The seventh round of the draft is when NHL teams roll the dice, and the Detroit Red Wings are no exception to this rule.

Sometimes, it pays dividends. Center Emmitt Finnie (201st overall, 2023) quickly earned an NHL contract. He’ll be playing this season with the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins. Goalie Carter Gylander (191st, 2019) will be playing his second season in the Red Wings organization this season, likely as the No. 1 netminder for the ECHL Toledo Walleye.

To be honest, though, most rolls come up snake eyes. Kirill Tyutyayev (190th, 2019) was a junior scoring sensation in Russia. He scored twice in 39 games with the Griffins.

The jury is still out on several other seventh-rounders taken during the Steve Yzerman era who are currently playing college hockey. That list includes Kienan Draper (Michigan), Owen Mehlenbacher (UMass), Brennan Ali (Notre Dame), and Fisher Scott (Colorado College).

Robertson-Palmer Playing Junior Hockey This Season

Where will center Grayden Robertson-Palmer (204th, 2025) fit into this picture? Time will tell, but the early returns are encouraging.

Selected out of the Massachusetts prep school Phillips Andover, Robertson-Palmer will be playing this season with the QMJHL Moncton Wildcats. That’s the same team as goalie Rudy Guimond, another Red Wings prospect.

Robertson-Palmer has been turning heads in Moncton’s training camp. He tallied a highlight-reel goal during a scrimmage. He scored a goal in the Wildcats’ most recent QMJHL preseason game.

Stepping into the major junior ranks from high-school hockey, Roberson-Palmer is expecting the transition to be challenging.

“I think having to learn how to like read off plays, move my body different ways, cut back in different ways and keep my head up all the time so I don’t sustain any big injuries,” he assesses as his main challenges. “I think that’s going to be the biggest difference for me.”

Red Wings Pick A Natural-Born Leader

Those who know him best, his teammates at Phillips Andover, praise the leadership qualities that Robertson-Palmer exhibits.

Whether it was organizing a team dinner or a Secret Santa, or providing a teammate with a non-judgmental sounding board, his teammates talk about how they could always count on Robertson-Palmer to be at the forefront of the team’s leadership group.

“I feel like he’s the kind of guy who’s always there for you if you need something or just want to talk,” teammate Edouard Lord told The Phillipian. “He’s good at making sure everyone’s in a good mental state.”

What excites the Red Wings about Robertson-Palmer is his elite-level competitiveness and skating ability.

“He’s a solid kid, thick build, competitive kid that can really skate,” Red Wings assistant GM and director of amateur scouting Kris Draper said. “I think that was intriguing for us – the way he plays the game and the intensity that he plays the game with.”

At 5-foot-11, 197 pounds, Robertson-Palmer is built like a fire plug. His combination of tempo and fearlessness makes him an effective performer.

“I play the game hard, play the game fast,” Robertson-Palmer said. “Even though I’m not the biggest guy, I’m not afraid to get in there, get some contact, make plays.

“I’m a pass-first kind of guy. I can shoot if I need to, but I like to move the puck, get my teammates involved. And I just work really hard, and I have a really good motor.”