The Red Wings’ season is over and, although the NHL standings aren’t yet finalized, they’re closed out for the positioning we still care about. The Red Wings finished 5th from the bottom of the league standings after the Vancouver Canucks were able to pass them late Saturday night with a point earned in a shootout loss to Edmonton.
We know that Detroit is guaranteed no later than the 8th overall. This will be their best draft positioning since the team took Keith Primeau at #3 overall in 1990, although that worst-case scenario pick would only be one slot better than the 9th overall they received last season, which the Red Wings used to take Michael Rasmussen.