Three of the Detroit Red Wings‘ biggest hopes for their future will be part of next month’s prospects tournament.
Recent first-round picks Nate Danielson (No. 9 overall, 2023), Marco Kasper (No. 8, 2022) and Sebastian Cossa (No. 15, 2021) are among those on the roster for the Sept. 14-17 event in Traverse City, which serves as a precursor to main training camp. The Wings will host the Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars and Toronto Maple Leafs for four straight days of round-robin action, with each team’s prospects playing three games.
Kasper appeared in one game with the Wings this past spring; plans to for him to play more were waylaid because of a leg injury. He’s regarded as a promising young center, but general manager Steve Yzerman’s acquisition of multiple forwards over the summer indicates the team still sees Kasper needing time to grow his game in the minors. He spent most of last season with Rögle BK (8 goals, 15 assists in 52 games), in Sweden’s top league.
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Cossa, 20 spent the majority of his first pro season with the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye, posting a 26-16-4 record with a 2.56 goals-against average, a .913 save percentage and four shutouts in 46 appearances. He appeared in three games with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins, posting a 5.57 GAA and .783 save percentage.
Danielson, 18, was the Wings’ top pick in this summer’s draft. He’s a highly skilled center who led the Brandon Wheat Kings of the Western Hockey League with 78 points (33 goals, 45 assists) in 68 games. At the draft, Danielson described himself as, “a very well-rounded player. I play well in all areas of the rink and offensively I’m very skilled and defensively, I’m responsible. I think just my all-around game is really strong.”
Other roster notables include left wing Elmer Soderblom (No. 159, 2019), the tall forward who recorded eight points in eight games with the Wings at the start of last season; defenseman William Wallinder (No. 32 , 2020), who logged 26 points (7-19-26) in 50 games with Rögle BK before joining the Griffins, and left wing Carter Mazur (No. 70, 2021), who registered 37 points (22-15-37) in 40 games at the University of Denver before adding six points (3-3-6) in six games with the Griffins.
There’s also center Amadeus Lombardi (113th overall, 2022), who racked up 102 points (45-57-102) in 67 games with the Ontario Hockey League’s Flint Firebirds and recorded two assists in two appearances with the Griffins, and defenseman Antti Tuomisto (No. 35, 2019), who had 20 points in 60 games in Finland’s top league last season.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.
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Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.