Red Wings Prospect Takes The Long Way Home

The route to a World Junior Championship gold medal for Detroit Red Wings prospect Eddie Genborg and Sweden was a long time coming. Their journey home from that success was a long time arriving.

For some members of the Swedish team, the trip from Minneapolis back to their Scandinavian homeland took more than 30 hours to complete.

“It was tough,” Genborg told Swedish website Expressen. “We first flew to Reykjavik, then to Helsinki. You haven’t slept for many hours.”

Swedish goalie Herman Liv, the son of one-time Detroit prospect Stefan Liv, endured the longest road home of them all. He missed his flight out of Minneapolis and was stuck at the airport by himself for eight hours.

Former Red Wings Player Gallant Steps Down

His first season as coach of the KHL Shanghai Dragons has ended abruptly for former Red Wings forward Gerard Gallant. He has stepped down due to health reasons. Gallant has returned to North America to have a heart condition treated.

“Unfortunately, in recent weeks, my health has not allowed me to fully perform my duties,” Gallant said on the club’s website. “In this situation, I felt it was right to leave my post.

Thank you Turk 💔💔💔 pic.twitter.com/8e2lGfFD9h

— Shanghai Dragons (@shadragons) January 13, 2026

“We consulted with the management and parted as friends. I believe the team will be able to emerge from this difficult situation with honor.”

Mike Kelly, once the coach of the OHL Windsor Spitfires and a long-time NHL assistant, is taking over as coach of the Dragons.

Sprong On The Move Again

Daniel Sprong is probably a guy who is getting used to living out of a suitcase. The former Red Wings forward is on the move again. He’s been traded in the KHL, from CSKA Moscow to Avtomobilist. It was a straight cash transaction. CSKA Moscow is getting 100 million rubles – approximately $1.27 million US dollars – for the ex-Detroit winger.

CSKA points leader Daniel Sprong 🇳🇱 (31 PTS, 29 GP) on his way to Ekaterinburg! pic.twitter.com/re1yMhTnAx

— KHL (@khl_eng) January 10, 2026

Sprong was the leading scorer with CSKA Moscow, but fell out of favor with coach Igor Nikitin. Sprong was a healthy scratch for every game since November 27. Nikitin felt that Sprong put himself ahead of the team. There were also reports in the Russian media that he clashed with teammates Nikolai Kovalenko and Denis Zernov.

Sprong, who played for the Red Wings in 2023-24, is suiting up for his 11th team since 2019.

Former Griffins Goalie Suspended

It’s rare for a league to be issuing a suspension to a goalie. However, that was exactly what the KHL was doling out to one-time Detroit prospect Patrik Rybar. Playing for Shanghai against CSKA Moscow in a January 10 game, Rybar delivered what’s known in the hockey lexicon as The Separator. He took his goalie stick and drove it upwards between the legs of CSKA’s Ivan Drozdov as the forward was screening him at the net front.

Rybar, who played for the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins in 2018-19, was handed a one-game suspension by the KHL.