For the first time in 25 years the Detroit Red Wings missed the playoffs in 2016-17 and that meant getting a top-10 pick for the first time since the streak started in 1991, when they selected Martin Lapointe with the No.10 overall pick and their highest pick since taking Keith Primeau at No.3 the year prior.

Unfortunately for the Red Wings, they got a top-10 pick in a year in which the NHL Entry Draft was deemed weak. However, there were still a lot talented names at the top of the draft rankings, particularly at positions of need—centre and defence.

On Friday night Red Wings fans watched with intent, hoping that Ken Holland and his scouting staff would land a difference maker. Detroit fans have had their faith in Holland diminish over the past few seasons but could he restore faith with a solid 2017 draft?

With the No.1 overall pick the New Jersey Devils select Nico Hischier. Nolan Patrick. Miro Heiskanen. Cale Makar. The draft was progressing just as many expected it would. However, one player who was expected to be a top-5 pick dropped. Gabriel Vilardi of the Windsor Spitfires fell to the Red Wings and many expected it was a no-brainer for Holland and the Red Wings. Instead, the Red Wings came out and took Michael Rasmussen of the Tri-City Americans—much to the chagrin of Red Wings fans.

For the next 24 hours, Red Wings fans took to Twitter to express their displeasure with the selection—myself included—but we can take some solace in the fact that Rasmussen does project to be a future top-6 forward and we should be excited about him joining our prospect pool and here’s why:

First off, you have to love the size that Rasmussen brings to the table. The Surrey, B.C. native is already 6-foot-6, 221 lbs. at 18-years-old, so you know he’s not done filling out. Rasmussen uses his size to retrieve pucks and setup in the offensive zone. His size allows him to play a power forward game and makes him a perfect net-front presence on the power-play. He showcases a willingness to go to the front of the net on every shift. Rasmussen scored 32 goals with 23 assists (55 points) in 50 games with Tri-City this season and 15 of those goals came with the man advantage. If you followed the Red Wings closely last year, you know they need help on the power-play after finishing 27th in the NHL with a 15.1 percent conversion rate a season ago.

Despite being ranked behind the aforementioned Vilardi, Rasmussen was the fifth ranked North American Skater according to NHL Central Scouting. Here is what Central Scout has to say about the power-forward’s game:

Rasmussen started the 2016-17 campaign with a four-goal game and he showed off his soft touch around the net and ability to snipe from the hashmarks.

Rasmussen’s final season totals aren’t overly impressive for a top-10 pick, but he fractured his wrist in February and had his season cut short. If he had been healthy for all 72 regular season games, Rasmussen was on-pace for a 46-goal, 33-assist (79 points) campaign—46 goals would have been good for sixth in the WHL.

The International Scouting Services called the big centre “almost impossible to move once parked in front of the net.”

The Red Wings clearly weren’t happy with their power-play last year and made a conceded effort to help that in the future. Rasmussen is fearless when going to the net and that will be a huge help going forward. His size and skill combination is comparable to that of fellow Red Wing Anthony Mantha, who will be a big power-play contributor in his own right as he continues to adjust to the NHL.

Size and skill aside, the one thing that isn’t getting enough attention is his demeanour. Rasmussen is said to be serious or all business and that’s what you’re looking for in a young prospect. He is going to work and fight to get better and get to the NHL.

After Friday, questions still remained about this selection, but after rounds 2-to-7 it was obvious that the Red Wings wanted to add a lot of size. Nine of the 11 Red Wings’ 2017 draft picks were at least 6-foot-2 and they picked three players 6-foot-5 or taller, including Rasmussen, goaltender Keith Petruzzelli and centre Jack Adams.

Hopefully for Red Wings fans, they don’t have to watch Vilardi rip it up in Los Angeles and make them regret passing on him for the next decade. But Rasmussen does have a lot of the qualities that the Red Wings need. The majority of the Red Wings’ skilled group is relatively undersized. Gustav Nyquist, Tomas Tatar, Dylan Larkin, Frans Nielsen and Andreas Athanasiou aren’t what you would consider power forwards, which is why adding more size up front makes sense. Rasmussen joins Mantha and Evgeny Svechnikov as the Red Wings’ future power/skill combo players. Each player does it in different fashions, but each have a knack for scoring goals in bunches. With each passing day, this pick is making more sense to me and I’m excited to see how Rasmussen performs in training camp.