The Detroit chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association has officially nominated forward Dominik Shine as the club's 2026 nominee for the Bill Masterton Trophy.
The Detroit chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association has officially nominated forward Dominik Shine as the club's 2026 nominee for the Bill Masterton Trophy, which goes annually to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to the game.
Shine is one of the true examples of a homegrown talent who not only grew up rooting for the Detroit Red Wings, but also has now gotten a chance to live out that childhood dream by playing for the club.
Having spent most of his professional career in the American Hockey League with the Grand Rapids Griffins, he got his first taste of NHL action last season and has appeared in multiple games this season, even picking up his first three career NHL goals.
A Pinckney, Michigan native, Shine played collegiately for the Northern Michigan University Wildcats before signing an amateur tryout agreement with the Griffins in March 2017.
Since then, Shine has been a regular in the Griffins' lineup and was named team captain prior to this season.
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Shine, who scored his first NHL goal in early March as part of a 3-0 win over the New Jersey Devils, said that it was his father who first got him into playing hockey.
"It was just awesome, it was something you dream about as a kid," he said. "I used to watch the Red Wings my whole life, I was a huge fan. That's why I started playing; my dad loved the Red Wings. Nobody in my family really played hockey, and he thought it would be a cool sport for me to play."
Having grown up idolizing the Red Wings' Stanley Cup-winning squads of the late 1990s and early 2000s, actually to suit up for the team is nothing short of an amazing feeling.
"Being a kid from Michigan, growing up in the late 90s, and early 2000s...back then, they were winning everything," Shine said. "I went to parades, I remember going. I think just being a kid from Michigan, it's something you dream about.
To be out here, it's really amazing. I feel really proud."
Shine is also proud to have his father, who still lives locally, in attendance at home games in Detroit when he has the chance.
"My dad, he comes to every game, and he's so fired up," Shine said. "I think that's the coolest thing for me, since he lives here in Allan Park, he can zip over for a game. It's really cool."
So far, Shine has appeared in 16 NHL games this season, tallying three goals.
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