Red Wings Recall Dominik Shine
Feb. 28: The Red Wings recalled Shine today, returning the veteran to their NHL roster. The move fills the lone open spot on Detroit’s roster. Shine played for the Griffins on Wednesday, registering an assist in the team’s loss to the Manitoba Moose.
Feb. 24: Shine and Dries were returned to Grand Rapids today, per a team announcement. The Red Wings are likely expecting Larkin to be available Thursday against the Senators.
Feb. 23: The Red Wings announced they’ve recalled Shine and Dries again ahead of practice today while they await the return of Dylan Larkin from his gold-medal-winning effort with Team USA at the Olympics. With only 12 healthy forwards on the active roster, it stands to reason one of them might stick around as injury insurance after games get going later this week.
Feb. 19, 1:49 p.m.: Both Shine and Dries are headed back to Grand Rapids after today’s practice, the team announced.
Feb. 19, 8:56 a.m.: While Detroit quietly returned Watson and Dries to Grand Rapids after Tuesday’s practice, they’ve brought Dries back up today, along with Dominik Shine, per a team announcement. Shine, 32, has been in Detroit’s system since signing with Grand Rapids as a free agent out of Northern Michigan University in 2027 and finally made his NHL debut last season. In 2025-26, he’s assumed the captaincy for Grand Rapids and is having a career year, scoring 21 goals in only 35 games.
Feb. 17: The Red Wings announced they’ve recalled forwards Austin Watson and Sheldon Dries from AHL Grand Rapids under emergency conditions. They’ll help the team fill out its practices this week until their contingent of Olympians returns to the squad.
Watson is a veteran of 528 NHL games, although none of them have come this season. The 34-year-old joined Detroit on a two-way deal in 2024 after a lengthy run with the Predators, Senators, and Lightning as a fourth-line/press box option, but he’s spent most of his time in the organization in the minors. After playing just 13 NHL games last year, he re-upped on a two-way extension and has suited up exclusively for Grand Rapids this year since clearing waivers during training camp.
While the Michigan native wasn’t more than a standard 10-to-20-point enforcer at the NHL level, he does have a tangible offensive impact in the minors. He racked up 42 points and 112 penalty minutes in 60 contests for the Griffins last year and has clicked at a similar but reduced pace in 2025-26. Through 39 games, he’s 10th on the team in scoring with 19 points (11 goals, eight assists) with a team-high 123 PIMs.
Dries, also a hometown signing, recently inked a two-year, two-way extension that will keep him in the Motor City through 2027-28. He was recalled twice last month under emergency conditions but has still yet to suit up for an NHL team since 2022-23 with the Canucks. Now in his ninth professional season, he has 277 points in 378 career AHL games – including a 17-16–33 scoring line in 39 games with Grand Rapids this year as an alternate captain.
Detroit Red Wings Reassign Austin Watson
11/3/2025: The Red Wings announced today that they’ve reassigned Watson back to AHL Grand Rapids. The Red Wings played in three games from Oct. 30 through Nov. 3, but Watson didn’t dress for any of them.
The main benefit for Watson during this recall was financial: he will receive a prorated bump in pay, as he has a $775K NHL salary and a $375K AHL salary. That will make it more likely he will be able to exceed his $400K guarantee by the end of the season, should he be recalled again down the line. He also gains pension credits for those three games for which he was on the NHL roster.
Therefore, while this recall did not pay any on-ice dividends for Watson, the Red Wings’ choice to provide the veteran with some additional time on its NHL roster did have some financial benefits for the player.
10/30/2025: According to a team announcement, the Detroit Red Wings have recalled forward Austin Watson from the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins. Detroit has had an open roster spot for the last few days after reassigning prospect Michael Brandsegg-Nygard on Monday.
Despite taking Brandsegg-Nygard’s spot on the active roster, there’s little chance for consistent playing time for Watson. Even without veteran Patrick Kane for the foreseeable future, the team has Elmer Soderblom, who has a much higher ceiling than Watson, to fall back on.
If Watson does enter the lineup at any point over the current recall, the Red Wings will know exactly what to expect. The 11-year veteran is in his second year with the organization, scoring three goals in 13 games for Detroit last year, averaging 7:51 of ice time.
The only value Watson can provide is his physicality and aggression. Since debuting with the Nashville Predators during the 2012-13 season, Watson has accrued 722 PIMs in 528 games while collecting 1,245 hits. Interestingly, he’s been more of an offensive contributor in the AHL, scoring 94 goals and 176 points in 298 games while managing 221 PIMs. It’s important to note that before his time with the Griffins, Watson had only managed 90 PIMs in the AHL.
