Red Wings-Blue Jackets prospect tournament Tweetcap: Justice Christensen’s two goals power Detroit to an OT win

The Detroit Red Wings’ prospects battled the Columbus Blue Jackets’ prospects in the final game of Detroit’s 2026 prospect tournament on Tuesday afternoon. Detroit hoped to improve upon its 1-and-1 record as both teams played in their 3rd game over the course of 4 days and nights.

On Tuesday afternoon, Columbus would open the scoring 9:05 into the 2nd, as Josh Eernisse, who had a great game, scored on a disputed marker (Augustine was pushed into his own net), but Detroit would rally on a power play marker by Justice Christensen at 11:11, and on a night where Columbus goaltender and former Toledo Walleye goalie Nolan Lalonde threatened to steal the show…

It took some late-game heroics for the Red Wings to earn their 3-2 OT win.
Columbus would push ahead 2-1 as Jordan Dumais scored a back-door power play marker (after Detroit had a trio of power plays, including a 4:00 double minor)…

But Noah Dower Nilsson would score at 19:00 off an Anton Johansson shot deflection to make it 2-2…

And, in overtime, Trey Augustine made two huge stops on Columbus players, Detroit slowly but surely tilted the ice back toward themselves, and Justice Christensen started and ended a play in which Sutter Muzzatti took a pass from Christensen to break out, Christensen crashed the net, and Muzzatti saucered Christensen a pass that would yield the OT winner.

Detroit ended the tournament 2-and-1, which ain’t bad.

PREGAME: Detroit dressed the following lineup, with Trey Augustine starting in goal for the Wings…

Continue reading Red Wings-Blue Jackets prospect tournament Tweetcap: Justice Christensen’s two goals power Detroit to an OT win →

Griffins coach Dan Watson expects Anton Johansson and Nate Danielson to step up at the prospect tournament

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff posted a set of pregame prospect notes ahead of Detroit’s 2 PM EDT-starting game vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets’ prospects, and this bit about Red Wings prospects/players Anton Johansson and Nate Danielson caught my eye:

Center Nate Danielson and defenseman Anton Johansson will both get long looks in the main Red Wings camp. They were back in the lineup for Tuesday’s Rookie Tournament finale against the Columbus Blue Jackets, and Watson was looking to both players to deliver more than just their talent level.

As seasoned pros, the coach is expecting both players to show the younger kids the right way to do things.

“They’ve got to be leaders,” Watson said. “I think that’s the biggest thing. They’re thrust into these leadership positions now. Even Anton, this is his first prospect tournament, but he’s still looked upon as a guy who knows what we as a staff want, what the organization wants, because he’s been around it.

“So these guys are leaned upon heavily to make sure that the guys know the schedule, that they’re on time for everything. They understand the systems. They understand the structure we want to play with and how we want to play, the sort of mentality side of it.

“And you can already see they’re taking that leadership seriously. And I think it’s good for their growth and their development in those types of roles, besides just putting on weight.”

Continued with more interesting tidbits…

Tweet of note via Red Wings Prospects: Max Plante named to NCHC Preseason All-Conference Team

Via Red Wings Prospects on Twitter comes this from college’s NCHC conference, which has named Red Wings draft pick and University of Minnesota-Duluth captain Max Plante, and his brother, Penguins prospect Zam Plante, as members of their Preseason All-Conference team:

Bob Wojnowski conducts a wide-ranging Q and A with Christopher Ilitch

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The Detroit News’s Bob Wojnowski conducted a wide-ranging, must-read Q and A with Red Wings and Tigers owner Christopher Ilitch. Here’s a piece of the paywalled article:

Q: After Dylan Larkin’s trade request was made public and Yzerman wasn’t budging, it was a firestorm. One theory was, you chose Larkin over Yzerman. How much did that discord between current and former captains affect your decision?

