The Red Wings have locked up their top pick from last month’s draft, announcing (via Twitter) that they have signed winger Filip Zadina to a three-year, entry-level contract. Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
The 18-year-old was expected by some to go as high as third overall in the draft but he wound up slipping to sixth where Detroit scooped him up. He’s coming off of a very strong first season at the major junior level that saw him score 44 goals along with adding 38 assists in just 57 games with the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL. He also had a strong showing at the World Juniors where he put up seven goals in as many games.
It’s expected that Zadina will make a push for a full-time roster spot in Detroit in training camp where he could slot in as a second or third line forward and add some much-needed secondary scoring. If he fails to crack the roster though, there are some questions surrounding where he could go.
While it was reported earlier this week that he would have to go back to Halifax is he gets cut, GM Ken Holland told reporters, including MLive’s Ansar Khan, on Friday that the league is still looking into Zadina’s situation as to whether he is a CHL-contracted player or on loan from the Czech league. If it’s the latter, he would be eligible to play at the AHL level as early as next season. Holland acknowledged that a decision on that may come over the next couple of weeks.
It has actually recently been reported that he was loaned to Halifax and that he can play in the AHL this season.
“Reported”
The NHL ruled so.