MLive’s Ansar Khan wonders aloud whether the Red Wings have a player who will make a significant impact as the team’s “best rookie” during the 2025-2026 season, and Khan lists 7 candidates for said position. Here are some less-heralded “dark-horse” rookies:
William Wallinder: Big, left-shooting defenseman (6-4, 205) has put together solid back-to-back seasons with the Griffins (34 points in 127 games) and might be closer to NHL-ready than any other D-man in the system. It would take a couple of injuries on the blue line for him to get an opportunity.
Antti Tuomisto: It’s been six years since he was drafted (35th overall) and he’s still waiting for his NHL debut. He’s a tall, right-shooting defenseman (6-5, 2010) with offensive upside. Just like Wallinder, Tuomisto would only get a look as a replacement for an injured player.
Michal Postava: It’ll be interesting to see how the workload will be divided between Cossa and Postava in Grand Rapids. Postava, 23, led Kometa Brno to the Czech Extraliga championship last season with a 1.97 GAA and .940 save percentage in 17 playoff games. It’s the Czech league, but still.
Continued; Khan’s other potential rookie contributors consist of Carter Mazur, Eduards Tralmaks, Axel Sandin Pellikka, Sebastian Cossa and Nate Danielson. They’ve kind of been talked to death this summer, which is why I chose not to spotlight them.
He offers this from GM Steve Yzerman regarding the possibility of a rookie player catching on with the Wings’ roster, too:
“Hopefully they come in and really perform well in training camp,” general manager Steve Yzerman said after the season. “We think we have a group down there (Grand Rapids) that are going to play (in the NHL eventually). Can I say any of them out of that group are going to next year? Not definitively. If they finish strong, have a good offseason and simply force their way into the lineup next year, that would be great with Todd (coach McLellan).”
