PuckPedia: Red Wings sign center Mason Appleton to 2-year, $2.9 million AAV contract

The Detroit Red Wings have upgraded their bottom-six, signing 29-year-old center Mason Appleton, who stands at 6’2″ and 194 pounds. PuckPedia reports that it’s a 2-year, $2.9 million contract:

5:46 PM: It’s official:

Update: Illegal Curve’s Dave Minuk speaks glowingly of Appleton:

The first time Mason Appleton left Winnipeg was via expansion when Seattle plucked him off the roster back in 2021-22. The 2015 6th rounder of the Jets would return to Manitoba that season as Winnipeg traded for him at the deadline and he subsequently signed a three-year deal as an RFA back in 2022. He was a staple of the third line alongside captain Adam Lowry and winger Nino Niederreiter.

When the Jets season concluded in May he expressed a willingness to stick around these parts but clearly that didn’t come to be. Instead he will be heading to Detroit for the next few years with a 2.9 million dollar cap hit.

Getting to the NHL as a sixth rounder is no easy feat but you have to credit Appleton for putting in the work. Following his time in Michigan State he went down to the Moose of the AHL and worked hard on his way to being named the AHL’s outstanding rookie for 2017-18 winning the Dudley (Red) Garrett Award. After half a season with Manitoba he jumped to the NHL and for the most part never looked back. In total he’s played 400 NHL games and is easily the top 6th rounder ever selected by Winnipeg in 15 Drafts.

Update #2: Here’s The Athletic’s Chris Johnston and Max Bultman:

Appleton profiles as a true third-liner and could slot in alongside fellow former Jet Andrew Copp, J.T. Compher, or both in that role for Detroit. The Red Wings have needed a harder element in their lineup, and Appleton looks like that style of role player who can still chip in some secondary offense.

What’s interesting is that the move comes a day after the Red Wings added James van Riemsdyk, who also would have been a logical third-line fit. It’s possible both van Riemsdyk and Appleton could flank Copp or Compher on that line, with the other either playing up the lineup or centering the fourth line. It’s also possible the veteran van Riemsdyk could get a look high in the lineup after a 16-goal campaign last season. Neither of those options would classify as the kind of splashy top-line addition fans in Detroit were hoping for, though.

It also remains to be seen if the Red Wings are done making moves, as Detroit still has more than $11 million in cap space. But in signing the 29-year-old Appleton to a fairly inexpensive short-term deal, the Red Wings have added to their depth and given themselves a veteran role player. — Max Bultman, Red Wings beat reporter

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George Malik

My name is George Malik, and I'm the Malik Report's editor/blogger/poster. I have been blogging about the Red Wings since 2006, and have worked with MLive and Kukla's Korner. Thank you for reading!