Helene St. James

Detroit Free Press

He has a cannon for a shot, shoots right-handed and towers around 6-feet-3.

As the Detroit Red Wings look to improve their defense, some of the turnover will come from their prospects. Xavier Ouellet already is penned onto next season's squad, and the Grand Rapids Griffins' run in the AHL playoffs will help determine whether Ryan Sproul also will be a fit.

Sproul, Ouelllet and Nick Jensen are not waiver-exempt starting next season, putting onus on the Wings to decide whether they are part of the future in Detroit or worth risking on waivers. Where Jensen, who will be 26 in September, is viewed more as a potential depth guy, Sproul entices with his stature (he's listed as 6-feet-4 by the NHL, 6-feet-3 by the Griffins) and offensive talent. He picked up three assists in Grand Rapids' three-game first-round series, after finishing the regular season with a career-best 12 goals and 35 points.

The Griffins next take on Lake Erie tonight. Wings brass plans to be on hand to watch.

"He was one of the most improved players from last year to this year," assistant general manager Ryan Martin told the Free Press. "He has an absolute rocket from the blue line. He's got enough going his way that we need to find out where he fits on our depth chart."

Sproul, 23, has played one game in the NHL, appearing for the Wings in a meaningless season finale April 13, 2014, at St. Louis. He's a good skater, and his top asset is his shot. As with Wings defenseman Brendan Smith, Sproul sometimes makes errors in his own zone. But on a Wings team that has just one offensive right-handed shot in Mike Green, Sproul could be an asset on the third pairing and on power plays.

The Wings are highly unlikely to field three young defensemen in Alexey Marchenko (23), Ouellet (22) and Sproul next season. One or more could be used in a trade package in an effort to bring in a top-four player to stabilize a defense in need of fresh blood.

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Contact Helene St. James: hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.