As the calendar turns to March, the 2024-25 regular season is hitting the home stretch in the NHL. The same can be said for the American Hockey League (AHL), junior and college hockey. The Detroit Red Wings have seen a handful of prospects within their system have strong starts to the 2025 calendar year and have played key roles in their respective teams’ success in February.
D Shai Buium – Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL)
While he has not received quite the hype and attention as his younger brother, Zeev, who the Minnesota Wild selected in the first round of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, Shai Buium has had a strong first professional season for the Grand Rapids Griffins. His offensive game is not as top-notch as his brother’s, but his all-around game sticks out from the back end of the ice.
The Griffins had a tough February as a team, going 3-7-1, but Buium and a few other Red Wings’ prospects were bright spots. He did tally four assists in the 11 games, but his game stood out the most with his sound play at both ends of the ice. Offensively, when he has the puck on his stick, he constantly shows strong vision and IQ to make the smart play and has a knack for helping start the rush with a solid first pass. Once in the offensive zone, his vision continued to be on display in February, finding teammates from his point position for the four assists he did record. On the defensive side of the game, Buium has shown a continued willingness to put his body on the line, whether by blocking shots in timely situations or using his bigger frame (6-foot-3, 210 pounds) to separate his opposition from the puck.
Much of the attention to Red Wings’ defensemen prospects is usually directed towards Axel Sandin Pellikka and his likely arrival in North America next season (for good reason). Still, Buium’s all-around sound game with an offensive skillset that is starting to get on track could make him a strong contender to be part of the future defensive core for the organization. Being able to balance the offensive upside of a player like Sandin Pellikka with a more defensively minded Buium could be a pairing that fans could eventually see if his development can continue to go as hoped.
F Emmitt Finnie – Kamloops Blazers (Western Hockey League)
One of the Red Wings’ prospects who has been talked about throughout the season, Emmitt Finnie, missed most of February due to an upper-body injury. But that has not stopped him from being one of the most impactful players on a Kamloops team looking to find a way into the WHL playoffs. Finnie, a seventh-round pick in the 2023 Draft, has taken his game to another level as the season has progressed and currently leads the Blazers in scoring with 72 points.
While limited to only three games in February, Finnie showed why he is likely the most important player to a Blazers push for a playoff spot, putting up four points (three goals and one assist) in just those three games. He continues showcasing his offensive game, consisting of high-end motor and playmaking. He can take over a game with his shot but has seemingly gone the playmaker route this season, with 40 assists in his 72 points.
If Kamloops misses the playoffs, Finnie is likely to join the Griffins and make his professional debut after he signed his entry-level contract (ELC) in March 2024. He will surely be a prospect to continue to keep an eye on, and he should draw the eye of Griffins fans if he makes his way to Grand Rapids.
G Rudy Guimond – Moncton Wildcats (Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League)
A prospect who has seemingly flown under the radar with higher profile players at his position (Trey Augustine and Sebastian Cossa), Rudy Guimond has had a superb season in the QMJHL after making the move from the United States Hockey League (USHL) earlier in the season. He seemed to struggle with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders at the beginning of the season and made the move after just six games. Guimond attributes the fact that there were many moving parts and players surrounding the RoughRiders organization and wanting to make the move to Moncton to help him fully reach his potential.
He seems to be reaching another level of his potential with the Wildcats, while only playing in 12 games thus far. The numbers certainly do not lie with how well he has played, as he has tallied a 12-0-0 record, with a 1.56 goals-against average (GAA), and a .948 save percentage (SV%). In February, Guimond played in seven games, tallying his first QMJHL shutout in a 3-0 victory over the Cape Breton Eagles on Feb. 1. He also set a season-high in saves in his last start of the month, making 42 saves in yet another Wildcats victory.
While he may not make the impact on the Red Wings roster like Augustine or Cossa, Guimond’s play this season has opened the eyes of many, and he could become an asset for the organization down the line. The sixth-round pick of the Red Wings in the 2023 Draft is set to play collegiately at Yale next season.
F Jesse Kiiskinen – HPK (Liiga)
After a strong showing at the 2025 World Junior Championship (WJC) for Finland, where he totaled six goals and one assist, Jesse Kiiskinen has carried over his play back to HPK of Liiga. Not only does he lead his team in points, with 42, but he has also set the HPK franchise record for scoring by a player 20 years old or younger. In February, he displayed his playmaking skills, putting up six assists to go along with one goal in eight games. He also tallied five or more shots on net in five games.
Related: Red Wings Prospect Tiers: Untouchables & Trade Chips
Much like Finnie, Kiiskinen can take over a game with his goal-scoring abilities but has found a strong balance between doing the scoring and dishing out assists. Of his 42 points this season, 29 have come in the form of assists. He has helped make his teammates around him better whenever he is on the ice. When it comes to being a U20 player in Liiga, he currently leads the league in points by 11 over Topias Hynninen. After being traded to the Red Wings in the offseason from the Nashville Predators for defenseman Andrew Gibson, Kiiskinen seems to have the makings of a player who could make an impact in the Red Wings’ lineup in a secondary offensive role if he can continue to progress his game and eventually make the jump to North American hockey.
F Amadeus Lombardi- Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL)
Another prospect who the injury bug has hampered, Amadeus Lombardi made his presence felt after returning from an upper-body injury that kept him out from the beginning of December until Feb. 15. Even with missing half of the month, he still tallied six points (three goals and three assists) in just six games of action. A 2022 fourth-round pick, he has continued to be a fan favorite amongst the Griffins and Red Wings since being drafted. His offensive skillset, with speed and great puckhandling, was on full display in the six games he played in February. This season, he has tallied 21 points, including 12 goals on only 44 shots, so it is safe to say that he has made good on his scoring chances. He has brought a much-needed energy boost to the Griffins’ lineup that, as mentioned earlier, had a rough February.
While the upper-body injury may have hampered Red Wing fans’ chances of seeing him in a Winged Wheel uniform this season, Lombardi’s game has continued to do the talking for him, and it is only a matter of time before we all see him in Detroit in some capacity.
Exciting Finish to the 2024-25 Regular Season
While the Red Wings look to get back into the Stanley Cup Playoffs, there is plenty of excitement when it comes to prospects within the organization who want to get their current teams to the same spot at whatever level they are playing. These are just a few of the prospects who had a strong February.