A: I would answer that by saying that the Detroit Red Wings are a 101-year-old organization. This franchise is bigger than any one player, any coach, any general manager, any owner. Dylan’s a great player. He’s an important part of our team. Any conversations about his future are gonna stay private between Dylan and our front office.

Q: Were you disappointed that he wanted to be traded, and I assume still wants to be traded?

A: I’m disappointed that our Red Wing team is not where we want them to be yet. So that’s where I understand the frustration, fan frustration. But I want fans to know we’re going to find a great leader.

Q: You have many former Wings in the organization, like Kris Draper, Nicklas Lidstrom, Kirk Maltby and others. Do they have a role going forward, and how long will Yzerman be in his role?

A: Steve will be in the role as long as he wants to be in the role. I’d love for him to stay to see this through. And yes, there are many other former Red Wing players as part of our organization. I would say our next president of hockey operations is going to determine the staff and execute the vision and plan. As I do with every single one of my sports leaders, and have since the day I started in my role, I give them complete autonomy and authority to make the decisions necessary.

Also:

Q: I don’t know how much you pay attention, but there’s a perception among some that you’ve put the Wings on the backburner behind the Tigers. What is your response to that?

A: (Ilitch leans forward and his tone hardens). My response would be plenty. First, I would say I care deeply about our teams. Hockey and the Red Wings have always been a big part of my life. I learned to skate when I was 3, pushing a chair around our backyard rink that my siblings and I made. I played travel hockey, and in high school I played all four years, co-captain, all-state. I played pickup hockey at Michigan, and then after college, I played hockey for 20 straight years in men’s leagues.

My first Red Wings game was with my parents at the Olympia Stadium when I was 10 years old. I spent many amazing years watching Red Wing hockey, Stanley Cup hockey, with my family in Section 118 at Joe Louis Arena. I watch every single game. I’ll occasionally attend our games on the road, and at LCA, I’ll either watch from a suite, or I like to sit in the lower bowl to see the game from different perspectives. I speak with our front office multiple times a week. How would I respond to that? I would say I love Red Wings hockey, always have, always will.

Continued

Quite the quip from Jesse Kiiskinen

Ahead of today’s 2026 prospect tournament finale against Columbus (2 PM EDT start on DetroitRedWings.com), Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen discusses today’s affair by noting this from one Jesse Kiiskinen:

It’s usually a memorable effort or playing style that endears a prospect to a team’s management and coaching staff. Sometimes it can involve a goal, or an assist, a hit, even a blocked shot.

But Detroit prospect Jesse Kiiskinen managed to get everyone’s attention with a quote.

Asked about his penchant for driving to the net, Kiiskinen said: “That’s like a big part of hockey. I like net-front battles. Sometimes you get hurt, but maybe I’m that crazy Finn that wants to go there.”

Continued

Red Wings’ beat writers weigh in on the hiring of Shawn Horcoff as Detroit’s interim GM

Updated 3x at 12:43 PM: The Detroit Red Wings have named Shawn Horcoff their interim general manager, and they tipped the beat writers off to this development, as the Athletic’s Max Bultman had a piece ready to go at 10 AM…

The Red Wings begin training camp on Thursday but have yet to settle on a permanent top executive after a search that began July 15, when Steve Yzerman was removed from his position as general manager and moved into a senior adviser role.

The move gives Horcoff the latitude to handle day-to-day operations and complete the team’s most urgent piece of business, signing top-pair defenseman Simon Edvinsson to a new contract. Beyond that, though, the team’s No. 1 center, Dylan Larkin, requested a trade earlier this summer, and having an interim general manager at the helm could make the now-former captain’s request even more difficult to resolve before camp, or even the first games.

“We’re focused on identifying an innovative decision-maker who can lead the Red Wings to Stanley Cup success,” Illitch said in the news release. “We’ve had substantive conversations with talented executives over the past two months, and it’s been gratifying to see such strong interest in this organization and the caliber of candidates involved. This reflects our confidence in where this organization is headed. Our search continues, and we’re excited about the path forward. We’ll share updates when we have something meaningful to announce.”