Detroit begins a four-game road trip through the NHL’s Pacific Division tonight against the Los Angeles Kings. Given that no teams on the trip are particularly physical, the earliest Watson could be expected to enter the lineup is next Friday against the New York Rangers, who have the third-most hits to start the 2025-26 campaign.
Waivers: 10/1/25
With less than a week to go until the regular season, waiver season is in full swing. According to PuckPedia, the largest waiver placement of the preseason has taken place:
Boston Bruins
Colorado Avalanche
D Wyatt Aamodt
F Daniil Gushchin
Detroit Red Wings
F Sheldon Dries
D William Lagesson
F John Leonard
D Ian Mitchell
F Dominik Shine
F Austin Watson
Florida Panthers
F MacKenzie Entwistle
F Nolan Foote
F Wilmer Skoog
Los Angeles Kings
D Samuel Bolduc
F Logan Brown
F Martin Chromiak
G Pheonix Copley
F Glenn Gawdin
F Cole Guttman
D Joe Hicketts
F Andre Lee
F Akil Thomas
F Taylor Ward
Nashville Predators
Philadelphia Flyers
San Jose Sharks
Tampa Bay Lightning
F Nicholas Abruzzese
F Boris Katchouk
F Jakob Pelletier
Utah Mammoth
Washington Capitals
D Louis Belpedio
F Graeme Clarke
F Henrik Rybinski
F Bogdan Trineyev
Winnipeg Jets
Red Wings Recall Austin Watson Under Emergency Conditions
The Detroit Red wings have recalled forward Austin Watson under emergency conditions. He will support the Wings as they approach a stretch of must-win games to keep their playoff hopes alive. Watson was on the Detroit roster through early-April, but was returned to the minors for two games this weekend. He recorded three goals, five points, and six shots on goal in the pair of games.
Watson’s hot weekend brought his AHL scoring up to 19 goals and 42 points in 58 games this season. Those marks place Watson second on the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins in total points, and third on the team in goals. He also leads the team with 96 penalty minutes – 45 more than anyone else on the squad. Watson’s high-event style has translated in bits-and-pieces to the Red Wings’ roster, where he has two points and 17 penalty minutes in eight games this season. He scored his pair of goals on his last NHL recall – netting them in back-to-back games on March 24th and 25th.
Watson spent the last five seasons entirely in the NHL – serving in the role of fourth-line enforcer over stretches with the Nashville Predators, Ottawa Senators, and Tampa Bay Lightning. Minor league games this season mark Watson’s first since he was with Nashville in 2018-19. He’s filled a minimal-usage role everywhere he’s gone, with teams leaning on him to generate tons of hits and take fights – while offering the occasional boost of shooting luck. Those will be the traits that Detroit looks to add in as they prepare to face their Wild Card opposition, the Montreal Canadiens, on Tuesday night.
Red Wings Recall Austin Watson And Brogan Rafferty
The Detroit Red Wings have announced that they’ve recalled forward Austin Watson and defenseman Brogan Rafferty from the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins under emergency conditions.
The 33-year-old Watson has seen limited NHL action this season, dressing in just two games after signing a one-year, two-way deal with the Red Wings back in early October. Watson started out the season on a professional tryout with Detroit but showed enough in training camp and four preseason games to get an NHL deal. The Ann Arbor, Michigan native has spent the bulk of this season in the AHL with the Griffins, tallying 16 goals and 21 assists in 56 games, which is good for second on the team in scoring. Watson has also provided his usual physical presence, notching 94 PIM on the year.
Watson’s play this season has already landed him another one-year, two-way deal for next season, as the Red Wings felt good enough about his efforts to extend him another year.
Rafferty has an opportunity to see his first NHL action since he dressed for the Vancouver Canucks in January 2021. He has played three NHL games in his career, posting a single assist and three blocked shots. The 29-year-old has dressed in 50 games this season for Grand Rapids and has registered six goals and 13 assists along with 17 PIM. In five AHL seasons, the West Dundee, Illinois native has played in 306 games, totalling 30 goals and 138 assists.
Detroit current sits four points behind Montreal for the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference and will be back in action tomorrow night against the Vegas Golden Knights.
