Late-round draft picks don’t get the luxury of a soft landing. If you’re taken in the seventh round, you’re fighting uphill from Day 1 — smaller signing bonuses, thinner margins for error, and zero promises of patience.
That’s the reality Emmitt Finnie walked into when the Detroit Red Wings called his name at No. 201 in the 2023 NHL Draft. But instead of flinching, the 20-year-old forward is leaning into it like a man who knows the only way to stick is with 100 percent effort, 100 percent of the time.
It hasn’t taken long for Finnie to make believers in Detroit. Just a few days into camp, head coach Todd McLellan, who was hired by the Red Wings during the middle of the 2024-25 season, was already dropping compliments usually reserved for top prospects.
“He’s really grown on me,” McLellan told reporters Saturday, praising Finnie’s pace, detail, and willingness to drive the net.
“There’s some players that have come here, and they’re kind of riding the brake a little bit, maybe afraid to make mistakes, and then there’s players that have come to make the team. And if you’ve been riding the brake a little bit, figure out who you are and let loose. You can’t play conservative all the time. If you make mistakes, we’ll help you. But if your biggest mistake is you’re playing with your foot on the brake all the time, we can’t help you with that. And I don’t think Emmitt’s been one that’s been riding the brake. He’s been full-on gas.”
Emmitt Finnie’s Impressive Effort Earns Him Left Wing Spot on Top Line
That gas pedal approach has earned him more than kind words. On the final day of camp workouts Saturday in Traverse City, McLellan slotted Finnie on the left wing of Detroit’s top line, skating alongside captain Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond.
“Emmitt Finnie played pretty damn well up there,” McLellan said.
He didn’t stop there. Finnie held the same spot during Sunday’s Red & White scrimmage in Grand Rapids, where he buried a goal and looked like he belonged.
“He probably, more than some of the guys, he’s brought his best aspect forward,” assistant coach Alex Tanguay said. “He’s a good skater and puck retriever and he showed it in the (prospect) games in Dallas, and camp and again (Sunday). We put him on a good line and he showed he was able to retrieve pucks and drive the pace with his speed and size for a line.”
Emmitt Finnie Shines as ‘Training Camp Darling’ for Red Wings
For a seventh-rounder, that’s how you force your way into the conversation. Finnie may not carry first-round pedigree, but he’s already proving he can demand first-line looks.
“Every year, you kind of have at least one guy that in camp is like the the preeason or training camp darling, and it really looks like it’s going to be him,” said Scott Bentley of the Locked on Red Wings podcast.
“Getting top line minutes is a big deal, and I think he meshed well, and I think that’s really all that they’re looking for. That is an opening, and they just want somebody who meshes and fits with, you know, arguably the two best players on the team . . . and I think that he did that really well, and then even added his own production, too.”
Podcast co-host Brian Fisher also noted that Finnie, at 6-foot, 170 pounds, brings a bit of an edge to that top line, with an ability to get into the corners and win the 50/50 puck battles.
“It’s honestly up to Emmitt Finnie how far the Emmitt Finnie hype gets, and he’s in a great position to really run with this,” Fisher said.
Red Wings Longshot Hits ‘Full-On Gas’ in Push for Top-Line Minutes