The Red Wings are recalling left-wing prospect Carter Mazur from AHL Grand Rapids, per Max Bultman of The Athletic . The 22-year-old will be making his NHL debut if he plays tomorrow against Utah. Detroit opened up a roster spot last night by reassigning veteran forward Sheldon Dries to Grand Rapids, per the league’s transactions log .
Mazur has become one of the more unheralded prospects in the Red Wings’ pipeline. Detroit selected Mazur with the 70th overall pick of the 2021 NHL Draft, just before he began his NCAA career with the University of Denver Pioneers.
He became an effective scorer with the Pios, scoring 36 goals and 75 points in 81 collegiate contests. Additionally, Mazur was rostered on the 2022 National Championship-winning roster, tallying two assists in the championship matchup against Minnesota State.
The Red Wings signed Mazur to his entry-level contract after the 2022-23 NCAA season, and he finished the year with three goals and three assists in six games for Grand Rapids. He continued impressing through his first full season in the AHL, scoring 17 goals and 37 points in 60 games for the Griffins, finishing second on the team in scoring.
Entering the 2024-25 season, there was an outside chance Mazur could crack Detroit’s roster out of training camp. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to break into a saturated Red Wings’ forward core, and he was sent to the Griffins just a few days before the start of the regular season. Injuries have limited Mazur to 20 AHL contests this season, but his scoring efficiency has only improved with seven goals and 15 points.
Given that the Red Wings are fully engaged in the Eastern Conference wild-card race, this shouldn’t be considered an informal tryout with Detroit. The Red Wings hope Mazur’s high motor and offensive talent will translate to the NHL to help them break an eight-year playoff drought.
PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed to this article.