Red Wings sign Mason Appleton to two-year contract

The Detroit Red Wings continued adding on the second day of NHL Free Agency, bringing back a familiar face to hockey fans in Michigan, as center Mason Appleton agreed to a two-year deal through the 2026-27 season. 

The contract will carry an average annual value of $2.9 million, totalling $5.8 million over two seasons for the former Michigan State Spartans standout. 

Appleton, 29, scored 10 goals and 22 points over 71 games with the Winnipeg Jets last season, helping them capture the Presidents’ Trophy, before adding another seven assists in 13 Stanley Cup Playoff games over two rounds. 

By joining the Red Wings, the six-foot-two right-handed center adds a third NHL team to his resume, after spending parts of seven seasons with the Winnipeg Jets, but leaving briefly to play 49 games with the Seattle Kraken in their expansion season in 2021-22, before returning to the Jets. 

Through both his time with the Jets and Kraken, the native of Green Bay, Wisconsin, has scored 57 goals and 138 points in 400 career regular-season games. Additionally, he has spent time in the AHL with the Manitoba Moose, with whom he primarily played during his first two professional seasons. 

While playing with the Michigan State Spartans, Appleton scored 17 goals and 53 points over a combined 72 games in two seasons. 

Initially drafted 168th overall by the Jets in the sixth round of the 2015 NHL Draft, Appleton now hopes to help lift the Red Wings as they look to snap nine seasons of no Stanley Cup Playoff hockey in 2025-26. 

In 2024-25, the Red Wings finished sixth in the Atlantic Division with a record of 39-35-8, and five points behind the Montreal Canadiens for the final Wild Card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. 

The 2025-26 NHL season begins on Oct. 7