Following the first day of Detroit Red Wings Development Camp, 2025 1st-round draft selection (13th overall) Carter Bear looked ahead to his future with the club and touched on aspects of his game he'd like to improve.
The Detroit Red Wings are hoping for big things from Carter Bear, whom they made their first-round (13th overall) selection in the 2025 NHL Draft.
Not only did Bear have another strong season in the WHL for the Everett Silvertips, but he also helped them reach the Memorial Cup earlier this spring before they were ultimately defeated by the Kitchener Rangers.
He's now ready to transition to the professional side of things, and unless he wows the club in Training Camp in September, he'll begin play in the fall with the American Hockey League affiliate Grand Rapids Griffins.
Following the opening day of Development Camp at Little Caesars Arena, Bear acknowledged the new reality that he's facing - the competition is fiercer, and his opposition is faster and more skilled than what he'd previously faced.
"It's pro now, and it's a whole new level of hockey," Bear said. "It's way different than juniors; it's faster and you've gotta be smarter and stronger. Like I said earlier, I just need to work on my game that Detroit wants me to work on and focus on that, and trust Detroit on whatever their best development is for me, and just trust that. I think it'll all work out.
As far as what aspects of his game he'd like to most work on, Bear pointed to his skating and strength building.
"My skating, I think that's one big thing and obviously, my strength," he said. "Everything strength - in the gym, off the ice, all that stuff. So, that's the big focus I want to work on for sure."
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After scoring 36 goals with 41 assists in 53 regular season games with the Silvertips, Bear tallied another seven goals with 15 assists in 18 postseason games.
The previous season, he suffered a torn Achilles tendon in early March, but had recovered sufficiently to participate in Red Wings Training Camp later in the fall. Thankfully, he showed no lingering negative effects from the setback.
"I don't really like to put any excuse on it, I just started playing, and it went away from my mind, and it started feeling normal," Bear said. "It's all healthy now for sure."
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