The Detroit Red Wings made eight selections in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.

Here’s a breakdown of each of players selected:

 

Carter Bear

Pick: No. 13 overall (Round 1)

Position: Left wing

Height/weight: 6-foot, 179-pounds

Last season: Everett (WHL), 56 games, 40 goals, 42 assists, 82 points

Fact:  An Achilles injury ended his season in March, but he’ll be ready for training camp.

Scouting report: Bear can score in many different ways but mostly isn’t shy about getting to the net and plays a complete game at both ends of the ice. Has an elite shot and can score from the perimeter as well. Bear brings a lot of energy to the lineup.

Eddie Genborg

Pick: No. 44 overall (Round 2)

Position: Right wing

Height/weight: 6-foot-2, 196-pounds

Last season: Linkoping (Sweden), 28 games, 19 goals, 15 assists, 34 points.

Fact:  Switched positions, from goaltender, as a teenager.

Scouting report:  Maybe a little bit of Tomas Holmstrom in his game, but Genborg has a lot more skill.

He loves to hit, lives in front of the net, and plays with a bit of a physical edge. But Genborg has good offensive instincts and has shown ability to score at the junior level.

Michal Pradel

Pick: No. 75 overall (Round 3)

Position: Goaltender

Height/weight: 6-foot-5, 198 pounds

Last season: Tri-City (USHL), 14 games, 9-4-0, 2.41 GAA, .899 SVS.

Fact: Came over from Slovakia to further his hockey career in the USHL.

Scouting report: Scouts love Pradel’s size and athleticism. He has the ability to see over opponents and always seems to be in position. Rebound control is an area he needs to work on.

Brent Solomon

Pick: No. 109 overall (Round 4)

Position: Right wing

Height/weight: 5-foot-11, 165 pounds

Last season: Champlin Park H.S. (Minnesota), 28 games, 38 goals, 18 assists, 56 points.

Fact:  Went directly to USHL hockey after high school career ended and scored four goals in six games for Sioux Falls.

Scouting report: A natural goal scorer with an elite, quick release. Has shown the ability to score goals, a pure goal scorer, at every level. Needs to grow physically but has the offensive skills to intrigue.

Michal Svrcek

Pick: No. 119 overall (Round 4)

Position: Left wing

Height/weight: 5-foot-10, 178 pounds

Last season: Brynas (Sweden), 30 games, 14 goals, 16 assists, 30 points.

Fact: One of the few Slovaks playing in the Swedish Elite League.

Scouting report: Don’t let the size fool you — Svrcek plays much bigger than his size. He loves to hit, plays hard every second, and can disrupt opponents with his ability to get on top of skaters. He complements that all-out style with an ability to put the puck in the net.

Nikita Tyurin

Pick: No. 140 overall (Round 5)

Position: Defenseman

Height/weight: 6-foot, 174 pounds

Last season: Spartak Moskva (Russia), 50 games, 4 goals, 16 assists

Fact: One of only 21 Russian players drafted by NHL teams last weekend.

Scouting report: A dangerous offensive defenseman, who can skate with the puck, fires a good outlet pass and jump into the play. Coming off a strong playoff performance.

Will Murphy

Pick: No. 172 overall (Round 6)

Position: Defenseman

Height/weight: 6-foot-4, 205 pounds

Last season: Cape Brenton (QMJHL), 54 games, 2 goals, 2 assists, 4 points.

Fact: Maritimes junior defenseman of the year in 2024.

Scouting report: Murphy is a classic, old school, defensive defenseman who will protect teammates, clear out bodies in front of the net, and is a team leader. The Wings could use the physicality Murphy brings to the organization.

Grayden Robertson-Palmer

Pick: No. 204 overall (Round 7)

Position: Center

Height/weight: 5-foot-10, 181 pounds

Last season: Phillips Andover Academy H.S. (Mass.), 30 games, 16 goals, 23 assists, 39 points.

Fact: Headed to play for QMJHL powerhouse Moncton.

Scouting report: Dominated in the New England high school level and is headed to a strong junior program. Robertson-Palmer has a strong, pro body, gets off a hard shot, and has leadership qualities. The step upward in competition should help drive his game.

DETROIT — Every NHL team is excited this weekend, after the completion of the Entry Draft, with their accumulation of talent into the organization.

The Red Wings are no different.

Starting with drafting forward Carter Bear Friday in the first round, and leading into adding seven players Saturday, the Wings feel they’ve infused the organization with promising depth.

“Just good prospects,” general manager Steve Yzerman said. “We don’t necessarily draft by position. We always try to, at least at this stage and where we’re at, still trying to get the best prospects. We’re excited about Carter in the first round, a player that fits into the type of player that’ll fit in well for us, a left shot left winger.

