Drafted by the Wings in the second round of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, Ouellet had only played in 30 games for the Red Wings from 2013-14 through 2015-16, spending a majority of his time in Grand Rapids.
But he made the team out of training camp in 2016 and in his first full season in the NHL, the 6-foot-1, 185-pound defenseman did not look out of place on Detroit's back end.
In 66 games played, his numbers were not spectacular; Ouellet notched three goals among his 12 points, was plus-2, had 87 blocked shots, averaged 17:58 per game, but he proved to be mostly reliable despite the occasional flair for turning the puck over.
Last season with Niklas Kronwall missing the first three games of the year and Danny DeKeyser suffering an ankle injury in Detroit's third game of the season in Dallas and subsequently missing the next 17 games, Ouellet had the opportunity to cement his place in Detroit's defensive corps.
He played in the Wings' first 27 games, but he fell into disfavor and was seated in the press box more than he was in the Wings lineup for the remainder of the year.
A healthy Ouellet did not dress in 37 of Detroit's last 55 regular season games.
Once the year concluded, he requested a trade and Detroit is seeking to accommodate his request. It has long been speculated the Red Wings have been trying to move Ouellet since the middle of last season but received lukewarm interest.
Whether the Wings can deal Ouellet is iffy. He is in the second year of a two-year, $2.5 million contract and most teams may feel a cap hit of $1.25 million is too high for a player who has been relegated to spot duty.
A likely scenario could be Ouellet getting optioned to Grand Rapids. He will go through waivers and if he isn't claimed, he will begin next season as a Griffin.
If Ouellet is in Grand Rapids, only $225,000 will count against the Wings salary cap.
With several blueline prospects knocking on the door and Detroit's retooling effort well underway, Ouellet's Red Wings career is probably over.
45 - Total number of games Ouellet played for the Red Wings last season. He has appeared in 141 total games for Detroit.
0 -Ouellet failed to score a goal last season. He has scored five total goals as a Red Wing.
7 -Number of assists Ouellet dished out last season, which was also his point total for the year. As a Red Wing, he has notched 18 assists and tallied 23 total points.
-3 - He was a minus-3 on the year, but Ouellet is a plus-1 for his Red Wings career, which spans over parts of five seasons.
43 - Blocked shots, which was ninth best on the Wings roster. DeKeyser led the Red Wings with 125 blocked shots last season.
13:51- Ouellet's average ice time per game. His highest single-game ice time total was 19:00 on October 5 in a 4-2 victory over Minnesota in the Wings' first game of the season and the first ever regular season game played at Little Caesars Arena.
48 - Detroit selected Ouellet in the second round, 48th overall, in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. The Red Wings didn't have a first-round pick in 2011, but they had three second-round picks. They chose Tomas Jurco 35th overall, then Ouellet and their final second-round pick was Ryan Sproul, taken 55th overall.
100 -On October 12 in Arizona, Ouellet played in his 100th NHL game, a 4-2 Red Wings victory. He registered one shot on goal, was even and his ice time was 16:39.
