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For this season personally, i'm just hoping for the young players to play well and put up points while the Wings get a top 3 pick for once. They really need someone like Lafreniere or Byfield type of difference maker to add quality depth to this roster. They are just a 1 line team + AA right now.

I'm also interested to see how Grand Rapids does with all those prospects this season.

Would also be nice if Stevie Y can trade some of those vet contracts away somehow.

I'm probably going to have more fun watching the GR Griffins this year than the Wings. GR is stacked with five 1st round picks. I can't ever remember GR having that good of a young prospect pool. I'm trying to forget the days of Holland leaving our good prospects in GR until they're almost in their mid 20's (Tatar, Nyquist, etc..) so his old and over-priced veterans could get all the ice time.

I am pretty happy with most of our draft picks. After I heard Hakan Andersson heavily scouted Seider I felt a lot better about the pick (he is the best NHL scout in Europe). Even though Zadina is only 19, I'm really hoping he takes a big step forward this year. Was hoping since he was picked #6 overall in the draft he would be more of an impact player at this point (at least in the AHL).

Bettman will make sure the Red Wings will draft lower than where they finished for the fourth straight year. Count on it.

Bettman will make sure the Red Wings will draft lower than where they finished for the fourth straight year. Count on it.
- Bigfrog

All because Mr I wouldn't shake little Gary's hand after the 2009 SCF.

I'm probably going to have more fun watching the GR Griffins this year than the Wings. GR is stacked with five 1st round picks. I can't ever remember GR having that good of a young prospect pool. I'm trying to forget the days of Holland leaving our good prospects in GR until they're almost in their mid 20's (Tatar, Nyquist, etc..) so his old and over-priced veterans could get all the ice time.

I am pretty happy with most of our draft picks. After I heard Hakan Andersson heavily scouted Seider I felt a lot better about the pick (he is the best NHL scout in Europe). Even though Zadina is only 19, I'm really hoping he takes a big step forward this year. Was hoping since he was picked #6 overall in the draft he would be more of an impact player at this point (at least in the AHL).
- Vladdie_Kon1

For the record, these are the top 5 NHL forwards in career scoring taken at No. 6 overall:

1. Vincent Damphousse
2. Peter Forsberg
3. John MacLean
4. Ryan Smyth
5. Cory Stillman

Of currently active players, Mikko Koivu could sneak into that list if he stays healthy for a couple more years, and Matthew Tkachuk and Sean Monahan are probably on track as well.

Lots of pretty good players, sure, but I think you're overrating the expected value of a No. 6 pick. Forsberg, Coffey, and arguably Phil Housley, Doug Wilson, and Damphousse are really the only consistently all-star caliber players ever taken sixth overall.

I agree that it's hard not to be disappointed on some level that Zadina didn't explode his way into the NHL or dominate the AHL as a teenager, but I think that kind of expectation was always more than a little unrealistic.

As it stands, I think (based on his draft position, age, and performance to date) he's still easily on track to be, at minimum, a really really good NHL second liner or decent first liner -- obviously with the potential still there to be more.

Whether or not you'd consider that a "good" result is up for debate, but I'll point out that even if Zadina only develops into, say, a "Tatar-level" player, that would still be above average (in historical terms) for a forward taken at No. 6.