Jeff Blashill was highly complimentary of Tomas Nosek during the Grand Rapids Griffins run to the Calder Cup.
“I don’t know what all the pieces will be for us next season, but certainly Nosek made us confident he can be an effective NHL player,” said Blashill, the Red Wings head coach, as he voiced his observations of the AHL playoffs.
Nosek may soon be an effective NHL player, as Blashill suggested, but it appears it won’t be for the Red Wings.
Per Craig Custance of The Athletic Detroit, Nosek is “most likely” to be selected by the Vegas Golden Knights in the expansion draft.
Nosek was never drafted, but has worked his way into becoming a nice prospect for the Red Wings. He certainly brings an element of size up front, standing 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds. In Grand Rapids this season, he achieved career highs for assists (26) and points (41), before putting together a very impressive postseason, scoring 10 goals and 22 points in 19 games, as Grand Rapids won the Calder Cup.
Nosek was among a trio of Red Wings prospects -- included in that group was Tyler Bertuzzi and 2015 first-round pick Evgeny Svechnikov -- that had particularly strong playoff performances for the Griffins and may have challenged for spots up front with the big club next season.
If Nosek is selected by the Golden Knights, it would keep goalie Petr Mrazek with the Red Wings -- at least for now, anyway.
The Red Wings raised eyebrows by exposing Mrazek in the first place, with his attitude being among the reported reasons why Detroit took such a step.