Leonard, Tralmaks, Watson Reassigned to Griffins
AHL Grand Rapids Griffins

Leonard, Tralmaks, Watson Reassigned to Griffins

Published on March 13, 2026 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release


GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Detroit Red Wings reassigned forwards John Leonard, Eduards Tralmaks and Austin Watson to the Grand Rapids Griffins.

Watson, a 14-year veteran, has 20 points (11-9-20), 137 penalty minutes and a plus-two rating in 48 games with Grand Rapids this season. Last campaign, the Ann Arbor, Michigan, native competed in his first AHL All-Star Classic and totaled 42 points (19-23-42), 112 penalty minutes and a plus-10 rating in 60 regular-season games with the Griffins. Watson also collected three goals in 13 appearances with the Red Wings in 2024-25. Throughout parts of 11 NHL seasons since 2012-13, the 34-year-old has 121 points (63-58-121) and 722 penalty minutes in 528 games. In the AHL since the spring of 2011, Watson has 194 points (103-91-194), 338 penalty minutes and a plus-22 rating in 342 contests. Watson was the 18th overall pick by the Nashville Predators in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

Leonard has 41 points and 27 goals in 34 games with the Griffins this season to go along with six penalty minutes, eight game-winners and a plus-11 rating. In the AHL rankings, the sixth-year veteran is tied for third in goals and first in game-winners. Leonard returned to the ice on Wednesday after rehabbing an injury that kept him sidelined for 12 straight games from Jan. 31-Feb. 28. He was named the Fortune Tires "Expect More" AHL Player of the Month for November with 16 points (9-7-16) in 10 games and became just the third player in franchise history to win the award, joining Riley Barber (April 2022) and Chris Minard (Feb. 2012). Leonard has four points (2-2-4) in nine games with the Red Wings this season, making his Detroit debut on Dec. 16 against the New York Islanders. The 27-year-old showed a three-game point streak with the Red Wings from Dec. 17-21 (2-1-3) and scored a goal in consecutive outings from Dec. 20-21. At the NHL level, Leonard has 21 points (8-13-21) in 79 games across parts of five seasons.

Tralmaks has 28 points (18-10-28), six penalty minutes and a plus-24 rating in 49 games with the Griffins. He ranks among the team leaders in points (6th), goals (4th), and plus-minus rating (T4th). In addition, his plus-24 rating is tied for 13th among all skaters in the AHL. Tralmaks, a native of Riga, Latvia, competed for his home country in the 2026 Winter Olympics, pacing the team in points (3-1-4) and goals (3) while also tying for eighth in goals among all skaters at the tournament. Throughout his four-year AHL career, the 29-year-old has 69 points (40-29-69), 48 penalty minutes and a plus-47 rating in 136 outings. Last season with Rytiri Kladno in the top pro league in Czechia, Tralmaks ranked first on the circuit with 51 points (23-28-51) in 48 contests.

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American Hockey League Stories from March 13, 2026


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