TRAVERSE CITY -- It's probably the last thing opposing NHL teams want to hear coming out of Detroit right now.
Not only are the defending Stanley Cup champion Red Wings loaded with talent at the big league level, but their front office believes the organization has quality players in the farm system that will keep them competitive for years to come.
"Overall, we're very happy with the depth of our organization," Detroit vice president and assistant general manager Jim Nill said. "We're very solid on defense, we have solid forwards on the big team and good kids coming up, and at goalie we have Chris Osgood, and with Ty Conklin, (Daniel) Larsson and (Thomas) McCollum, we have ourselves set up well for seven to eight years in net."
The future Red Wings will be on display in Traverse City over the next week as part of an eight-team NHL prospects camp. Detroit will practice at Centre ICE Friday before playing games Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday.
The camp will wrap up with championship games Wednesday.
"It's an exciting time for us," Nill said. "We've got a lot of kids that are going to be turning pro. We want to see how they develop. This is when you bring together the future of your team."
Nill said that a lot of the prospects are guys the organization will look to four to five years down the road. But there are some in camp that should get their number called a lot sooner, like former first-round pick Jakub Kindl.
Last year as a rookie with Grand Rapids, the defenseman scored three goals and 14 assists in 75 games.
"He's had a year as a pro now and his time's coming," Nill said. "He's knocking on the door."
Other players Nill said are close are forwards Justin Abdelkader, Jan Mursak and Cory Emmerton, as well as Larsson in goal.
Abdelkader scored 40 points as a junior for Michigan State last year, and even played in two games with the Red Wings. Mursak has 44 goals in the OHL over two seasons with Saginaw and Belleville while Emmerton put up 61 points with Kingston and Brampton last season.
Larsson played in Sweden's Elite League last year and earned top goaltender and rookie of the year honors.
The Red Wings will also have nine free agents try out at the prospects camp, as Detroit is closing in on the 50-contract limit. It's been five years since the Wings last inked a free agent from the prospects tournament -- Nathan Robinson out of the 2003 camp.
One intriguing free agent is Francis Pare, a 21-year-old center, who had a huge year with Chicoutimi in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with 102 points in 69 games. He followed that up with five goals and eight points in six playoff contests.
Pare, who has averaged well over a point a game over the last three years in the QMJHL (249 points in 192 games), has already signed a contract with the Grand Rapids Griffins, the Wings' top affiliate.
Bryce Swan and Joey Ryan, former second-round picks by other franchises, will also try to impress.
Swan, who was taken No. 38 overall by Anaheim in 2006, never signed with the Ducks and was passed over in the 2008 draft. The right wing -- who turns 21 next month -- has racked up 103 points in 128 games in the QMJHL over the last two seasons and stepped up with 11 goals and 16 points for Halifax in 13 playoff games last season.
Ryan was taken 10 picks after Swan in the 2006 draft. The physical defenseman has battled injuries in the past.
The Red Wings will not only be keeping an eye on their free agents, but also on the prospects playing for the other seven teams at camp.
"You're always assessing players," Nill said. "We have our scouts doing reports on the other teams. You want to see what they have coming up, to know if, say, two to three years down the road they're going to be really good. Or, you want to see if they have somebody that maybe we'll have to make a trade for."
That's because even though Nill is currently pleased with the depth of the organization, he won't get complacent.
"We're happy with it, but you can't stop," he said. "You can't break the chain."
Staff writer James Cook contributed to this story
Print this story
E-mail this story
