Author: George Malik

Red Wings prospect Carter Mazur is 24 now, and the 6,’ 196-pound winger would have to clear waivers to be sent down to Grand Rapids, so this is the year that might “make or break” his hockey career.

That’s easier said than done given the numerous injuries that Mazur has sustained over the past couple of seasons in the NHL and AHL. Mazur suffered a broken elbow during his NHL debut, and he spent most of this past season on the IR in Grand Rapids. The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan notes as much in profiling the physical forward from Jackson, MI:

Mazur plays a gritty, abrasive style that fits well into a fourth-line role, but he also the ability to supply offense. Mazur has shown the ability to score goals, getting to the net and knocking in pucks, and the Wings have been desperate for increased goals from anywhere in the lineup.

Though not getting on the scoresheet in his [10-game] NHL appearance in April, Mazur felt it was crucial experience.

“It’s been night and day,” Mazur said when the season ended. “Learned a lot, a lot more comfortable. Invaluable for development. Every game I kind of felt a lot more comfortable and started to get back to my game.”

Getting a late start this morning due to caregiving stuff…

With a day-and-a-half remaining before the final server bill comes due, there’s some good news and some bad news.

The good news is that our GoFundMe for Aunt Annie’s property tax bill is fully funded. We’re going to be able to pay the $1,500 bill, which is amazing.

The not-so-great news is that we’re still $200 short in terms of fundraising for my bill from “Jetpack,” and if I may be completely honest, I’m down an extra $100 due to having to buy more medical supplies for my bed-bound aunt, as well as having to drop $50 for a medication not covered by her insurance.

I need to raise $200 over the next day-and-a-half to afford the final blog subscription service that’s due on September 1st; it would be great if we could raise $300 so that our very modest budget for early September doesn’t take a body blow.

At this point, I don’t know whether we’re going to hit the goal. I understand that late August is not the best time to raise funds for the blog, and I get that times are tough, but I’ve got nowhere else to turn right now, so:

Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen profiles another candidate for the Red Wings’ general manager and/or president of hockey operations job in San Jose Sharks assistant GM Jeff Kealty.

He started in Nashville as a scout in 2001, started running their draft in 2008 and became an assistant GM in 2018. He was in that role until this summer when he left to become assistant general manager for the San Jose Sharks.

When you ask around the NHL about Kealty, they quickly point out that his abilities as a talent evaluator are beyond question.

Through the years, NHL have come to grips with the truth that the NHL draft, especially beyond the first round, is a low probability way to restock your team. The Vegas Golden Knights and Florida Panthers found success by deciding that perhaps a better use of draft picks is to trade them for proven players.

But with Kealty in command of the draft, the Predators have traditionally found success outside the first round. Roman Josi was a second-round pick in his first year in charge. Goaltender Juuse Saros was a fourth-round pick in 2013 and current Red Wings forward Viktor Arvidsson was a fourth rounder in 2014. Kealty’s scouting staff claimed Alex Carrier in 2014.

With a quarter century working under David Poile and then Barry Trotz, Kealty boasts a true understanding of how a general manager is supposed to perform and carry himself. Hockey insider Elliotte Friedman reports Kealty interviews well, which means he offers a clear and concise plan of what he intends to do to improve this team. He’s also a likeable guy.

Continued; Allen discussed Florida Panthers assistant GM Brett Peterson yesterday.

Per Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff, former Red Wings head scout and assistant GM Neil Smith, who went on to win the Stanley Cup with the New York Rangers, has weighed on the state of the Red Wings at present while speaking on his NHL Wraparound Podcast alongside host Vic Morren:

Again, per Duff:

Things you don’t expect to read in late summer: a story from the Medicine Hat News’s James Tubb, titled, “Osgood enjoying time in Medicine Hat, first Tigers camp.”

Max Osgood, a 5’9,” 141-pound forward, is all of 15 years old, and he’s attending the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers’ training camp, even though the Little Caesars Hockey graduate is too young to play in the WHL right now, and Tubb reports that all is well for the son of Red Wings color commentator Christopher John Osgood:

After a 34-year hiatus, an Osgood is back on the ice with the Medicine Hat Tigers. Max Osgood, son of former Tiger and Stanley Cup-winning goaltender Chris Osgood, is taking in his first WHL training camp after being selected 21st overall by Medicine Hat in May’s WHL Prospects Draft.

It’s a familiar home away from home for Max, Chris’s mom Joy still lives in the city and after a week of captain’s skates and the start of training camp, he’s already enjoying Medicine Hat.

“I love it so, so much,” Max said. “The city is awesome, the rink is awesome, the fans are awesome, everyone’s awesome.”

