Gregg Krupa’s top 10 Red Wings prospects

Go through the gallery above (mobile users can go HERE) to see an analysis on the Red Wings’ top 10 prospects by Gregg Krupa of The Detroit News.

Detroit – GM Ken Holland says he believes it. So does Jeff Blashill, the coach.

The Red Wings’ greatest potential for improvement is to develop from within.

Introducing Dylan Larkin, Alexey Marchenko and Andreas Athanasiou to the lineup last season and making Petr Mrazek the No. 1 goaltender is likely to be followed by playing time for more prospects beginning in October and beyond.

Some fans are impatient, yearning for bigger roles for “the kids.” But the Red Wings’ brass say young players must take jobs from veterans, as Larkin did last year.

In measuring the value of the current crop of prospects, some get a boost from their growing terms of service in AHL.

Others are notable for because their skill set, when fully developed, may help fill the Wings’ need for puck-moving defensemen and forwards with advanced goal-scoring skill.

In others, so much hope is invested that, despite being teenagers, their potential value is already considerable.

For the purposes of this ranking, the demarcation between roster player and prospect falls between Athanasiou, who played in 37 regular-season and five playoff games for the Wings last season, and Anthony Mantha, who played 10 before returning to Grand Rapids.