“The remainder of the group, our scouts feel good about it. We were able to get a couple defenseman, several forwards, another big goaltender. We were able to address some needs in terms of depth in the prospect pool and we’ll try to do our best and be patient and develop them and help them along the way to be professional players and hopefully play for the Red Wings.”

The way the Florida Panthers have won two consecutive Stanley Cups, with a style of hard-nosed, competitive, hard-hitting hockey, but blending that with offensive skill, is a framework the rest of the NHL is trying to copy.

The Wings have been accumulating those types of players for several drafts.

“We want to continue to draft and bring in prospects that can skate, can think the game and are competitive and be tough players to play against,” said Kris Draper, director of amateur scouting. “Two hundred (foot), complete hockey players.”

The Red Wings opened Saturday selecting that type of player in Sweden’s Eddie Genborg in the second round.

Drafting 44th overall, the Wings took the 6-foot-2, 196-pound Genborg, a skilled, power forward winger who scored 19 goals and added 15 assists in 28 games for Linkoping.

Genborg is projected as a physical forward who is strong on the forecheck and is effective around the net and along the walls. Scouts also like his intelligence on the ice.

“Watching playoff hockey the last two months, the one thing that sticks out is how hard it is to play and compete,” Draper said. “The teams that were able to be successful and go on a run, they had guys who could skate, be hard to play against and be responsible hockey players. We think that Eddie will bring that for us.”

Draper relayed a story about how the Wings ask players at the NHL combine if you could take a teammate or two with you to the NHL, who would it be?

“It was unanimous, the guys on the Swedish (national) team wanted to play with Eddie,” Draper said. “He’s a big, strong kid who can really skate and be physical on the forecheck, a guy who is tough to play against. We just like the intensity he’s able to bring.”

The Wings had two consecutive picks in the third round but only used one.

They grabbed goaltender Michal Pradel, from Tri-City (USHL) with the 75th overall pick, then traded the 76th pick to Columbus for pick No. 109 (fourth round) and Columbus’ fourth-round pick in 2026.

Pradel (6-5, 198), from Slovakia, played 14 games in Tri-City (9-4-0, 2.41 GAA, .899 SVS). Pradel has the size to track pucks through screens, even in scramble mode, and he’s played well in pressure situations.

Pradel joins a growing stable of goaltending prospects the Wings possess, including Sebastian Cossa, Trey Augustine and Rudy Guimond.

“It’ll sort itself out over time,” said Draper, noting new regulations in junior and NCAA hockey that allows more development time. “We wanted to draft a goaltender and bring them into the prospect pool. Michal Pradel was someone we saw a lot of and loved his size and athleticism.”

In the fourth round, the Wings took right wing Brent Solomon, with the Columbus pick acquired in the previous round.

Solomon mainly played high school hockey in Minnesota last season, scoring 94 points in 49 games for two teams. Solomon had six points (four goals) in eight games with Sioux Falls (USHL) to end the season.

Solomon (5-11, 165) is committed to play collegiately at Wisconsin, after Sioux Falls this season.

“Right shot natural goal scorer, with a real good release,” Draper said. “We like his ability to score goals. He did real well at the high school level and he got off to a hot start in the USHL which was something you like to see.”

With their second fourth-round pick, the Wings took Michal Svrcek at 119th overall.

At 5-10 and 178 pounds, Svrcek is a competitive winger who had 30 points (14 goals) in 30 games with Brynas in Sweden. Svrcek isn’t big physically, but scouts rave about his energy and ability to swarm opponents. Despite his size, Svrcek doesn’t shy away from hitting and loves to forecheck.

“We really like, and you’ll probably hear this a lot, the skating and compete, and the puck skills he has,” Draper said. “He plays a lot bigger than he is. When you sit there and think about names and players (at this stage in the draft), we decided to go with Michal and we’re excited to have him.”

Russian defenseman Nikita Tyurin was the Wings’ fifth-round selection, at 140th overall.

Tyurin is a 6-foot, 174-pound offensive defenseman who had four goals and 16 assists in 50 games for Spartak Moskva in Russia’s junior league. Wings’ Russian scout Nikolai Vakourov led the charge to draft Tyurin.

“Nikolai kept saying what a great playoff he (Tyurin) had,” Draper said. “He’s a good skater, good hockey sense, good with the puck and good first pass defenseman. When you’re sitting there and in the later rounds, and one of the area scouts is excited about a player, that’s what I want to hear.”

Defenseman Will Murphy was the Wings’ pick in the sixth round (172nd overall).