Red Wings Sign Austin Watson To A One-Year Extension
March 6, 8:55 a.m.: Watson’s deal carries a $775K cap hit and NHL salary with a $375K minors salary, PuckPedia reports. The contract comes with a $400K guarantee.
March 5, 9:51 p.m.: The Red Wings are keeping one of their depth forwards around for a little while longer. The team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve signed winger Austin Watson to a one-year, two-way contract extension. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The 33-year-old earned a contract for this season via the PTO route after spending training camp with Detroit. He did well enough to earn a one-year, two-way pact that pays $775K in the NHL and $200K in the minors. However, it hasn’t earned him much NHL action this season as he has been limited to just two appearances with the big club, both coming back in October where he was held off the scoresheet in seven minutes of playing time per night.
Instead, Watson has spent the bulk of the campaign with AHL Grand Rapids, his first extended taste of action in the minors since the 2014-15 campaign when he was a prospect with Nashville. In 51 games with the Griffins, he has 12 goals and 19 assists along with 91 penalty minutes.
In his career, Watson has 517 NHL appearances under his belt over parts of 11 seasons where he has 118 points, 707 penalty minutes, and 1,215 hits. While he could have tested free agency again this summer and potentially changed organizations for the fourth straight year, he’ll now stay with the Red Wings where he’ll likely remain as a veteran option in Grand Rapids.
Red Wings Reassign Austin Watson
Oct. 31: Watson was demoted back to Grand Rapids on Thursday morning, the team announced. He logged a -1 rating, one shot on goal and four hits in 9:06 of ice time in last night’s loss to the Jets in place of Tarasenko, who wasn’t able to play due to his illness.
Oct. 30: The Red Wings announced today they’ve recalled winger Austin Watson from AHL Grand Rapids under emergency conditions. Detroit has an open roster spot, so no corresponding transaction is needed.
Watson comes up to give the Red Wings 12 available forwards in case Vladimir Tarasenko, who head coach Derek Lalonde told reporters is a game-time decision tonight against the Jets with an illness, can’t play (via Sean Shapiro of EP Rinkside). If he plays, it would be just his second appearance of the season. Signed to a PTO by Detroit in late August, Watson earned a two-way deal after a successful training camp and subsequently cleared waivers. He’s spent the entire 2024-25 campaign in the minors aside from a one-day recall on Oct. 14, which resulted in him entering the lineup against the Rangers. He played under five minutes and posted a -1 rating with a minor penalty.
The 32-year-old has done well in his first taste of minor league action since a conditioning stint in the 2018-19 campaign. Watson is tied for the team lead in scoring with six assists through seven games, leading them in both PIMs (19) and rating (+6). While he’s never shown the offensive upside at the NHL level to be much more than a fourth-line piece, he’s suiting up as one of the best power forwards in the AHL this season.
Watson can remain on the NHL roster for 28 days or play nine more NHL games before he needs waivers again to return to the minors. He spent last year with the Lightning, scoring twice and adding a pair of assists in 33 appearances. The 2010 first-round pick of the Predators has made 519 NHL appearances for Detroit, Nashville, Ottawa, and Tampa Bay dating back to the 2012-13 campaign.
Red Wings Reassign Austin Watson, Recall Justin Holl
Oct. 16: Detroit announced Holl has been recalled back to the NHL roster today, suggesting his brief demotion yesterday was solely to delay his waiver exemption expiring and to bank a bit of cap space. Watson wasn’t part of the announcement and remains on assignment to Grand Rapids, so his demotion may be more permanent.
Oct. 15: The Red Wings have returned veterans Austin Watson and Justin Holl to AHL Grand Rapids, the team announced today. They now have a pair of open roster spots and over $2.5MM in projected cap space, per PuckPedia.
It was an extremely short stint on the NHL roster for Watson, who was just recalled yesterday. The 32-year-old enforcer made his Detroit debut in last night’s 4-1 loss to the Rangers, posting a -1 rating, a minor penalty, and two hits in just 4:54 of ice time. The veteran of over 500 NHL games attended Red Wings training camp on a PTO and landed a two-way contract as a result, but landed on waivers and began the season in Grand Rapids after going unclaimed. He had just two goals and four points in 33 games for the Lightning last year, all career-lows for him as a full-timer.
Watson was off to a strong start with the Griffins before the recall in what was his first AHL action since a brief conditioning stint in March of 2019. In two games, he had three assists and a +3 rating for Detroit’s top minor-league affiliate with 7 PIMs. The recall ended up shaving just one day and one game played off his 30-day/10-game waiver exemption, so it’ll still be a while before the Wings need to pass Watson through waivers again to return him to the minors.
