NEWSLETTER
The NHL Draft is tomorrow night! Teams like the Detroit Red Wings are hoping to add future stars to build towards winning a Stanley Cup. Let’s check out who the Red Wings could select with the number 15 overall pick in the 1st round.
Mock: No. 15 – Michael Brandsegg-Nygard (Mora IK, Allsvenskan)
In the 1st round, the Red Wings could select Michael Brandsegg-Nygard at number 15 overall. He checks all the boxes and fills a need at forward. He has good size at 6’1″ and is almost 200 pounds. His scoring potential is high and he’s a powerful winger with solid forechecking.
In 2023-24 for Mora IK, he talked 18 points in 41 games scoring 8 goals and dishing out 10 assists. He also tallied 5 points in 7 games playing for Norway in the Ice Hockey Championships.
Red Wings Team Needs
One of the biggest needs for the Red Wings comes at forward and especially on the wing. The team also needs a number 1 center but it is unlikely there will be one available at number 15 overall. They don’t have to rush though because they took two centers in the past two years in the top 10. Those selections were Marco Kasper and Nate Danielson.
There are questions on the outside. Lucas Raymond (2020 no. 4 pick) looks like he is on his way to becoming a superstar and he’s just 22 while Alex DeBrincat is another option at wing. Besides that, the Wings lack NHL talent at the position. This makes forward a prime position for the team to target this year.
More Options for Red Wings
Now, the Red Wings still could end up taking a center in the middle of the first round. That makes Micahel Hage a potential option.
Michael Hage, C – Chicago (USHL)
Hage has plenty of offensive upside and skills to boot. He is a good-sized center (6’1″, 198 pounds) who earned a vote for best hands and best skater in the Corey Pronman draft polls. At just 17, he was a top-5 scorer in the USHL. Hage is currently committed to the University of Michigan and has the potential to play center or wing in the NHL in the future which would benefit Detroit either way.
Stian Solberg, LHD – Valerenga (Norway)
While the team might not necessarily be looking at defense in round 1, Solberg is an option. He played great late in the season and was solid in international play. Solberg is a hard-hitting and mobile defenseman. Of the three players we have talked about, he is the least likely to end up going in the top 15. That leaves Solberg as a safety net for the Red Wings if Brandsegg-Nygard and Hage are off the board.
2023-24 Red Wings Season Recap
It was a heartbreaking finish to the 2023-24 season as it came down to the final game of the year and a 2-1 loss by the Flyers to the Capitals kept Detroit out of the postseason for the 8th straight season. 41 wins were the most the team had registered since 2015-16 and the future looks promising.
The Wings were led by Lucas Raymond and Dylan Larkin. Raymond had 72 points with 31 goals and 41 assists while Larkin had 69 points. Larkin scored a team-high 33 goals. Detroit is looking to add a few pieces this offseason in hopes of returning to the playoffs.
From 1991-2016, the Red Wings had one of the longest postseason stretches in sports history. They won four Stanley Cups during that run including back-to-back in 1997 and 1998. The current 8 season run of missing the postseason is the longest in franchise history.
