Red Wings reassign Dylan McIlrath and Kaden Fulcher to taxi squad

DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings today reassigned defenseman Dylan McIlrath and goaltender Kaden Fulcher to the team's taxi squad from the American Hockey League's Grand Rapids Griffins. Additionally, the Red Wings reassigned forward Michael Rasmussen and goaltender Kevin Boyle to the Griffins from the team's taxi squad.

McIlrath, 28, appeared in 16 games with Detroit during the 2019-20 season and recorded 48 hits and 23 penalty minutes in 14:49 average ice time per game. He also skated in 44 games with Grand Rapids last season, registering eight points (0-8-8) and 73 penalty minutes, second-most among Griffins. McIlrath has totaled 66 NHL appearances since making his NHL debut in 2013-14, totaling five points (3-2-5) and 121 penalty minutes with the New York Rangers, Florida Panthers and Red Wings. McIlrath has also played in 397 career AHL games with the Connecticut Whale, Hartford Wolf Pack, Springfield Thunderbirds and Griffins since 2010-11, registering 82 points (21-61-82), a plus-23 rating and 833 penalty minutes. The Winnipeg, Manitoba, native won a 2017 Calder Cup championship with the Griffins and has tallied seven points (0-7-7), a plus-13 rating and 71 penalty minutes in 48 career AHL postseason games.
A former first-round pick (10th overall) in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft by the Rangers, McIlrath was acquired in a trade by Detroit from Florida on March 1, 2017. The blueliner skated in 232 Western Hockey League games for the Moose Jaw Warriors prior to turning professional, posting 74 points (16-58-74) and 551 penalty minutes from 2008-12, adding seven assists and 48 penalty minutes in 27 postseason contests. He also skated in the Canadian Hockey League Top Prospects Game during the 2009-10 campaign.
Fulcher, 22, enters his third professional season after being limited to two games during the 2019-20 campaign with the ECHL's Toledo Walleye due to injury. The netminder has appeared in 30 games with the Walleye over his first two professional seasons, posting a 15-9-6 record, 3.17 goals-against average, 0.894 save percentage and one shutout. Fulcher made his NHL debut in relief duty during the Red Wings season finale on April 6, 2019 against Buffalo, making nine saves on 11 shots on goal.
Originally signed by the Red Wings as an undrafted free agent on Oct. 3, 2017, Fulcher was a 2018 Ontario Hockey League champion with the Hamilton Bulldogs and posted a 57-44-13 record, 3.19 goals-against average, 0.893 save percentage and five shutouts in 115 OHL games from 2015-18. The 6-foot-3, 201-pound netminder was also named the Most Outstanding Goaltender at the Canadian Hockey League Memorial Cup following a 2.27 goals-against average and 0.918 save percentage in four games at the 2018 tournament.
Rasmussen, 21, has skated in eight games for the Red Wings this season, posting three points (0-3-3) and six penalty minutes. Prior to the start of the 2020-21 NHL season, Rasmussen suited up in 18 games for Graz EC of the Austrian Eishockey Liga, recording five goals and 13 assists and 42 penalty minutes. The third-year pro spent the 2019-20 season with the Griffins and posted among team leaders with 22 points (9th), 15 assists (7th) and 0.63 points per game (4th), despite being limited to 35 games due to injury. The Surrey, British Columbia, native played the majority of his rookie professional season (2018-19) with Detroit and tallied 18 points (8-10-18) in 62 games, finishing the year tied for third among Red Wings skaters with four power-play goals. In all, the 6-foot-6, 229 pound forward has totaled 21 points (8-13-21) in 70 games with the Red Wings and 24 points (9-15-24) in 38 games with the Griffins.
Originally drafted by the Red Wings in the first round (ninth overall) of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, Rasmussen spent three seasons with the Western Hockey League's Tri-City Americans from 2014-18 and recorded 157 points (81-76-157) in 161 games. As captain of Tri-City in 2017-18, he picked up 59 points (31-28-59) over an injury-shortened 47 regular-season game slate before racking up a team-best 33 points (16-17-33) in just 14 playoff games to help Tri-City to back-to-back series sweeps against higher-seeded teams in the 2018 WHL Playoffs.
Boyle, 28, signed with the Red Wings on Oct. 9, 2020 after spending the last four seasons in the Anaheim Ducks organization. The netminder played 20 games for their AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls, in 2019-20, posting a 9-7-2 record, 2.82 goals-against average and 0.911 save percentage. In 117 career AHL games, all with San Diego, Boyle owns a 62-38-10 record, 2.71 goals-against average, 0.915 save percentage and two shutouts. The 6-foot, 201-pound netminder has made five career NHL appearances, owning a 1-3-0 record with a 2.17 goals-against average and 0.928 save percentage.
Originally signed by Anaheim as an undrafted free agent in March 2016, Boyle spent two collegiate seasons at the University of Massachusetts from 2011-13 before transferring to UMass-Lowell for his final two seasons (2014-16). Boyle capped off his senior season with Hockey East Goaltender of the Year and Player of the Year honors and was the most-valuable player of the conference tournament, going 24-10-5 with a 1.83 goals-against average and 0.934 save percentage in 39 games. The Manalapan, N.J. native was previously an All-Rookie Team selection in the British Columbia Hockey League after posting a 20-16-1 record with the Westside Warriors in 2010-11.