On May 26th, the Red Wings added another piece to their prospect pool in the form of left wing Dylan Sadowy in a trade with the Western Conference Champion San Jose Sharks for a 2017 3rd round pick. Today ahead of the June 1st draft pick signee deadline, the team announced his entry-level deal had been signed.
UPDATE: The Detroit #RedWings today signed left wing Dylan Sadowy to a three-year entry-level contract. pic.twitter.com/h6y23iVnPC
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) May 31, 2016
At 6’1″, the 195-pound forward brings an agitating style that has since come with scoring prowess coming out of the OHL for the Saginaw Spirit and Barrie Colts. Last Word On Sports’s own Ben Kerr described him back in 2014 as being a scorer in tight, tipping in shots, banging in rebounds, and converting passes at the net front, needing to focus on his skating to take his game to the next level. Similar to Scott Hartnell in terms of style, the now 20-year old showed a huge improvement following his 2014 draft year with a 42-goal, 74-point season in 2014-15.
This past season he was an assistant captain for the second year in a row in Saginaw, having a respectable 20-goal season through 36 games played. However, the team was on its way to an eighth place finish in the Western Conference for the third time in four seasons (10 teams in each conference) and had gone 1-12 in the playoffs those three seasons. A trade to the Barrie Colts (Three second-place finishes in three of last four seasons in Eastern Conference) helped him elevate his game to that next level, as he scored 25 goals and 36 points in just 28 games, bringing the full season total to 45 goals and 70 points. Sadowy’s fourth OHL season goes beyond the scoresheet totals, however. According to Stephen Burtch of Sportsnet, he led the league in high-danger shot attempts in the low slot with 61, signifying his nose for the net.
Following the huge run, the contract situation with the Sharks was looking bleak thanks to the logjam of forwards in San Jose’s system. A re-entry into the draft for 2016 was quite possible, and with his improvement shown in the OHL, he may have snuck into the first round. But, the Red Wings came calling and thought the sacrifice of a third-round pick in 2017 was worth what Shadowy could bring to the team in the near-future.
Now, how does this impact the Red Wings system? On left wing right now, Andreas Athanasiou looks to be a prime candidate to graduate to the big club this season with a nine-goal, 14-point showing in 37 NHL games showing off his lightning speed and shifty hands. Tomas Nosek also got a brief six-game look where he primarily played on the penalty kill and fourth line. He’s logged 125 games with the Griffins scoring 26 goals and 64 points, playing a gritty style that the Wings may want to utilize if the team parts ways with Darren Helm. Tyler Bertuzzi, while playing the part of agitator (133 PIMS) has shown the ability to elevate his game at the biggest time the last two AHL postseasons, scoring seven goals in each. 2015 first-round pick Evgeny Svechnikov may just accompany Sadowy to Grand Rapids after 105 QMJHL games in which he scored 64 goals and totaled 157 points.
With likely additions from within coming in the next season or two (DET: 10 expiring forward contracts combined this season and next), Sadowy gives the team depth right now at the AHL level. He still has plenty of room to grow being just 20 and bringing the in-close scoring promise that he has at such a young age. Developing his game further in the AHL and growing his frame to play with professionals could mold him into a reliable player for Detroit going forward.
Stats courtesy of hockeyDB
Standings courtesy of OHL Network
Red Wings prospect information courtesy of Hockey’s Future
Advanced stats courtesy of Sportsnet
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