Detroit Selects Eight Players on Second Day of 2022 NHL Entry Draft

The Detroit Red Wings today drafted eight players during the second day of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft at Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. The Red Wings held two selections in the second round, adding left wing Dylan James (40th overall) and left wing Dmitri Buchelnikov (52th overall). After trading their third-round selection (73rd overall) to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for goaltender Ville Husso, the Red Wings chose defenseman Anton Johansson (105th overall), center Amadeus Lombardi (113th overall) and left wing Maximilian Kilpinen (129th overall) in the fourth round. From there, the Red Wings selected defenseman Tnias Mathurin (137th overall) in the fifth round before taking center Owen Mehlenbacher (201st overall) and center Brennan Ali (212th overall) in the seventh round.

Detroit’s first pick of the day was the eighth choice of the second round (40th overall), which the team used on left wing Dylan James. The 6-foot, 177-pound forward spent the 2021-22 season with the United States Hockey League’s Sioux City Musketeers, garnering Rookie of the Year honors after tallying 61 points (28-33-61) with a plus-18 rating and 39 penalty minutes in 62 games. The Calgary, Alb., native also notched eight points (5-3-8) with a plus-eight rating and two penalty minutes in 10 postseason contests to help the Musketeers earn a Clark Cup championship. Prior to arriving in the United States, James spent parts of three seasons with the Okotoks Oilers of the Alberta Junior Hockey League from 2018-21, totaling 48 points (23-25-48) and 54 penalty minutes in 60 games. James is committed to the University of North Dakota for the 2022-23 season.

Later in the second round, the Red Wings drafted left wing Dmitri Buchelnikov (52nd overall), who played the entire 2021-22 campaign with SKA-1946 St. Petersburg in Russia’s top junior league (MHL). The 5-foot-10, 163-pound forward led his team in scoring with 75 points (41-34-75) while accumulating a plus-33 rating and 22 penalty minutes in 56 games. Additionally, Buchelnikov posted 14 points (9-5-14), a plus-nine rating and two penalty minutes in nine postseason appearances en route to a MHL title. Buchelnikov split the 2020-21 season between two MHL clubs, logging 16 points (5-11-16) and a plus-five rating in 17 games with SKA-Varyagi im. Morozova before adding 21 points (11-10-21), a plus-10 rating and 10 penalty minutes in 29 games with SKA-1946 St. Petersburg. On the international stage, the Nizhny Tagil, Russia, native won a silver medal representing his country at the 2021 IIHF World Under-18 Championship, notching three points (1-2-3) and a plus-two rating in seven contests.

Detroit originally held one selection in the third round (73rd overall), but dealt it to St. Louis earlier in the day in exchange for Husso. With their first of three picks in the fourth round, the Red Wings selected defenseman Anton Johansson (105th overall). The 6-foot-4, 172-pound blueliner spent much of the 2021-22 season with Leksand’s under-20 team, recording 10 points (6-4-10) and 12 penalty minutes in 22 games. His six goals were the most by any defenseman in Sweden’s top junior league. At the under-18 level, Johansson logged five points (3-2-5), a plus-seven rating and four penalty minutes in six games, along with six points (1-5-6), a plus-eight rating and four penalty minutes in six playoff contests. He also made his professional debut with Leksand’s senior team in the Swedish Hockey League, making four regular-season appearances before skating in two postseason games in Sweden’s top professional circuit.

Eight picks later, the Red Wings selected center Amadeus Lombardi (113th overall), a 5-foot-10, 165-pound center skated the 2021-22 season with the Ontario Hockey League’s Flint Firebirds. He recorded 59 points (18-41-59), a plus-nine rating and 24 penalty minutes in 67 games during his first major junior campaign. Lombardi also tallied 15 points (7-8-15) and six penalty minutes in 19 postseason games as the Firebirds reached the Western Conference Final for the first time in franchise history, falling to the Windsor Spitfires in seven games. Lombardi did not play in 2020-21 due to the cancelation of the OHL season. Prior to joining the Firebirds, Lombardi racked up 37 points (13-24-37) in 33 games with the Toronto Titans of the Greater Toronto Hockey League, in addition to one assist in six Ontario Junior Hockey League games with the Toronto Jr. Canadiens during the 2019-20 season.

With their third and final selection of the fourth round (129th overall), the Red Wings chose left wing Maximilian Kilpinen, a 6-foot, 165-pound forward who spent the majority of last season with Örebro’s under-20 team. Kilpinen tallied 25 points (14-11-25) and a plus-four rating in 27 games in Sweden’s top junior league before contributing nine points (4-5-9) and a plus-eight rating in six postseason appearances. He also showed 10 points (6-4-10), a plus-eight rating and two penalty minutes in seven games on the under-18 circuit, along with four points (1-3-4) and  two penalty minutes in four playoff games. The Stockholm, Sweden, native spent the entire 2020-21 season with Örebro’s under-18 club at the regional level, picking up 15 points (6-9-15) and six penalty minutes in 12 contests.

The following round, Detroit drafted Tnias Mathurin (137th overall), a 6-foot-2, 200-pound defenseman who played the 2021-22 campaign with the OHL’s North Bay Battalion. Mathurin recorded 15 points (3-12-15), a plus-17 rating and 26 penalty minutes in 44 games, in addition to four assists, a plus-three rating and two penalty minutes in 13 postseason appearances. The Ajax, Ont., native did not see game action in 2020-21 due to cancelation of the OHL season. Prior to beginning his major junior career, Mathurin developed with the Ajax/Pickering Raiders AAA program, serving as team captain of the under-16 squad in 2019-20 as he logged 19 points (7-12-19) and 16 penalty minutes in 35 games before showing 14 points (2-12-14) in 10 playoff matchups.

With his first of two picks in the seventh round, Detroit selected center Owen Mehlenbacher (201st overall),  a 6-foot-2, 189-pound forward who has spent the last two seasons with the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks. He amassed 42 points (17-25-42), a plus-12 rating and 56 penalty minutes in 56 games during the 2021-22 campaign, earning a place on the league’s All-Academic Team. Additionally, Mehlenbacher notched eight points (4-4-8) and six penalty minutes in nine postseason appearances as the Lumberjacks reached the Eastern Conference Final. The Fort Erie, Ont., native made his USHL debut with Muskegon in 2020-21, collecting 12 points (8-4-12) and 21 penalty minutes in along with two assists in four playoff games. Prior to arriving in Muskegon, Mehlenbacher produced 68 points (36-32-68) and 54 penalty minutes in 69 games for the Buffalo Jr. Sabres’ under-15 team in 2019-20. Mehlenbacher is committed to the University of Wisconsin for the 2022-23 season, where he will play under former Red Wings assistant coach Tony Granato.

Later in the seventh round (212th overall), the Red Wings made their final pick by taking center Brennan Ali. The 6-foot, 193-pound forward spent the majority of the 2021-22 season at Avon Old Farms High School in Avon, Conn., where he registered 34 points (15-19-34) in 27 games. Additionally, he saw game action with the U.S. National Development Program (NTDP) in Plymouth, Mich., picking up an assist in two appearances with the under-18 team. Ali also racked up two helpers and four penalty minutes in four games with the USHL’s Lincoln Stars. Ali originally skated with the NTDP in 2020-21, recording three points (1-2-3) in 11 games for the under-17 squad and two points (1-1-2) in 12 USHL games. A native of Glencoe, Ill., Ali is committed to the University of Notre Dame for the 2022-23 campaign.

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