The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan filed a notebook article which discusses Alex DeBrincat’s new-found status as a point-per-game contributor to the Red Wings’ cause:
“I’m happy he’s on our team because (McLellan’s previous) teams were getting tired of playing against him,” McLellan said after Thursday’s dramatic 5-4 victory in Columbus.
DeBrincat had a goal and two assists in the game, pushing his team-leading total to 16 goals and tying Dylan Larkin with 31 points (behind Lucas Raymond’s 38).
Now in his second year with the Wings, DeBrincat is on pace to surpass last season’s 27 goals and is enjoying — to this juncture in the schedule — a more consistent campaign, avoiding the peaks and valleys of last season.
One particularly difficult stretch, from Feb. 29 to April 9, saw DeBrincat score one goal (with six assists) in 19 games. With the Wings missing the playoffs on a tiebreaker, even the slightest uptick in goal-scoring from DeBrincat could have proven to be a difference.
But DeBrincat, twice a 41-goal scorer in the NHL, has looked more like that type of player at times this season.
“You almost appreciate him more when you’re around him more,” McLellan said. “You see him shift after shift and there is more to his game than his shot and goals, which we all know him for. But the work he does in and around the blue paint, screens, his thought process on the power play, how he gets open, his shooting and competitiveness … I’m glad he’s on our team.”
Continued (paywall)