A 6-4, 205-pound defensive defenseman with Cape Breton (QMJHL), Murphy had four points (two goals) in 54 games. Murphy knows how to use his size and length, protects the area in front of his net, and can play a physical game.

“Big stay at home defensive defenseman,” Draper said. “The physicality and toughness is something we felt at the time, where we were (in the draft), we wanted to bring into the organization. He’s a character kid, the type of teammate that will do everything he can to stick up for his teammates.”

The Wings ended the day by grabbing center Grayden Robertson-Palmer (5-foot-10, 181-pounds) in the seventh round (No. 204 overall). Robertson-Palmer has a strong body with a strong shot and had 39 points in 30 games playing at Phillips Andover Academy (Massachusetts). He’ll play in Moncton (QMJHL) next season.

“He’s solid kid, thick build, competitive kid who can really skate,” Draper said. “He can really skate and we like the way he plays the game, and the intensity he plays the game with.”

Detroit traded its second seventh-round selection (No. 211) to Calgary for the Flames’ seventh-round pick in 2026.

DETROIT — It was no surprise Marco Kasper headed off to the IIHF men’s world championships in Sweden and Denmark soon after the Red Wings season ended.

Simply put, Kasper wanted to play more hockey.

“You play all those games and you’re in a flow and it’s so weird, just the end of it,” Kasper said. “I love being on the ice.”

So Kasper had an opportunity to play more hockey — high-level hockey, at that — and the torrid pace he was on the second half of the NHL season continued overseas.

Austria made it to the quarterfinals of the IIHF world championships Thursday — it lost 6-0 to Switzerland — for the first time since 1994. Kasper, 21, the Wings’ talented rookie, was a major reason why.

Kasper led Austria with seven points (four goals, three assists) in eight games and displayed the impressive versatility at both ends of the rink that came to be expected of coach Todd McLellan and his staff by the end of this past season.

“You talk about 200-foot player, I would put him on our team in that category,” McLellan said toward the end of the season. “He plays our zone, the neutral zone and offensive zone, and he can play east-west or north-south. He’s a 200-foot player and they are very valuable.”

Kasper had 37 points (19 goals and 18 assists) in 77 games with the Wings, seeing his game take off after McLellan took over as head coach on Dec. 26.

Kasper soon found himself on a line with Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond and complemented the two offensive stars with a willingness to get to the net, create space, and do all the grunt work. Later in the season, Kasper centered his own line, moving back to his natural center position.

Wherever Kasper played, he showed definitively why the Wings drafted him eighth overall in 2022, and why there’s so much excitement around his game.

“For some, it’s very difficult (shuttling between center and forward), but Marco may be one of the exceptions,” McLellan said. “The initial task of going from center to wing is probably a bigger adjustment than going back to the middle. He played in the middle his whole life. When he went up and had to play the wing, that’s where he probably had to adjust his game and read a little bit differently, understand where and what might happen along the boards more than in the middle of the rink.

“We talked about can he produce some offense and he wasn’t going to basically with the minutes we were playing him and where he was playing. We moved him to wing and we put him up there, and he took advantage of it.”

Kasper was one of several Wings’ young players who received more ice time under McLellan and thrived with the responsibility.

“Just confidence,” said Kasper, of what he may have gotten during the switch to McLellan. “Also trying to play a 200-foot (all-around) game and getting out there and doing the right things. The intensity during practice was harder, and that’s good for me and the team. Going out there and getting ready for those games.

“The guys did a great job helping me and the coaches. They talked about how we wanted to play and needed to play.”

It’s unclear this soon after the season ended where Kasper will begin next season, wing or center. Kasper doesn’t mind either spot, although if he does play center, becoming more effective in the faceoff circle is a must (44.9% this season).

“That’s definitely something I want to improve on over the summer and into next season,” Kasper said. “That goes back to the matchups against these guys like (Toronto’s John) Tavares, he’s unreal in the faceoffs. You take away things from those guys, and Larks (Dylan Larkin) is real good on faceoffs, and just watching him and seeing how he does it. It’s a big point of my focus, and to play center, it’s something I have to get better at.”

In terms of preparation this summer, nothing will change for Kasper. General manager Steve Yzerman was impressed with Kasper’s maturity and preparation when the Wings drafted Kasper, and those traits were on display in the Wings’ locker room after he was recalled.

“It’s not going to change how I approach the offseason,” Kasper said of his rookie success. “I know it’s the same boring answer, but what I’m trying to do is go out there every day and do the best I can, whether it’s on the ice or in the gym, and try to do the best I can. That’s how I’m going to look at it.

