season. It’s projected to rise to $113.5 million in 2027-28 and $123 million the following season. The timing worked out nicely for DeBrincat.
It also shows why the Red Wings have a bargain in Larkin, who turned 30 today. He’s locked up for five more years at an $8.7 million AAV ($7.7 million average in actual salary). He requested a trade months ago, but you don’t relinquish a player like that in today’s NHL without making sure you get a good deal.
