Detroit targets a versatile Sarnia Sting standout whose blend of speed, vision, and physicality could bolster their prospect pipeline during a pivotal mid-round draft window.
Although the Detroit Red Wings don't pick until 47th overall in the second round of next week's draft, that didn't stop the organization from doing their homework at Saturday's NHL Scouting Combine in Buffalo.
The Vaughan, Ontario native is coming off a solid draft year with the Sarnia Sting, finishing with 12 goals and 19 assists for 31 points in 45 games. He then boosted his stock further at the U18 World Championships, where scouts got a fuller picture of what he brings to the table as a prospect.
Among the teams he sat down with at the Combine was Detroit, a meeting he described as fairly standard among the pack of interviews prospects work through during the weekend.
When it comes to describing his own game, Di Iorio paints the picture of a center who can contribute in multiple ways. He identifies as a two-way player who leans on his speed and vision to create plays for his teammates, and said he takes pride in being the kind of player who can handle all situations on the ice.
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He also pointed to his physicality as a dimension of his game that teams got a clear look at during the U18 World Championships, a tournament that gave him the opportunity to show he can compete at a high level against the best players in his age group.
The six-foot-one, near-200 pound center is widely projected to come off the board somewhere in the 50 to 70 pick range, a window that falls close to Detroit's current draft position.
The Red Wings hold the 79th overall pick in the third round, and while that sits just outside the range where Di Iorio is expected to land, Detroit has shown a willingness to be active in adding draft capital, which could give them the flexibility to move up if a player they like is still available.
Di Iorio is expected to return to Sarnia next season and continue developing his game in the OHL, giving him another year to sharpen the details of his two-way game before making the jump to the professional level.
For a Red Wings organization that has been steadily building out its prospect pipeline, landing a player with Di Iorio's skill set and positional profile at that stage of the draft would represent exactly the kind of meaningful addition they are looking to make.
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