Although the franchise hasn't necessarily torn it down, the Detroit Red Wings have enjoyed something of a youth movement in recent seasons, incorporating prospects at forward and defense up and down the roster when their play warrants the opportunity.
Players like Emmitt Finnie, Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, Anton Johansson, and Axel Sandin-Pellikka are all beginning to establish themselves at the NHL level, and soon, another high-flying name playing for the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins could graduate and join them.
In Sunday's 5-1 thrashing of the Chicago Wolves, Red Wings prospect Jesse Kiiskinen dominated the offensive zone in all aspects, scoring his first hat trick on North American ice, added an assist, and finished the game with a +4 rating and three shots on goal.
Kiiskinen, 21, already produced a two-goal effort earlier in the season in a 5-4 overtime loss to Erie on Oct. 4, and his latest scoring exploits put him up to five goals, two assists, and seven points in just five games with the Rapids this season.
Remember the Andrew Gibson trade?
The Finn first put himself on the prospect community's radar back in 2024-25, when he ripped off 14 goals, 30 assists, and 44 points in 46 games for HPK in Finland's Liiga, in addition to dropping six goals, an assist, and seven points in seven games at the 2025 World Junior Championship, where he and Finland captured a silver medal.
Kiiskinen is also part of a unique piece of recent Red Wings history, as he was acquired from Nashville, alongside a 2024 second-round pick, in exchange for defense prospect Andrew Gibson. Then, the Red Wings and then-GM Steve Yzerman flipped that second-rounder to San Jose to dump defenseman Jake Walman.
San Jose then, of course, was able to flip Walman to Edmonton for a first-round pick, netting them first- and second-round picks for Walman without having to give up anything at all.
Unfortunately for the Red Wings, that second-rounder ended up becoming top Sharks defense prospect Leo Sahlin Wallenius. At least they have Kiiskinen, who is now coming on strong with nine points in eight games for the Griffins between the end of last season and the start of this season.
The 21-year-old former third-round pick could prove to be a valuable asset for the Red Wings within a few seasons as a potential replacement for the 33-year-old Viktor Arvidsson, for example.
Overseen by longtime Red Wing Dan Cleary, the Griffins have a number of players worth keeping tabs on this season, from Kiiskinen to Michael Postava, Trey Augustine, Carter Bear, Shai Buium, and Noah Dower-Nilsson. So far, Kiiskinen is leading the charge for that offense in a major way.
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