Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman has done a commendable job amassing a full-to-overflowing war chest of futures like clockwork, and his retinue of scouts have held up their end of the bargain with sound investments at nearly every turn. The end result is a system that's the envy of many of their competitors.

What's more, this group may even place higher in our rankings if we allowed for an accounting of the prospects that didn't crack the top 15. Players like Jan Bednář, Dylan James, Robert Mastrosimone, Ethan Phillips, Redmond Savage, and Dmitri Buchelnikov would be a virtual lock for any other team in this exercise. But in a pool as deep as Detroit's, no dice.

In lieu of that, we'll get you up to speed on the players that feature most prominently in the Red Wing's future. It's a group that features top-of-the-lineup potential to at least some degree at every position and more than its fair share of potential support pieces.