Prospect Roundup: Brady Cleveland Seeking Larger Role through Transfer Portal

Red Wings 2023 2nd round pick Brady Cleveland entered the transfer portal Monday seeking a bigger role with a new team. This week's Prospect Roundup also features notes on Hunter Johannes, Andrew Gibson, Albert Johansson and Ryan O'Reilly.

Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports - Prospect Roundup: Brady Cleveland Seeking Larger Role through Transfer Portal

After playing in just 16 games this season at Wisconsin, Red Wings prospect Brady Cleveland is in the NCAA’s transfer portal. Largely, the defenseman’s decision centers around his desire to get more ice time.

“I think for me, it was just looking for a team that would utilize me more,” Cleveland told The Hockey News. “I think ice time’s a big factor into that. I think just getting in the lineup for every game is a big part of me transferring, and just being able to play under a coaching staff that believes in me and is willing to give me the ice time and let me develop as a player.”

At 6-foot-5 and 209 pounds, Cleveland is a physical force on the ice with the kind of size that’s hard to find anywhere but the draft. A second-round pick in last year’s NHL Draft, Cleveland believes that he can develop a more well-rounded game through greater ice time, using the skills he has polished in practice at game speed.

“Obviously you have practice every day and stuff, but I think there’s also a certain limitation on what practice can do for a player,” Cleveland said. “And I think it’s actually getting into the games and getting into the lineup and being out there in big moments during the game. I feel like that’s the biggest part of development as a player.”

Cleveland originally committed to Wisconsin under former Red Wings assistant coach Tony Granato, doing so the very first day he could commit as permitted by NCAA rules. He grew up two hours north of Madison in Wausau, Wisc., playing high school and AAA hockey in his home state before spending two years with the National Team Development Program.

Whatever vision Granato had for Cleveland didn’t seem to transfer to first-year Wisconsin coach Mike Hastings era. The Badgers scratched Cleveland more often than not in his freshman season. He did not record a point in his 16 games, but he did block 12 shots and take 19 minutes in penalties, 10 of which came from one misconduct call.

Now, Cleveland looks to venture out of his home state for a larger role. He’s one of five Badgers to enter the transfer portal so far, including Red Wings 2020 fourth-rounder Sam Stange and Minnesota 2023 first-rounder Charlie Stramel.

So far, Cleveland’s destination is unknown. In the two days since Cleveland entered the transfer portal — one of well over 200 entrants so far — no schools have reached out to him directly. He says his adviser, Ed Ward of Newport Sports Management, is inquiring with prospective teams.

Overall, the decision to transfer is a business decision for Cleveland. He wants to be where he can get into games and have the trust of his coaches, honing his game in big time moments.

Over the course of his freshman season, Cleveland said he’s been in contact with the Detroit organization, primarily through Director of Player Development Dan Cleary as well as through others in the organization. But while there’s support coming from management, there isn’t pressure. Cleveland appreciates that.

“They’ll help guide me along the way but they’re not going to tell me what to do, and I respect that,” Cleveland said. “It’s ultimately my decision and my career, so I’m very grateful I have those resources to reach out to when I need help.”

Regardless of where he ends up, Cleveland is still working on rounding out his game. He spent the season at Wisconsin working on his puck handling and offensive zone play. He wants to make the right decisions with the puck, not just playing a part in the offense but creating it, too.

“I know there has not been a lot of offensive upside for my game,” Cleveland said, “but moving forward, I’m looking forward to getting the puck on my stick more in the offensive zone and just even creating more plays offensively and just off the rush and all that. So I think those are probably the biggest areas of my game that I think, personally, I’ve taken a stride and I’m continuing to just keep working on them more and more and then we’ll see what happens.”

The offseason brings a lot more time for Cleveland to work on his overall game as well, and he plans to also pay attention to his skating and edge work. Adequate skating is essential to being an effective player at his size, as mobility translates size into impact. Cleveland’s offseason regimen also includes defensive work, too, primarily on taking away the puck from attackers. Physical defensive play might be his strength, but that also means he has to maintain excellence with training instead of allowing skills to atrophy.

Cleveland possesses the kind of size and raw tools that should find him a home through the transfer portal in the same way they caused Detroit to pick him in the second round. While he doesn’t have a lot of film to reference due to his limited role, those traits should make him a valuable transfer despite his limited number of games.

Around the Prospect Pool

Hunter Johannes
The Grand Rapids Griffins signed North Dakota forward Hunter Johannes, according to Brad Elliott Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald. At 6-foot-3 and 209-pounds, Johannes leverages his size to play heavy and physical, scoring 19 points (12 goals) in 31 games with the Fighting Hawks. He previously spent a year at Lindenwood and three years at American International College before his recent grad year.

Andrew Gibson
Picked just before Brady Cleveland in last year’s draft, Soo defenseman Andrew Gibson placed third in the Western Conference in the OHL coaches poll category of best defensive defenseman. He was also voted the Western Conference’s best shot blocker. At 6-foot-3 and 203 pounds as a right-shot defenseman, Gibson scored 44 points in 68 games in addition to his defensive play. He and the Greyhounds are one game away from a sweep of Guelph in the first round of the OHL playoffs.

Albert Johansson
I wrote about Albert Johansson a bit in yesterday’s mailbag, but I think his recent play is worth a mention here, too. He’s become one of the Griffins’ top pairing defensemen in recent weeks, filling the role of Simon Edvinsson since Detroit called him up. Griffins teammate Brogan Rafferty called Johansson a dark horse in Grand Rapids, playing a quiet game that doesn’t get enough love.

“Albert kind of goes on notice and I think sometimes as a defenseman, that’s good,” Rafferty said. “Most times, that’s good when you’re not getting noticed too much because that means you’re not making a ton of mistakes and you’re just playing solid every night.”

As the Griffins near the Calder Cup playoffs, they’ll need Johansson to maintain that quiet excellence.

Ryan O’Reilly
No, not that Ryan O’Reilly. The Red Wings’ Ryan O’Reilly — a 2018 fourth-rounder — recently transferred from Arizona State to Providence in the NCAA. In four years with the Sun Devils, he scored 26 goals (nine this season) and 55 points across 127 games. Playing for Providence will give him the chance to grow against better Hockey East competition, tutored by 2023 U.S.A. World Junior coach Nate Leaman.

Frozen Four
Next week, Red Wings prospects Shai Buium of Denver and Kienan Draper of Michigan will play in the Frozen Four. Buium has been a key part of the Pioneers' defense, alongside his top 2024 prospect brother, Zeev, who is tied for the nation's lead in points by a defenseman. Kienan Draper is the son of Red Wings assistant general manager Kris Draper.