The Detroit Red Wings made 8 draft picks over the course of the second day of the NHL’s 2022 Draft, and drafting a total of 9 players in Montreal. The Red Wings’ media corps weighed in as to the substance of the Wings’ picks, and here is a summary of said media corps’ takes:
- MLive’s Ansar Khan noted that the Red Wings focused on drafting center-ice prospects:
The Detroit Red Wings loaded up on forwards in the draft, addressing an organizational need. After selecting center Marco Kasper eighth overall Thursday, the Red Wings picked three centers and three wingers among eight players they drafted Friday during the final six rounds at Montreal’s Bell Centre.
“Obviously, we need some help at center, at least in the prospect pool,” general manager Steve Yzerman told media at the draft. “The players that we had (targeted) in the later rounds were centers. It’s just kind of the way the list worked out for us.”
Detroit took a pair of left wings in the second round in Dylan James (No. 40) and Dmitri Buchelnikov (No. 52).
James (6-0, 177) was the USHL rookie of the year at Sioux City (28 goals, 61 points in 62 games) as part of a championship team.
“A complete hockey player,” Kris Draper, Detroit’s director of amateur scouting, told reporters in Montreal. “We really like his 200-foot game, used in all situations. When you commit to North Dakota, you’re going there to play hockey. That’s something we really like.”
2. The Free Press’s Helene St. James continued the narrative…
The Day 2 acquisitions numbered left wing Dylan James at No. 40, left wing/center Dmitri Buchelnikov at No. 52, defenseman Anton Johansson at No. 105, center Amadeus Lombardi at No. 113, left wing Maximilian Kilpinen at No. 129, defenseman Tnias Mathurin at No. 137, center Owen Mehlenbacher at No. 201, and center Brennan Ali at No. 212.
“All in all, we’re all excited,” general manager Steve Yzerman said. ” We just finished the draft and hopefully some of these players turn into players. We needed some help at center. The players we had in the later rounds were centers. Some of the kids have played wing, too. It was just kind of the way the list worked out.”
Kris Draper, the team’s director of amateur scouting, announced the picks, and was tempted when No. 113 came up.
“I actually almost went off script and did the ‘Rock me Amadeus‘ when I was going to introduced him, but I backed out of that,” Draper said.
The Wings chose Lombardi because he’s a fast skater and hard worker.
Their top pick on Friday, James, appealed because of his complete game. The 6-foot, 177-pound forward spent this past season with the United States Hockey League’s Sioux City Musketeers, earning Rookie of the Year honors after recording 61 points (28-33-61) with a plus-18 rating and 39 penalty minutes in 62 games. He followed up with a plus-eight rating in 10 playoff games to help the Musketeers earn a Clark Cup championship. He is committed to North Dakota for the 2022-23 season.
3. And St. James spoke with Brennan Ali, who stuck around in Montreal to be drafted 212th overall:
“I was trying to stay positive,” Ali said Friday. “Once it got to the seventh, the nerves started to kick in a little bit. But I knew teams were still interested in me and Detroit popped up and I was just so happy. It feels so great. I worked so hard to get to this point in my life. It’s unbelievable that Detroit wants me. It feels great.”
Ali was the only player drafted by the Wings Friday who was at the event at Bell Centre.
Ali spent the majority of last season at Avon (Connecticut) Old Farms High School, where he posted 15 goals and 19 assists in 27 games. He also played for the USNTDP, registering an assist in two appearances with the under-18 team. He also had two assists in four games with the USHL’s Lincoln Stars.
Ali appeared in 11 games with the NTDP in 2020-21, recording three points in 11 games for the U-17 team. The native of Glencoe, Illinois, is committed to Notre Dame come fall. He has been to the state of Michigan regularly for tournaments, and has played at Little Caesars Arena’s practice facility.
Ali described himself as a “power forward, hard to play against. Big, physical, fast. I have a good shot to go with that. I think I can cause turnovers, get to the net, and can score goals as well.”
4. The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan spoke with Yzerman and Draper regarding the Wings’ mid-round picks…
Buchelnikov, a Russian who played junior hockey in St. Petersburg (MHL), was drafted 12 spots later with the No. 52 pick.
