The Free Press’s Helene St. James, MLive’s Ansar Khan and The Athletic’s Max Bultman all offer new Red Wings-related articles this morning.
First, St. James discusses Sebastian Cossa’s “failure to launch“ as a highly-heralded Detroit prospect…
“Coss was a great prospect for us,” assistant general manager and director of amateur scouting Kris Draper said Friday. “We really invested a lot of time and felt that Sebastian continued to grow and he did get better. He was a pro.”
Just how far Cossa had dropped on the Wings’ goaltending chart was made clear entering the last week of the season. Eliminated from the NHL playoff race with two games remaining, Wings coach Todd McLellan was asked about calling up Cossa to play in those games. The Grand Rapids Griffins had long since clinched a spot in the AHL playoffs, and had both Michal Postava and Trey Augustine available to play. Postava had, in fact, taken over as the No. 1 netminder with the Griffins. But Cossa wasn’t even a consideration for the Wings.
“There was no thought or anything,” McLellan said.
Draper remained circumspect about the fact that Cossa didn’t click in Detroit:
“I think he definitely grew over the last couple of years of playing in Grand Rapids,” Draper said. “He some good games and he ended up being an American League All-Star in back-to-back seasons.
“It just ended up that it was something that didn’t quite work out for us. But when you select someone, you want to put him in the best situation. We were hoping that he was going to be able to become a Detroit Red Wing, but it’s professional sports. Sometimes those things don’t work out. In the end, that’s how it ended up happening with us.”
St. James then discusses the Red Wings’ surprise first round pick in JP Hurlbert, offering both Draper and Hurlbert’s reactions to the 23rd overall pick’s attributes:
“J.P. has basically scored wherever he’s gone,” said Draper, the Wings’ assistant general manager and director of amateur scouting. “So that’s something that we liked. He has a good size. He’s a solid build. He shows real good offensive instincts. He knows how to score goals. He can make plays. When we were sitting there and had an opportunity to get into the first round, we thought it was a real good player to add to our prospect pool.”
A good prospect came into the pool, and one that had dropped down the depth chart – 2021 first-round pick Sebastian Cossa – went out as the Wings gained a first-round pick a few months after using their own (No. 15 overall) to acquire veteran defenseman Justin Faulk from the St. Louis Blues at the trade deadline.
“In talking to Stevie, he was always prepared,” Draper said. “At the trade deadline, we ended up trading our first-round pick and brought in Justin Faulk. For us, it was just, continue doing the job, watching the players, knowing the players. If something were to come up and Stevie was able to add a first-round pick, make sure that we were ready to go. And that’s exactly what we did.”
It was certainly a meaningful outcome for Hurlbert, whose family hails from the Detroit area. Both his father and grandfather – both of whom also go by J.P. – grew up in the area. J.P. the Eldest watched the Gordie Howe-led Wings of the 1950s gobble up Stanley Cups. Both were at the draft with the Wings’ newest prospect.
“Being able to share it with them was really special,” said J.P. the Youngest. “It was kind of crazy. I didn’t know what to expect. I heard my name called, and it was just pure joy and excitement.”
MLive’s Ansar Khan focuses on the Red Wings’ needs as they prepare for a busy Saturday, with the NHL’s 2nd through 7th rounds of the draft taking place today starting at 11 AM EDT (on the NHL Network and Sportsnet)…
The Detroit Red Wings will try to find one or two future NHL players during the second day of the draft today at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo (11 a.m., NHL Network).
It won’t be easy. They finished the 2025-26 season with only three players on their roster they selected in the second round or later – Albert Johansson, Carter Mazur and Emmitt Finnie. They have a few more in their system they hope will reach the NHL in the next few years.
The Red Wings have seven selections today, one each in the second (47), third (79), fourth (108), fifth (143) and sixth (175) rounds and two in the seventh round (196 and 207).
And finally, The Athletic’s Max Bultman offers a beefy 1st round recap, discussing both Hurlbert’s status as a departure from Red Wings’ usual “type” of 1st round draft pick in a balanced 2-way forward.
Hurlbert is a goal-scoring winger, and the Kamloops Blazer will head to the University of Michigan this fall…
For the Red Wings, getting back the first-round pick was solid value, but it’s using it on Hurlbert that made it particularly interesting. While Detroit’s recent ethos of taking smart, competitive players has a clear basis in projecting to playoff hockey — and has yielded some good prospects — it has also left the system a bit lighter on pure offensive talents. Max Plante, a 2024 second-round pick and the 2026 Hobey Baker winner, is one exception to that, but the Red Wings had a need for another player of that skill level. Hurlbert fits that aim.
“Some of the stuff that he does,” Draper said, “you can’t teach.”
Hurlbert was one of the leading scorers on the U.S. National Team Development Program under-17 team in 2024-25, then left the program early this season to play in the WHL, where he finished fourth in league scoring with 97 points and 42 goals.
“He’s scored wherever he’s gone,” Draper said. “So that’s something that obviously we liked. He has good size, he has a solid build, he shows real good offensive instincts. He knows how to score goals. He can make plays. When we were sitting there and had an opportunity to get into the first round, we thought it was a real good player to add to our prospect pool.”
But Bultman also notes that Dylan Larkin’s status cast a shadow upon the Wings’ acquisition of a 1st round pick for Cossa’s services:
As the trade waters bubbled early in the week, then boiled as it went on, Larkin’s future remained in limbo despite a trade request that has been public for more than three weeks now.
That wasn’t totally unexpected, as Yzerman’s history has shown he’s willing to hold out for a return he wants. Really, that Larkin wasn’t moved on Friday doesn’t change much about the situation, beyond the fact that any premium 2026 picks that might have been in play for Larkin are now in the past. The certainty those picks carried with their placement was valuable, but those picks weren’t the only ways to build a Larkin deal, and with Yzerman still not talking, we still don’t even know how the Red Wings will prioritize picks, prospects or players in the eventual return.
Since the day Larkin’s request became public, there has always been a question of whether the Red Wings would see it as grounds for a deeper retool, or if they would remain focused on ending a 10-year playoff drought as soon as possible. Friday doesn’t answer that question, which will now drag into Saturday’s Day 2, and perhaps even longer, with the start of free agency on July 1 less than a week away.
As Bultman notes, Wings GM Steve Yzerman didn’t speak with the media on Friday night; the expectation that the Larkin situation might drag out into the middle of the summer isn’t out of the realm of possibility, either…
And as such, Bultman suggests that the uncertainty surrounding the team’s direction going forward will complicate negotiations with Alex DeBrincat, who’s able to sign a contract extension after July 1st.
Bultman doesn’t mention that Patrick Kane, who shares Larkin’s agent in Pat Brisson, may prove to be a difficult re-signing as well before free agency starts at 12 PM EDT on Wednesday.
I’m very curious as to whether Kane signs, chooses to explore the free agent waters before circling back to Detroit, or whether he leaves outright.
Kane’s status will serve as a barometer reading as to whether the Red Wings can convince players who have the option to follow Larkin out the door that there’s still a bigger plan to fulfill.
