Red Wings sign defensemen Dan Renouf and Luke Witkowski

DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings today signed defenseman Dan Renouf to a one-year contract and defenseman Luke Witkowski to a two-year contract.

Renouf, 27, spent a majority of the 2020-21 season with the Colorado Avalanche, earning his first NHL action since making his debut with Detroit during the 2016-17 campaign. In 18 games with the Avalanche, Renouf recorded three points (0-3-3), 16 penalty minutes, 20 hits and 12 shots on goal in 10:10 average time on ice. He also appeared in five games for the American Hockey League's Colorado Eagles, tallying three points (1-2-3) and four penalty minutes. Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Red Wings on March 10, 2016, Renouf played 146 games for the Grand Rapids Griffins between 2015-18, helping deliver the franchise's second Calder Cup championship in 2017.
The 6-foot-3, 210-pound defenseman is a veteran of 279 AHL games between the Griffins, Charlotte Checkers and Eagles, totaling 72 points (10-62-72), a plus-44 rating and 390 penalty minutes. He's also added eight points (3-5-8), a plus-18 rating and 48 penalty minutes in 36 career AHL playoff games and became a two-time Calder Cup champion after helping Charlotte capture the title in 2018-19. A native of Ajax, Ontario, Renouf played three seasons at the University of Maine before turning pro at the end of the 2015-16 season, notching 38 points (10-28-38), a plus-14 rating and 72 penalty minutes from 2013-16. Renouf also logged two seasons in the United States Hockey League with the Youngstown Phantoms, registering 43 points (11-32-43), a plus-35 rating and 136 penalty minutes in 115 games from 2011-13.
Witkowski, 31, served as captain of the AHL's Syracuse Crunch in 2020-21, posting two points (0-2-2), a plus-eight rating and 32 penalty minutes in 14 games before his season was cut short due to injury. In 2019-20, Witkowski appeared in 12 games with the eventual Stanley Cup-champion Tampa Bay Lightning, logging three points (1-2-3) and 13 penalty minutes while adding six points (2-4-6), a plus-12 rating and 63 penalty minutes in 29 games with the Crunch. The Holland, Mich., native previously spent two seasons with the Red Wings from 2017-19, picking up six points (1-5-6) and 86 penalty minutes in 65 games. Over eight professional seasons, Witkowski has notched 13 points (2-11-13) and 162 penalty minutes in 131 NHL games between Detroit and Tampa Bay and 47 points (9-38-47), a plus-32 rating and 619 penalty minutes in 261 AHL games, all with Syracuse.

Originally drafted by the Lightning in the sixth round (160th overall) of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, Witkowski spent four seasons at Western Michigan University, where he won a CCHA championship in 2012 with Jeff Blashill as his head coach and was teammates with Red Wings defensemen Danny DeKeyser (2010-13) and Jordan Oesterle (2011-13). Witkowski was also a CCHA Second-Team All-Star as a senior in 2013 prior to signing his first professional contract, and ended his collegiate career with 38 points (7-31-38), a plus-seven rating and 235 penalty minutes in 152 games from 2009-13. Witkowski also spent two seasons in the USHL from 2007-09, combining for 35 points (9-26-35), a plus-20 rating and 257 penalty minutes in 113 games between the Ohio Junior Blue Jackets and the Fargo Force, where he served as captain in 2008-09 and was a USHL All-Star.