Draft reviews are in: 'The Red Wings killed it'

DETROIT -- Every team feels good after another draft concludes and the Detroit Red Wings are no exception.
The Wings added 10 players to their prospect pipeline - three wings, three defensemen, two centers and two goaltenders.

In addition, Detroit traded one of their two sixth-round picks for a fifth-rounder in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, so they are loaded with 11 picks already.
While it will be tough for the Wings to top their 1989 draft, in which they got Hall of Famer Nick Lidstrom and Sergei Fedorov along with Mike Sillinger, Bob Boughner, Dallas Drake and Vladimir Konstantinov, the reviews from all across hockey have been raving about what the team accomplished.
NHL.com listed the Red Wings as one of nine teams for which the draft went really well.
Adam Kimelman said: "Detroit got full value with the 10 picks it used, starting with the selection of arguably the top offensive talent in the draft, Halifax right wing Filip Zadina, at No. 6. In his first season in North America, Zadina led rookies in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with 82 points (44 goals, 38 assists). Then at No. 30, the Red Wings selected skilled, hardworking center Joseph Veleno.
"In the second round (No. 36), they picked Halifax defenseman Jared McIsaac, who was No. 13 on Central Scouting's final ranking of North American players. Third-round pick (No. 67) Alec Regula of London (6-3, 203) won't turn 18 until Aug. 6 but was second among OHL rookie defensemen with 25 points (seven goals, 16 assists). Madison right wing Ryan O'Reilly, selected in the fourth round (No. 98), scored 21 goals in 45 USHL games."
ESPN.com named the Wings one of their winners of the 2018 draft.
Emily Kaplan and Greg Wyshyinski wrote: "Filip Zadina might be the surest scorer in this draft, and somehow -- miraculously -- he fell in the Red Wings' lap at No. 6 overall. This is a winger who can play as soon as this season, even in a top-six role.
"The Red Wings then capitalized on another draft faller, when center Joseph Veleno was available at No. 30. Detroit's biggest need was defense, and the Wings addressed that with three defensemen during the next two rounds.
"Detroit is embarking on a total makeover, and this draft couldn't have gone any better for GM Ken Holland, who has been on a roll since the trade deadline after bringing in a haul for Tomas Tatar. Apparently, reports of Holland's demise have been greatly exaggerated. The Red Wings being good again is fun for everyone."
USA Today hockey writer Kevin Allen also praised the Wings after their 10-player haul: "Winner: Detroit Red Wings general manager Ken Holland: With the No. 6 pick, the Red Wings landed Zadina, one of the most exciting offensive players in the draft. With the No. 30 pick, they landed Joe Veleno, a hard-working, high-character center who was projected to go much earlier."

The Hockey News' Ryan Kennedy also placed the Wings in the winners column: "Thanks to Montreal taking Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Arizona calling Barrett Hayton, the Red Wings are gifted with Filip Zadina at No. 6. The dynamic Czech clearly thought the Habs liked him in his media scrum and offered a warning for Montreal and Ottawa, which also passed on him: 'I was telling my agent, if they will pass on me, I'm going to fill their nets with pucks.'
"The Red Wings got some more good fortune at the back end with the pick they got from Vegas in the Tomas Tatar deal: Drummondville's Joe Veleno was still available at No. 30, even though he looked like a mid-first rounder at worst. Veleno admitted to getting a little nervous as the picks flew by, but it all worked out in the end for him."
Scott Wheeler of The Athletic also listed the Wings as winners, saying: "The Red Wings were in the best shape coming in, and had eight picks in the top 100. Mix in that I didn't like seven of their 10 picks, including where they took two players (Alec Regula and Jared McIsaac) who were on my list, and it's a miracle they're on this list. But they did so damn well with their first three picks of the draft that they deserve a ton of credit. Zadina was an obvious home run at No. 6, but the real value was in Joe Veleno, ranked 13th on my board, at 30th overall, and Jonatan Berggren, who was a risky pick they didn't have to take but were right to anyways. Berggren, ranked 20th, has unique upside, pull-away speed, outstanding puck skills, a nifty release point, escapability, and playmaking ability in traffic. There's a chance they found three future top-nine forwards."

Corey Pronman of The Athletic gave the Wings an A-minus in his evaluation of all the teams' draft classes.
Pronman wrote: "The Wings had a massive Day 1, injecting nearly as much talent as Buffalo did with their first overall pick. Jonatan Berggren is also a high-upside player. The picks after that I was less enthusiastic about. Jared McIsaac is fine, No. 36 is a little high for me, but he wasn't going to be available likely at No. 67. The later round guys were a lot of big guys who I didn't see a ton from. I don't think Wings fans should care that much though, because with their first three picks they injected a ton of talent into their system."
Jeremy Lambert of Fansided also gave the Wings an 'A' for their draft.
Lambert said: "I'm so conflicted. My inner Avalanche fan is telling me that I must dislike everything the Red Wings do from 1995 until the end of time. But my reasonable hockey mind is telling me that Detroit knocked it out of the park in the first round. I love Filip Zadina. When asked what he brings to Detroit, he said, 'I bring the goals.' He's going to score 200 goals in his first season. 150 of them will come against Ottawa, Montreal and Phoenix. The Red Wings need to find a way to acquire Travis Zajac so they can have the ZZZ line of Zadina, Zajac and Zetterberg. This is legitimately the only thing I have ever wanted in my life. On top of getting the third best player in the draft at number six, they got Joe Veleno at 30th. Many had Veleno as a lottery pick, with few thinking he would slip past number 20. His top-end talent is questionable, but watch Detroit turn him into the Canadian Pavel Datysuk.
"No surprise, Detroit went with a Swede in the second round. Berggren is an all-around talent and a dynamic scorer. He's a player that could have gone in the first round based on talent and probably should have, if certain teams didn't reach earlier in the draft. They also weren't going to make the mistake of passing on Ryan O'Reilly a second time.
"The Red Wings killed it."