Holl getting the boot stands out as more surprising. He and his bloated $3.4MM cap hit ended up on waivers and subsequently in Grand Rapids to begin the season, but he was recalled after Jeff Petry sustained an upper-body injury in the season opener. Holl was thrust into a top-four role as a result, responding with an assist, a +1 rating, and strong advanced possession metrics while averaging 18:38 per game. For a Detroit team that’s struggled to control play at 5-on-5 and has averaged 32.67 shots against per game thus far this season, Holl’s numbers stand out in a positive way.
Nonetheless, it’s back to the farm for him, where he could now be slated to see his first minor-league action since 2018. His reassignment suggests Petry is close to ready, if not completely ready, to return, while Watson’s demotion suggests the same for winger Christian Fischer, who’s day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Red Wings Recall Austin Watson, Assign Ville Husso
Detroit Red Wings goaltender Ville Husso has officially cleared waivers, making him eligible to be assigned to the minor leagues. In a corresponding move, Detroit also recalled forward Austin Watson. Watson is expected to step into the lineup on Monday with forward Christian Fischer dealing with a day-to-day, upper-body injury.
Watson has built a name for himself as one of the league’s final true grinders. He recorded 307 penalty minutes in 175 games over the last three seasons, the seventh-most of any NHL forwards in that span. He climbed that leaderboard while filling a bottom-line role for the Ottawa Senators and Tampa Bay Lightning, with minimal scoring along the way – totaling just 31 points since 2021-22. Detroit marks Watson’s fourth NHL team, after starting his career by spending 10 years, 515 games, and 705 penalty minutes with the Nashville Predators.
While Watson tries to return to the role of NHL fourth-line grinder that he’s become used to, Husso will prepare for his first extended stint in the minors since the 2019-20 season. He’s been a full-time NHL goalie ever since – save for one conditioning game last year. Husso started in Detroit’s season opener this year but got pulled for Cam Talbot after allowing four goals on 14 shots. That was all it took to become the odd man out among Talbot and Alex Lyon. He won’t get any clearer of a path to minutes in Grand Rapids, where top Wings prospect Sebastian Cossa has continued to perform strong as the unrivaled starter. Cossa has managed a .913 save percentage in each of the last three seasons – coming in the WHL, ECHL, and AHL respectively – and started this season off with two strong games this weekend. Grand Rapids’ goaltending situation will be worth monitoring through the short term, as the Griffins try to decide between their top pro prospect and the priciest goalie on Detroit’s payroll.
Red Wings Sign, Waive Auston Watson
Oct. 8, 1:13 p.m.: Watson cleared waivers today, per Friedman. He was on yesterday’s roster submission but has now been assigned to AHL Grand Rapids, per Ansar Khan of MLive.com.
Oct. 7, 1:14 p.m.: Detroit placed Watson on waivers Monday, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. Since he’s been signed and waived on the same day, he can be designated non-roster and not count against the cap for the Red Wings’ opening-night submission.
Oct. 7, 10:02 a.m.: Winger Austin Watson has converted on his professional tryout and signed a two-way deal with the Red Wings, per a team announcement. It’s a league-minimum $775K cap hit and NHL salary with a $200K AHL salary and $275K guarantee, per PuckPedia. As pointed out by The Athletic’s Max Bultman on Sunday, he’ll likely start the season on the NHL roster.
The Wings opened up a roster spot by cutting center prospect Marco Kasper to AHL Grand Rapids yesterday. Watson will need to clear waivers if Detroit wants to send the veteran enforcer to the minors at any point this season, but for now, all signs point to him starting as their 13th forward.
Watson, 32, has 515 games of NHL experience across 10 seasons. He suited up for the Lightning last year after another successful PTO but recorded just two goals and four points in 33 games with 93 PIMs and a +2 rating. The right-shot winger has displayed some offensive upside in flashes, recording 14 goals once during his time with the Predators and hitting the 10-goal mark again with the Senators in 2021-22. But he’s a fourth-line option at most, averaging 10 goals and 19 points per 82 games over his career.
But the 6’4″, 204-lb winger is still an effective physical presence. His possession metrics don’t indicate his heavy style of play translates into any positive impacts defensively at even strength, but he consistently ranks among his team’s hit leaders and has topped 100 PIMs in a season twice (2017-18, 2022-23).