The Detroit Red Wings have had their ups and downs this season. This is to be expected of a team carrying three rookies on its roster. However, there has been one constant so far in 2025-26. Rookie Emmitt Finnie is making a massive impact on the ice.
This impact certainly isn’t going unnoticed, either. He has turned heads since his first game of the 2025-26 preseason. Now, he is starting to gain more national recognition. The Red Wings winger was named the team’s biggest surprise of the season by The Athletic over the weekend.
“How could it be anyone other than the 2023 seventh-round pick? Finnie not only made the Red Wings out of camp at age 20, but is playing on their top line and has seven points through the team’s first eight games,” beat reporter Max Bultman wrote of Finnie.
Bultman’s words were reinforced following the publication of The Athletic’s list. The Red Wings took on the St. Louis Blues on Sunday. While they fell behind 4-0, Finnie was a major part in sparking Detroit’s comeback. The Winged Wheel won the game 6-4, thanks in part to a goal from Finnie in the second period. He now has eight points in nine games as a result.
Emmitt Finnie Making a Difference Away From Puck
Bruce Bennett/Getty ImagesDetroit Red Wings rookie Emmitt Finnie has performed well on the first line this season.
Of course, it’s easy to look at a rookie producing offensively and chalk it up to beginner’s luck. But Finnie’s success has not come cheap. He is getting himself in dangerous areas of the ice. And he has made himself a threat to make a play anytime he has the puck in the offensive zone.
However, it’s not just his play on the puck that’s impressive. The rookie winger is also a fantastic player away from it. In fact, his attention to the little details may be his biggest strength. It’s certainly something this team has been missing for some time.
“Even if the scoring numbers were much more modest, though, the Red Wings wouldn’t care because of all the little things Finnie does: killing penalties, forechecking, finishing hits and winning races and puck battles. He’s been a jolt of energy on the ice and is quickly establishing himself as a legit piece of the team’s future,” Bultman noted over the weekend.
Red Wings’ Top Line Finding Success as a Unit
Finnie is not the only player succeeding on Detroit’s top line, of course. Though some parts have changed, the other constant has also performed well. Captain Dylan Larkin has once again found himself off to a hot start with 13 points in nine games.
Finnie and Larkin have led the way for Detroit so far. They are first and second on the team in goals. Finnie is also tied with Alex DeBrincat for second in points behind Larkin on the Red Wings. The rookie’s play away from the puck has certainly helped Detroit’s captain find an extra gear on the ice.
Whether he can keep this up is anyone’s guess. However, the early returns are certainly promising. Detroit may have another gem on its hands with the former seventh-round pick.
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