There was speculation heading into the draft that many teams would be leery about drafting Russians, not knowing about the availability of players because of the current political climate. But the Wings couldn’t resist with Buchelnikov, a 5-10, 168-pound winger who scored 41 goals in 56 games last season.
“We think we got a very skilled, smart hockey player,” Draper said. “He’s a real good kid, too. He’s excited to be part of the Red Wings organization and he’s familiar with the success we’ve had with the Russians.”
Draper wasn’t put off by the uncertainty of the political situation in Russia.
“He’s an 18-year-old kid and loves to play hockey,” Draper said. “That’s what we liked about him. He was on our list because of how he played and he was a prospect we wanted to bring into our organization. He’s a character kid and enjoys to play the game. You watch the video and he loves to play.”
5. And Kulfan posted capsule profiles of all of the 9 Wings picks…
Anton Johansson
► Pick: No. 105 overall (Round 4)
► Position: Defenseman
► Height/weight: 6-foot-4, 179 pounds
► Last season: Leksands (Sweden), 49 games, 13 goals, 19 assists
► Scouting report: Kris Draper, Detroit’s director of amateur scouting, said the Wings liked the path Johansson has been on in the SHL, and are excited about Johansson’s size and ability to move the puck. He probably needs another couple of years of development physically before thinking about playing in North America.
6. While Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen focused on 2nd round pick Dylan James…
The Detroit Red Wings were elated to draft the University of North Dakota recruit James 40th overall in day two of the NHL draft. The Calgary native finished with 28 goals and 61 points in 62 games for the Sioux City Musketeers.
“We’re excited about him,” said Kris Draper, the Red Wings’ Director of Amateur scouting. “He won a championship in the USHL this year and had himself a big year.”
Draper called James a complete player. “We really like the 200-foot game that he plays, used in all situations,” Draper said. ”
…
James rose in the draft rankings in the second half of the season. [Red Line Report’s Kyle] Woodlief said he’s a impressive playmaker who can play with tremendous pace.
“Second half offensive production was off the charts,” Woodlief wrote in his draft guide. “High energy, creative winger bring passion and a sense of urgency. Rugged, competes his bag off, and excels in in the heavy traffic areas. Wants the puck on his stick when the game is on the line.”
7. And Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff posted capsule profiles…
129th Overall: Maxmillian Kilpinen, LW (Orebo J20): Seeing his first action in the Swedish U20 league, the 6-foot-1 Maxmillian Kilpinen accounted for 14 goals and 25 points in 27 games.
“He was hurt the first half of the season, which talking to (European scouting director) Hakan (Andersson) and (European scout) TC (Carlsson), we think might have hurt some of his opportunities to play at the World Championship with Sweden,” Draper said. “But the position, the skating and the hockey sense were the things that attracted us to him.”
137th Overall: Tnias Mathurin, D (North Bay Batallion OHL): Tnias Mathurin projects as a shutdown defender. He’s steady and reliable but won’t contribute much offensively.
“He’s a good-sized defender, he’s got a good stick, and he’s pretty mobile defender,” Draper said. “We like his size. He moves well for a big man and is a pretty athletic defenseman.”
8. With The Athletic’s Max Bultman wrapping things up via a set of “12 Thoughts” regarding the draft, whose Wings haul was analyzed by Corey Pronman:
First, I wanted to pass along this from Chris Abbott, the GM of SHL Rögle, where Marco Kasper plays. After Detroit took Kasper eighth overall Thursday night, I asked Abbott what Detroit was getting.
“In Marco, Detroit is getting the type of player and person that they can build with for many years to come,” Abbott wrote in a text message. “He’s super competitive, physically strong and capable of becoming a solid two-way centerman in the NHL.”
Obviously, the on-ice attributes are a huge part of the picture here. But considering the mental makeup of the players the Red Wings have taken early in their drafts under Yzerman, I’m not discounting the “person” side of that comment one bit. Attributes like a willingness to improve are huge to reaching (or surpassing) a long-term projection, and Kasper certainly seems like a culture fit beyond the on-ice traits he brings.
Bultman continues (paywall) after taking us back to the beginning…
