The Detroit Red Wings’ Twitter account posted a pair of Tweets of note regarding Sunday’s win in Chicago…
Victory Monday! #LGRW pic.twitter.com/eiRRdCThjl
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) October 25, 2021
The Wings named their “Players of the Week”–the top line…
That first line is ???@Xfinity | #LGRW pic.twitter.com/LIuodccgBO
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) October 25, 2021
And the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan penned a Monday notebook discussing Lucas Raymond’s performance yesterday in both perspective of yesterday’s game itself and in a historical sense:
Raymond is thriving on a line with Bertuzzi and Larkin. Jakub Vrana was expected in that spot. But when Vrana injured his shoulder 10 minutes into training camp and needed surgery, it created an opening for Raymond. Playing on a high-powered line has given Raymond an opportunity to thrive.
“Some of that is situational, some of that is opportunity,” Blashill said of Raymond’s hot start. “He’s getting a hell of an opportunity, and he’s earned some of it. But No. 1, he’s in the NHL at a young age, which not a lot of guys get the chance to do. And No. 2, he’s playing with real good players on a real good line and getting important minutes. He’s got to make sure he does a real good job with that time and the minutes that he gets.”
Blashill feels the Larkin line has an opportunity to become a force in its own right.
“The line’s a good line, they’ve got different pieces,” Blashill said. “Larks has that energy, he can win puck battles. Tyler does a lot of everything, wins puck battles, is hard at the net, has skill to make plays. And Lucas is a real smart player, good defensively and is in position to make offensive plays.”
Raymond gives Bertuzzi and Larkin credit for their help on and off the ice.
“They’re two extremely smart and great players, so it’s really fun playing with them,” Raymond said. “It feels like we are getting to know each other out there and are playing with a lot of pace. They’re easy to play with, and they help me a lot, both on the ice and off the ice. It’s fun.”
Continued (paywall)