The 5-foot-9 15-year-old Osgood had 15 goals and 43 points in 20 games this season with the U14AAA Little Caesars. He’s enjoyed the first couple scrimmages of training camp, embracing the pace and, even more, the competitiveness. He got caught up in a scrum in his first game, a moment he says “fires him up” more.

“The compete level is next level, the pace, the boys are awesome. I just love it,” Osgood said. “I love it, it was funny when I was in the chokehold, I was laughing. It was awesome.”

Continued; according to Tubb, Max will play for the “South Alberta Hockey Academy” this upcoming season, and after this season, he plans on trying to earn a spot on Medicine Hat’s roster as a 16 (or 17) year-old.

Rakapuckar.com’s Henrik Leman reports that Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond, prospect Noah Dower Nilsson and Grand Rapids Griffins defenseman William Lagesson all took part in Frolunda HC’s practice on Friday:

Mycket Detroit på Frölundas fredgasträning:
Lucas Raymond
William Lagesson
Noah Dower Nilsson
Dubbelt DN, äldre bror Liam är med och kör som en del av ryggrehab.

— Henrik Leman (@henrikleman) August 28, 2026

In his blog, Leman posted a picture of the trio taking part in Friday’s skate at the Frolundaborg Arena in Gothenburg.

In this past week’s episode of “32 Thoughts,” Elliotte Friedman discussed several potential candidates for the Red Wings’ GM and/or president of hockey operations job, and the Hockey News’s Julian Gaudio took note of Florida assistant GM Brett Peterson’s name being mentioned…

Brett Peterson’s name has once again circulated among NHL GM vacancies, as trusted insider Elliotte Friedman revealed on his podcast, 32 Thoughts, that the Detroit Red Wings have potentially engaged in discussions with the Florida Panthers’ assistant GM. 

Peterson was in the running for several job openings this summer, highlighted by the Toronto Maple Leafs job, which was eventually taken by John Chayka, and the Nashville Predators job, which Chris MacFarland took.

Peterson has worked with the Panthers since the 2020-21 season as their assistant GM. During this time, Peterson has served as a GM for Team USA at the World Championship twice. 

…

Alongside Peterson, Friedman mentioned Jeff Keatly, a San Jose Sharks assistant GM, as an option for the Panthers GM job. Keatly has worked in the NHL since the 2001-02 season, holding multiple roles with the Predators, including amateur scout, director of amateur scouting, director of scouting, and assistant GM. 

While Keatly has superior NHL experience to Peterson, Peterson has had plenty of success in his short time in the NHL. 

As did Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen, who noted that Peterson has a small tie to the Red Wings organization:

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff discusses Red Wings prospect Jesse Kiiskinen this morning, offering pluses and minuses about the 21-year-old right wing who stands at 6’1″ and 190 pounds:

Three Reasons Why Kiiskinen Will Play in the NHL

1. Kiiskinen is a natural goal scorer. And he gets hard-working goals by driving the net.
2. He likes to play the game in the dirty areas. You’ll usually find Kiiskinen battling for loose pucks along the boards and in the corners, or at the net-front in the offensive zone.
3. Kiiskinen gets on people’s nerves. He’s an agitating presence. He rarely has an uneventful shift.

What May Hold Him Back

Kiiskinen is far from a polished skater. He lacks explosive speed or high-end mobility to be able to easily separate from defenders. And he’s not much of a playmaker. He’ll need to upgrade in one of these areas to be considered a legit NHL prospect.

Continued; Kiiskinen remains a “project prospect,” but he’s got grit and a little “piss and vinegar” to his game.

MLive’s Ansar Khan reports that the Red Wings’ lack of summertime moves to reinforce their roster will involve at least one positive–the Wings’ youth movement will be well-served if the team moves forward as-is:

The Detroit Red Wings had 12 players in their 30s on their roster at the end of last season. At least five of them – all 36 and older – won’t be back. As a result, they have gone from having the ninth-oldest roster in the NHL (28.61 average age) to the 10^th-youngest (27.36 average age), according to roster projections by eliteprospects.com.

As such, Khan offers a list of players who might “benefit” from increased opportunities:

In a segment called “5 Burning Questions,” the NHL Network’s Mike Johnson believes that the Red Wings will trade disgruntled Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin to Montreal, and Mike Rupp says that “a lot of teams make sense,” though he and Johnson both agree that Montreal is a “fit.”

With training camp approaching, @TonyLuftman, @mike_p_johnson and @Rupper17 discuss what could be next for the Detroit Red Wings and Dylan Larkin.

📺: #NHLTonight on NHL Network pic.twitter.com/V3GnKAAkIf

— NHL Media (@NHLMedia) August 28, 2026