“It’s going to be hard next year. I feel like I had a pretty good year, but it’s going to be really hard to come back and do as good and even improve, but it’s something I’m going to focus on.”

Playing in the top two lines most of the season, Kasper saw some difficult matchups against some of the best forwards in the NHL. Facing them on a nightly basis was a challenge he willingly took on.

Interestingly, it was taking on some of the older legends that Kasper will remember.

“Sidney Crosby, to just line up and face off against him, it was pretty cool,” Kasper said. “You see how long he’s played and also (Alex) Ovechkin, he just breaks the goal-scoring record. They’ve been the best players in the world, and (teammate Patrick) Kane, and those guys for a long time have been the best, and that’s pretty cool.”

Kasper always will remember facing Crosby for another reason.

“I won the first faceoff,” Kasper said. “I didn’t win too many after that first one, but that was pretty cool.”

DETROIT — The outlook for Elmer Soderblom has changed considerably over one full hockey season.

A year ago, the Red Wings were intrigued by Soderblom’s potential, but it was fair to wonder if the 6-foot-8, 246-pound forward was ever going to fully realize and utilize the unique hockey gifts he had. There simply haven’t been that many big men who have a certain blend of skills Soderblom possesses.

Those hands, that touch with the puck, are usually found with smaller, swifter players.

But Soderblom is different. And one year later, as the Wings head into the offseason, he suddenly is very much in their plans going forward after an eye-opening close to the season.

Recalled Jan. 21 from Grand Rapids, Soderblom had four goals and seven assists in 26 games in the NHL, but the way he seamlessly joined the Wings lineup and grew his role under coach Todd McLellan was impressive.

The Wings may very well be rewarded for their patience with Soderblom, a former 2019 sixth-round draft pick (159th overall).

“It feels like the confidence got better and better during my time here,” Soderblom said during the Wings’ season-ending media conferences. “I’ve been working really hard over the last couple years, so eventually it’s going to click. I’m happy that the season turned out good for me and looking forward to next season to prove and show it even more.”

Soderblom had five goals and eight points in 21 games with the Wings in 2022-23, but the team sent him back to Grand Rapids as his playing time decreased and he battled injuries.

Soderblom had 13 goals in 61 games for the Griffins in 2023-24 but was never promoted to the Wings. Draft picks like Jonatan Berggren, Marco Kasper, Carter Mazur and Nate Danielson all were getting more attention than Soderblom, who emerged in his last several weeks with the Griffins with an NHL-caliber overall game.

But the time in Grand Rapids proved beneficial for Soderblom, whose development came full circle. Soderblom’s skating was always a question mark, but it was better. There was a need for more physicality, and he did play with more of an edge by finishing checks and generally being harder to play against. There was also more consistency in his overall play.

McLellan was somewhat familiar with Soderblom’s ability, but he admittedly didn’t know a ton about the big winger. But as the season progressed, McLellan was impressed.

“There’s a lot of tools in that man’s toolbox and he’s starting to access all of them,” McLellan said. “The common thought of a player like that (big, imposing wing) is a little bit clumsy, awkward and just a bullier bringing pure physicality; the puck is foreign to him.

“That’s not the case with Elmer. He has soft hands. He’s got a pretty good offensive mind and he is able to keep plays alive with his reach. He anticipates where plays are going. It’s not all about body contact; it’s about using your stick as well.

“He has quite a nice skill set for a guy that’s 6-8.”

Late in the season, Soderblom was bumped onto the top line playing with Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond, and he complemented those two scorers with his size and ability to get them space on the ice. Soderblom’s reach and aptitude made him a key figure on any line.

Going through the Wings’ late-season push that ended in a playoff miss, Soderblom learned how important being steady and dependable on a nightly basis is. He feels he improved in that area but can get better.

“You have to find a way to play for 82 games,” Soderblom said. “You have to find a way to be consistent. A lot of the veteran guys know how to do that. They bring something to the table every night, so just finding a way to be consistent is going to be huge for me. That’s a step in the right direction.

“Simplifying my game a little bit more and finding the consistency level, I improved those. Also, my physicality, I improved that, but at the same time, I can get even better at it. That’s why I’m looking forward to next year, to keep improving and keep doing more stuff like that.

“Other than that, of course I’m happy with my offensive play. I feel confident in the (offensive) zone, and I just want to keep building on that.”

Soderblom doesn’t plan on slowing down now, even as his NHL future appears a bit more secure.

“I’m just going to keep working on every small little detail,” he said. “It takes a lot of small details to play in this league … and just keep being physical and using my size to my advantage, that’s a huge part, too. I’m just going to keep playing my game and improving along the way.

