Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen posted a subscriber-only article which he discusses the NHL aspirations of Grand Rapids Griffins players and Red Wings prospects Shai Buium, Emmitt Finnie and Ondrej Becher:
Pro hockey is a tough business. Even after you sign your first professional contract, it’s still a hard climb to the top rung. First rounders have a high percentage of success, but it’s a battle for everyone else.
With that in mind, we offer three Grand Rapids Griffins to watch in 2025-26 as they work to take the next step in the process. These are players who are not sure bets to make it, but are showing early promise.
Defenseman Shai Buium (36th overall, 2021)
In his first pro season, Buium earned power play time as a point man. He was second on the Griffins with 25 points, and he finished with a plus-two plus-minus. Having helped Denver win two NCAA championships, Buium does understand the two-way schematic necessary to play winning hockey. He has the size (6-3, 215) and skating to play in the show. The Red Wings would like to see him develop more consistency this season.
If Axel Sandin Pellikka doesn’t make the Red Wings, he will play in Grand Rapids. That could mean, Buium won’t receive the power play time necessary to raise his point total. But that will allow him to put most of his focus on his defensive game. That’s what will get him to the NHL quicker.
Continued (paywall); Buium is one of those “in-betweeners” alongside William Wallinder and Antti Tuomisto, those middle-to-bottom-pair defensemen who will be given every opportunity to succeed this upcoming season, but might be pushed to the sidelines by the Sandin Pellikkas of the world.
In any case, Buium, Wallinder and Tuomisto have to do their best to maximize their ice time, maximize their contributions to the Griffins’ cause (both on and off the ice) and prove their professionalism to their potential NHL employer.