As did the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan:

Continue reading Red Wings’ beat writers weigh in on the hiring of Shawn Horcoff as Detroit’s interim GM →

Press release: Detroit Red Wings name Shawn Horcoff interim general manager

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Per the Detroit Red Wings:

DETROIT RED WINGS NAME SHAWN HORCOFF

INTERIM GENERAL MANAGER 

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today appointed Shawn Horcoff as the club’s interim General Manager. Horcoff, who has served as the Red Wings Assistant General Manager alongside duties as General Manager of the Grand Rapids Griffins, will manage day-to-day roster decisions, salary cap, and hockey operations personnel for the Red Wings – reporting to Red Wings Governor and CEO Chris Ilitch during this interim period.

“As our process continues to find the best possible leader for Red Wings hockey operations, I’m appreciative of Shawn for stepping up to serve in this capacity,” said Ilitch. “His knowledge of our organization and range of experience allows us to operate with a clear decision-maker in place for the season ahead, while maintaining our commitment to carry out a thorough, methodical search process on our own timeline. Shawn has my complete support, and the authority to make decisions in the best interests of our organization.

Continue reading Press release: Detroit Red Wings name Shawn Horcoff interim general manager →

The Red Wings’ 2026 prospect tournament’s about both on and off-ice acclimation

Ahead of today’s 2026 prospect tournament finale against the Columbus Blue Jackets (2 PM EDT start, streamed on DetroitRedWings.com), DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills looks back at the comments made by Grand Rapids Griffins coach Dan Watson and forward Jesse Kiiskinen after Saturday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

For Watson and his players, the tournament is more than simply an opportunity to “get their legs under them” again:

The way Grand Rapids Griffins head coach Dan Watson sees it, what the Detroit Red Wings’ up-and-comers absorb off the ice during the 2026 NHL Prospect Tournament at BELFOR Training Center inside Little Caesars Arena is just as beneficial as what happens on it.

“That’s part of the experience of the Prospect Tournament — get all the young prospects together, get a feel for each other,” Watson said following Detroit’s 4-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday night. “Get their game under their belt before they get into main camp, start to build some chemistry and build some of that culture within the locker room here. We’ve already started that with this group, so it’s exciting for these guys to come over, learn new things and figure out what the pro hockey lifestyle is going to be.”

Forward Jesse Kiiskinen, for example, has enjoyed acclimating to the organizational culture. That’s been an ongoing process for the 21-year-old, one that started near the end of the 2025-26 season, when Kiiskinen joined Grand Rapids and made his American Hockey League debut on April 11.

Continue reading The Red Wings’ 2026 prospect tournament’s about both on and off-ice acclimation →

Alex DeBrincat had a good summer ‘fore sure’

ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski asked the NHL players taking part in the NHL/NHLPA North American Media Player Tour many questions, but he only asked Alex DeBricat a simple query:

What was your favorite experience of the summer?

“I went to Scotland on a golf trip. That was probably my favorite. A couple good rounds, actually. Overall, it was just cool to experience those courses.” — Alex DeBrincat, Detroit Red Wings

Continued at length…

Who’s in charge here?

The Athletic’s Max Bultman offers an answer to a “Burning Question” as part of The Athletic’s survey of all 32 teams’ biggest questions heading into training camp, and Bultman believes that hiring a GM is the lynch-pin of the Wings’ struggles:

Detroit Red Wings

Who is the GM?

The answer could be “everything,” but let’s start at the top. The Red Wings don’t have a GM after removing Steve Yzerman from the post in mid-July. They also need to figure out how to resolve Dylan Larkin’s trade request, a new contract for Simon Edvinsson and ideally get some clarity on Alex DeBrincat’s future, too. But hiring a GM is the key domino for most of that, and also the biggest source of uncertainty right now. — Max Bultman

Continued (paywall)

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