3 first-round talents the Red Wings can steal in Round 2 of the NHL Draft
Picking in the middle of Round 2, there is always a first-round talent in the NHL Draft who can slip to the Detroit Red Wings.
Since Steve Yzerman took over, he’s made the Detroit Red Wings one of the most enticing teams to watch at the NHL Draft, and that will be no different this year when a handful of first-round-caliber prospects fall to the second round. If one or more of these talented players make it to the middle of the second, Yzerman will at least grant them strong consideration.
He can only take one of the players listed below, but if he’s lucky enough to scoop one of the three, the Red Wings will be walking away from the draft with not one but two first-round caliber talents. This is assuming Yzerman doesn’t make any big trades on Day 1 or 2 of the draft regarding his first and second-round picks, as that always remains a possibility.
But if he keeps the picks, Detroit’s rich prospect pool will get even more lucrative, especially if the player listed third on this list falls to the middle of the second round.
Jesse Pulkkinen, D/JYP
One of the older players in the 2024 NHL Draft, Jesse Pulkkinen’s age shouldn’t deter Steve Yzerman or anyone from taking a chance on him. For one, he’s one of the most towering blueliners in the draft at 6’6 and a solid 220 pounds, giving him the most ideal combo of size and muscle than perhaps the rest of the field.
A player with Pulkkinen’s size could make you automatically think he’s an old-school defensive defenseman whose strength lies in the defensive zone. But this couldn’t be further from the truth, as while physical, “offensive defenseman” is one phrase Elite Prospects uses to describe him.
In 2023-24, he played 29 games in Liiga and put up eight points and two goals, which is sensational for a player who never played at Finland’s highest level in the past. And he was lights-out in SM-sarja, with 11 goals and 28 points in 18 regular season games, good for 1.55 points per contest. When you tack on the 10 points and four goals he scored in seven playoff games, Pulkkinen’s final numbers were 25 games, 15 goals, and 38 points, or 1.52 points per game.
Andrew Basha, LW/Medicine Hat Tigers
Could Andrew Basha seriously fall to the Detroit Red Wings? Not if Elite Prospects has anything to say about it since they clocked him in at 18th overall, and a strong contingent of outlets have him slated for a second half of the first-round ranking. But another handful is saying otherwise, either ranking him between the end of the first round to the middle of the second.
Like Jesse Pulkkinen, Basha carries an earlier birthday, but not incredibly early, with a birth date in November 2005. Like most prospects, the winger doesn’t carry Pulkkinen’s size, but Basha is currently 6’0, 187 pounds, so while there is still room to grow, his size is rather respectable.
One reason Basha would be a great pick here is that he’s someone the Red Wings could develop quickly, as he should move up to the AHL in 2025-26. He already has over 170 regular season games under him in the WHL, and that number will surpass the 200 mark if he enjoys another healthy year.
Basha’s numbers, especially his assists, have made leaps in each season, going from just nine in 2021-22 to 36 in 2022-23, to finally an astounding 55 (85 total points) in 2023-24. While his scoring also enjoyed a steady increase, playmaking is Basha’s game, and don’t be surprised if he sets his sights even higher and hits the 65-70 assist mark this season.
Ryder Ritchie, RW/Prince Albert Raiders
Ryder Ritchie may not carry Andrew Basha’s size, but he still put on nearly 20 pounds after FC Hockey listed him at a meager 157 when I conducted my final mock draft in the first round. While I had Ritchie going No. 30 overall to the New York Rangers, it also more than means he can still fall well into the second round.
One reason is that Ritchie, despite his skill in the offensive zone, has yet to put up at least a point per game, ending the 2022-23 season with 55 in 61 games while he turned around and registered 51 in 52 contests - regular and postseason combined this past year. This indicates he’s not a dominant player, even if he’s got the potential to be an elite playmaker.
As you can also see from those numbers, Ritchie also didn’t make an incredible leap in production, unlike many other prospects heading into this season’s draft. Still, he’s got multiple years left in the WHL, and unlike Jesse Pulkkinen and Andrew Basha, he’s got a late birthday, August 2006, so it’s also something to take into strong consideration.
He may also have the most upside of the trio listed here, and that would become especially true if he easily crossed the point-per-game threshold in 2024-25 while putting on another 10-15 pounds. In other words, everything about Ritchie could be solid but unimpressive, yet there is the potential to evolve into the upper-echelon, if not elite, categories in size, scoring, and overall playmaking.
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(Statistics powered by Elite Prospects)