One of the biggest whiffs by the Detroit Red Wings in their history, former 2018 1st round draft selection Filip Zadina isn't even playing in the NHL anymore.
He now plays for HC Davos in the Swiss National League, but is out of action after suffering an upper-body injury.
The former leadership core of the Red Wings led by Ken Holland and director of scouting Tyler Wright made the call to select Zadina with their 1st pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft instead of local product Quinn Hughes, a defenseman from the nearby University of Michigan in the Detroit suburb of Ann Arbor.
Zadina promised that he would make clubs like the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators regret passing on him in the draft by "filling their net with pucks", a pledge that went unfulfilled.
After the Red Wings took Zadina, Hughes went 7th overall to the Vancouver Canucks.
Their respective NHL careers could not have taken a more different path.
Last year, Hughes earned the Norris Trophy as the NHL's best defenseman, was named Canucks captain, and already has set the record for most assists by a Canucks defenseman at just 25 years of age.
Meanwhile, Zadina never clicked with the Red Wings and was eventually traded to the San Jose Sharks; after one year in the Bay Area, he returned overseas.
Zadina departed the NHL having scored just 41 goals and 91 points in 262 games played.
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