“It feels like I’ve improved a lot this year. I’m just trying to get better at some areas that I need to improve, be an even better player next year and be more ready.”

DETROIT — Instead of preparing for Game 1 of the playoffs on Saturday, the Red Wings were packing for the summer and saying their goodbyes.

It’s become a familiar routine. This is the ninth consecutive year the Wings are outside of the playoff picture, the second-longest streak currently in the NHL (Buffalo is at a record 14) and the fourth longest all-time in the NHL.

You could sense the frustration Saturday and the disappointment is mounting.

“We can’t make excuses anymore,” forward Alex DeBrincat said. “It’s time to take that next step and be a competitor. We have to do it.”

The Wings never were able to sustain the sort of positive traction that would have produced a playoff season.

They started slowly, and a 13-17-4 record at the Christmas break forced general manager Steve Yzerman to fire Derek Lalonde and hire Todd McLellan.

The Wings immediately surged. They had two seven-game win streaks and were in playoff position at the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament break. But going 9-13-2 to end the season, including another miserable March (4-10-0), sent the Wings home again in mid-April.

“It’s not fun. You want to get ready to play Game 1 right now and that didn’t happen,” forward Lucas Raymond said. “Everyone is disappointed. We put ourselves before the 4 Nations break to be in a good spot coming back and making a good push for it. It didn’t click for us.”

Raymond completed his fourth NHL season and has yet to make the playoffs.

“You grow up playing hockey, and you play to win, whether that’s a Pee-Wee tournament or whatever it is,” Raymond said. “You’re always used to playing those games and not being able to do that is frustrating. Not fun at all.

“Everyone is determined to change that, and we want to take next step very soon.”

There were positives. The injection of youth and contribution by players such as Marco Kasper, Elmer Soderblom, Jonatan Berggren, Simon Edvinsson and Albert Johansson — along with more help next season — gives considerable hope for the future. Players like Moritz Seider, Dylan Larkin, Raymond and DeBrincat are still very much in the prime of their careers.

Plus, McLellan will have a full training camp to incorporate his systems, which the Wings believe will be a major plus.

“Todd is real good coach and I’ve been very impressed with him,” said Larkin, the Wings’ captain. “(Having) training camp with our group, our young guys and our core with him, it could be very valuable. Todd will really help turn this around here.”

Larkin, 28, made the playoffs his rookie season (2015-16) and has yet to return. The Waterford native admits it’s been “difficult.”

“(It’s) something I think about a lot, think about it every day for a long time during days. But that doesn’t do any good and you have to go out and play and win hockey games,” Larkin said. “We came up five or six wins short this year.”

The swoon in March, for basically the third consecutive year, will be on the Wings’ minds. Once the losing started and the momentum was going away, they couldn’t turn it around.

“It’s something we can’t figure out,” Seider said. “We’re always engaged. We’re dialed in. But we just couldn’t get it done. That hurt us. We were in it, and after March it was tough to look at the standings. I don’t really have an explanation.”

Playing hurt

Larkin played all 82 games this season but admitted Saturday he returned from the 4 Nations tournament — in which he was one of Team USA’s best players — with injuries.

“I picked up a couple injuries there and that’s just what it is. There were times I didn’t feel good and was playing hurt and I wasn’t able to do some things, a lot of things I wanted to,” Larkin said. “But I still went out there and tried my best. It is another disappointing year. I did play all 82 games, but I would have liked to be more effective in a lot of them.”

Larkin had 30 goals and 40 assists but was off the point-per-game pace he was near, or at, the last three seasons.

Larkin didn’t think any sort of surgeries would be needed for his injuries before adding he doesn’t “know yet.”

Ice chips

Patrick Kane, a prospective unrestricted free agent, would like to return to the Wings.

“I’ll take some time to think, but overall I’ve really enjoyed my time here,” Kane said. “It’s a great place to continue to my career and play and there are a lot of things about the organization that have helped me, not only with my (hip) injury but find a good role within the team and play. There’s definitely some mutual interest coming back and continuing on here.”

… Soderblom, who has been battling an undisclosed injury, expects to play for Grand Rapids in the AHL playoffs.

“If my injury gets back to 100%, I’ll be down there,” Soderblom said.

… Potential UFAs goaltender Alex Lyon and defenseman Jeff Petry both said they haven’t given much thought yet to what their futures hold. Petry, 37, is 19 games short of 1,000 for his career and is planning on playing next season.

Petry disclosed he had abdominal surgery the second half of this season, which limited him to 44 games.

… Andrew Copp (shoulder surgery) said he’ll be completely healthy for the start of September training camp.