5 Red Wings Potential Clients Ready for the NHL in 2025 – 26 – Hockey Writer – Red Wings Prospects

The sign of successful reconstruction is when older players are replaced by young players who are preferred drafted and developed internally. While there are multiple ways to successfully end the reconstruction, the key is to build a young player core that can lead for the next decade or more.

The Detroit Red Wings are nearing the end of the reconstruction, and they build a solid group of young players played by defensive player Moritz Seider and winger Lucas Raymond. Entering the 2025-26 season, Red Wings almost certainly have to rely on their own local talent to push them forward and end the playoff drought.

That being said, Detroit’s young core should expect some new additions to be added some time this season. The organization has a handful of young players and prospects that are hitting the gate, and they seem ready to compete with the best players in the world and establish their core members for the future in the process.

Hope to see these players wear wing wheels sometime this season.

(f) Amadeus Lombardi

One of the biggest stories of Grand Rapids last season was the progress forward Amadeus Lombardi made. Lombardi, a fourth-round pick in the 2022 draft, was about half of his second season in the American Hockey League (AHL) due to an upper body injury, but he still scored with his team’s third goal (19) and fourth-highest goal (19).

The 22-year-old has 24 goals and 66 points in 114 games against the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL. His first season wasn’t an efficient season in terms of raw output, but given his increase in the next season, he learned a lot from that season. If it weren’t for his premature injury, then some whispers were fast, and the offensive advance was on the way to secure the NHL call.

Related: 3 Red Wings Prospects Enter Key 2025-26 Season

Lombardi was selected as center and might have to switch to the wing if he was to secure a seat in Detroit as soon as possible. That being said, his speed and playing ability will be a good addition to the Red Wings’ offense and strength performance. It’s no surprise if he stands out in training camp and then makes his NHL debut sometime this season.

(d) William Wallinder

William Wallinder won a second round pick in the 2020 draft, hoping to follow in Albert Johansson’s footsteps and become a guard, which is a long road to reach, but once he does, it’s a pleasant surprise.

Wallinder, 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds, is a thriving defender who has increased his role in the Grand Rapids during his two AHL seasons. Only 34 points in 128 games, and although his offensive game is his prospect in the draft class, his offensive game is his offensive performance, even if his offensive performance is not fully attacking. Instead, his game became more comprehensive as he was able to play for a long time on two special teams in Griffins.

With a good training camp and a strong start to the season, Wallinder will position himself as a call early if Detroit needs a blue line body. He did get a brief call before Chirstmas last season (he didn’t play), so it’s reasonable to think that Red Wings’ front desk saw him as a call range on the depth map. If he can find another level this season, he will at least be guaranteed as the NHL club’s seventh time defender.

(g) Sebastian Cossa

Historically, goalkeepers have developed on their own schedule. Some were able to beat the trend and reach the NHL at a young age, while others didn’t make big strides until they were in their 20s. At the age of 22, Sebastian Cossa’s time running out and was regarded as an “early elevator” as the future goalkeeper of the Red Wings goalkeeper, but that doesn’t mean he’s cooked as the prospect of the NHL – in fact, it’s far from it.

Cossa first picked No. 15 in 2021 and has now completed two full AHL seasons with Griffins. After being the team’s “1A” in the crease for both seasons, he has a record of 43-24-15, with an average of 2.43 goals and a 0.912 save. These numbers don’t blow anyone away, but they have reached a certain level of comfort and consistency with young goalkeepers. Statistics aside, Ontario native also looks much more comfortable in terms of crease than he did when he debuted at Griffins, and that level of comfort can only be higher in his third AHL season.

As the third goalkeeper on the Red Wings depth map, if John Gibson or Cam Talbot takes a spot in Detroit, Cossa will be the first goalkeeper. From there, Cossa can prove that he has the ability to give the Red Wings a chance to win when the creases. He doesn’t need to prove that he can be an NHL starter this season. If he performs well enough with a chance, he can steal alternate roles this season and ensure he enters the 2026-27 campaign.

With all the goalkeepers running out of the prospect pool in Red Wings, and the growing consensus that Trey Augustine is the organization’s future goalkeeper, Cossa has a real opportunity to keep critics silent this season.

(c) Nate Danielson

With all the factors in mind, Nate Danielson is probably the best choice for the Red Wings as the prospect forces them to the NHL roster this season. Detroit ranked 9th in the 2023 draft, completing his first AHL season in 2024-25, scoring 12 goals and 39 points in 71 games. While the Statline doesn’t jump to you, it’s important to note that as the season progresses, he gets better, and perhaps the most impressive thing about his season has nothing to do with generating goals or points.

Although he was only 20 years old (he was 21 in late September), Danielson was a vocal member of the Griffins locker room last season. He may not have written a letter on his sweater, but in a sense he is the leader in helping the team maintain accountability. His maturity on the ice has always been clear, but his maturity starting from the ice may have brought him close or at the top of a pecking order to make an NHL call.

Danielson is a playmaker in his heart, but his powerful two-way game may also allow him to find success in his first nine games in Detroit. Like Marco Kasper last season, the red wings may promote Danielson, allowing him to relax on the third line, and then gradually lift him to the roster as his youth advances. If he does well in training camp, Danielson and Casper may be the answers needed by Detroit to need the left and/or second-line center.

(d) Axel Sandin Pellikka

Defensive Axel Sandin Pellikka is widely respected because the highest prospect of the Red Wings is the epitome of the “modern NHL defender,” who uses his mobility and offensive instinct to keep the puck away from the defensive zone and move in the right direction. The 2025-26 campaign will be his first full season in North America, and soon after, a call for him to take him to Detroit to start.

The 20-year-old defensive player scored 12 goals and 29 points in 46 games in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) last season, before scoring another goal and 8 points in 11 playoff games. Sandin Pellikka has the potential to be an offensive generator at the NHL level because he has the ability to read games and move hockey. He can score when opportunities come up, and his defensive performance is a great place to be considered an offensive defender.

Sandin Pellikka may spend the early season with Griffins in the AHL. The jump from SHL to North America is rarely easy (Lucas Raymond is the latest red-wing prospect to skip the AHL recently), and the pace and physical improvement of the AHL should help young defenders adapt to his new environment. Once he feels comfortable, all bets go out because he should push the NHL soon.

What Red Wings prospects do you hope to see in Detroit this season? Leave us a comment and let us know!