Detroit Red Wings

Detroit Draft Pick Mastrosimone Has Options; Red Wings Aren’t One of Them

Mastrosimone could return to Arizona State if he doesn’t get a pro offer

Published

12 months ago

May 4, 2023

Bob Duff

The Red Wings selected Robert Mastrosimone 54th overall in the 2019 NHL entry draft.

It appears that Robert Mastrosimone can officially be classified as the first bust of the Detroit Red Wings draft under GM Steve Yzerman. Detroit spent a second-round pick (54th overall) to claim the undersized left-winger (5-foot-10, 170 pounds) in the 2019 NHL entry draft, Yzerman’s first as GM of the team.

However, after four underwhelming college campaigns – three with the Boston Terriers and one for the Arizona State Sun Devils – the Red Wings are opting to walk away from the third player ever drafted on Yzerman’s watch.

Robert Mastrosimone’s OT winner against the Gophers.

With a beautiful call by @JFurtado97 https://t.co/6HZtHblfDd pic.twitter.com/xH2PAAn1ja

— Chase Beardsley (@ChaseBeardsley_) April 14, 2023

If you were still holding onto the notion that the Red Wings were looking to get Mastrosimone to sign on the dotted line, Sun Devils coach Greg Powers all but literally threw cold water on the possibility.

“He’s playing the waiting game and seeing what’s going to be available as a free agent,” Powers told gophnx.com about Mastrosimone’s future plans. “There’s a lot of teams that are interested in him, but it doesn’t look like Detroit is going to happen.”

If the Red Wings were going to ink Mastrosimone to a contract, in all likelihood it would’ve happened in March when the Sun Devils were failing to qualify for the NCAA Tournament. At that stage of the season, Detroit’s AHL farm club the Grand Rapids Griffins were desperate for scoring to help their injury-depleted lineup.

Mastrosimone Has Remaining College Eligibility

One option still on the table is for Mastrosimone to return for another season at Arizona State.”It’s just a waiting game, but he has the option to come back,” Powers confirmed. “It’s a good option and he’s open to it.”

So much so that Mastrosimone is hedging his bets. He’s already planning to enroll at Arizona State for next fall and is doing his offseason conditioning work at the school.

“It’s not something that we’re going to know about for a while,” Powers said of Mastrosimone’s future. “I know he wants to get a contract and play pro hockey and I’m confident that can happen for him, but this is going to remain an option.

“We have models built where he’s coming back and we have models if he doesn’t but when he makes that decision, he has a home. He’s just going to be an unbelievable cherry on top if it happens.”