SUNRISE, Fla. – For the first time in 22 years, the Red Wings went an entire NHL draft without landing a Swedish prospect.
Following up their first-round selection of Russian-born center Evgeny Svechnikov on Friday, the Red Wings capped the two-day event at BB&T Center by taking two right-handed shooting defensemen, two forwards and a goaltender – none of them Swedes.
“We wanted to get a little bigger, get some defensemen, we wanted right hand shots,” said Tyler Wright, the Red Wings’ director of amateur scouting. “We thought we addressed a lot of needs and everybody’s always excited when you leave the draft but we got a lot of developing to do.