Helene St. James | Detroit Free Press

Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press

MONTREAL — The Detroit Red Wings could have a new face in the lineup as soon as Saturday.

The team signed two college free agent forwards Tuesday in Ryan Kuffner of Princeton and Michigan State’s Taro Hirose. Both need work visas, and Hirose still has a test to finish, but both are expected in Detroit by the end of this week.

Both had been heavily scouted by the team’s director of player evaluation, Jiri Fischer.

“Fisch has been on Kuffner for a couple of years,” Wings general manager Ken Holland told the Free Press. “We tried to sign him last year but he decided to stay in school one more year. He scored a lot of goals in college hockey. Fisch and I flew in Friday night to watch Princeton and Brown. He can score. Makes quick decisions, is competitive. Good on the wall.

“Both guys are going to be in Detroit for the rest of the year. We’re going to play them some games so they see what the NHL is all about. We’re getting two college players that have been very productive in college hockey this year.”

Rey Del Rio

Kuffner, 22, totaled 75 goals in 132 games to become Princeton’s all-time leading goal scorer. His 22 goals this season paced the ECAC and was fourth in the nation. He’s 6-1, 195 pounds.

Hirose, 22, has 116 points in 106 games over three seasons at MSU. The 5-10, 160-pound left wing led the nation this season in points (50), points-per-game (1.47), assists (35), multi-point games (15) and three-point games (9). He was at the Wings’ development camp last summer.

“Taro has high hockey IQ, he’s got nice stick skills,” Holland said. “We watched him Saturday at Notre Dame. Taro is a little bit more of a playmaker, Kuffner is a little bit more of a scorer, but they both have good hockey sense.

“They’ll be in Detroit with us, and then hopefully come into training camp next season and try to make our team.”