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The Red Wings are special (on special teams play)

CBS Sports’ Austin Nivision praises the Red Wings’ special teams play ahead of a slate of power rankings:

Since Todd McLellan took over as coach on Dec. 28, the Detroit Red Wings have the best record in the NHL. As a result of this streak, powered by a red-hot power play, the Red Wings look poised to end an eight-year playoff drought.

Prior to the Red Wings’ coaching change, they were one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference, and all signs pointed to another postseason spent on the couch. Then Steve Yzerman made his move, and McLellan has injected new life into this roster, but that especially rings true on the man advantage.

With McLellan behind the bench, Detroit has converted on 39.1% of its power play opportunities, which is the best mark in the league over that stretch. Every one of those goals has been needed because the Red Wings’ five-on-five play has been pedestrian. While that would be a concern in the playoffs, elite special teams might be good enough to push Detroit over that postseason hump given the state of the East wild card race.

The power play hasn’t been the only area that has improved since McLellan took over. All of the team’s biggest names — Lucas Raymond, Dylan Larkin, Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat — have all been producing at a nice clip.

Over the last 23 games, that quartet has combined for 42 goals and 59 assists. Twenty-one of those goals have come with the man advantage.

So the Wings sit 6th in Nivision’s rankings:

Since Todd McLellan took over as coach on Dec. 28, the Red Wings have the best record in the NHL at 17-4-2. They’ve managed to do that despite a minus-1 goal differential at five-on-five, and that can be attributed to a scorching hot power play. With McLellan behind the bench, Detroit has converted on 39.1% of its power play opportunities, which is first in the league by almost six full points.

Meet Sheldon Dries

DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills spoke with Red Wings forward and Grand Rapids Griffins recall Sheldon Dries on Tuesday, discussing his hometown ties with the Wings and his decision to sign with the team, despite knowing that an AHL assignment was his likely stead:

“This is a huge opportunity,” Dries said at Xcel Energy Center on Tuesday morning. “You want to take it day-by-day, don’t get ahead of yourself too much, enjoy the moment and the small things. And when your name is called, be ready.”

Dries, a native of Macomb, Mich., played four seasons (2013-17) at Western Michigan University, even serving as the Broncos’ captain during his sophomore, junior and senior campaigns. Originally signed by the AHL’s Texas Stars as a free agent in 2017, Dries, in addition to his NHL experience, has compiled 231 points in 322 AHL games with the Stars, Colorado Eagles, Abbotsford Canucks and Griffins.

“He knows what to feel and expect when he goes into a lineup and into arenas,” Detroit head coach Todd McLellan said about Dries. “We’re not flying his parents in for the first game and all that type of stuff that goes on. He’s well-established. We have a good idea what he’s been doing in in Grand Rapids and now, it’s a matter of how we want our lineup to look on any given night. [Rasmussen] could be back quickly. So, it is a full-time or a part-time thing for him? I don’t know, but we’ve called up guys before and they’ve taken advantage of somebody else’s misfortune, and they’re still here.”

Amid his first season with the Griffins after signing a two-year, two-way contract with the Red Wings in July, Dries has posted 27 points, including a team-leading 19 goals, in 48 games.

“A great group of guys,” Dries said about Grand Rapids. “Right now, we’re on a little bit of a skid but up until probably the last 2-3 weeks we were rolling and doing good things. There’s so much skill and young talent down there. It’s fun to go to the rink every single day.”

To join the Red Wings organization was a lot more than just “a dream come true” when the 30-year-old was considering his free-agency options last summer.

“It was the opportunity, but family was a big aspect to that as well,” Dries said. “Having both teams [Red Wings and Griffins] so close, I know I’m kind of that bubble player that can be called upon. It was important, for me, for my family to always be around. We just had a daughter, and she’s nine months old now, so that was huge for the grandparents to see her grow up as well.”

Continued

Kulfan, Allen set up the home-and-Stadium Series series between the Red Wings and Blue Jackets

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan sets up the upcoming home-and-home series with the Columbus Blue Jackets thusly:

The Wings hold the top spot on the Eastern Conference wild-card chase with 66 points. Columbus has the second and final wild-card spot with 64 points. Three teams were tied entering Wednesday’s games with 62 points (Ottawa was the only one of the three playing Wednesday night).

So, you have the excitement and hype of the outdoor game definitely present. But the Wings realize a big part of this weekend is staying in business mode and understanding the big picture of the playoff puzzle.

“We’re fighting for that wild card and fighting to move up in our division,” goaltender Cam Talbot said. “It’s going to be four big points on the line, an eight-point swing (potentially) one way or another. It just can’t be an experience (of playing the outdoor game), it has to be a game and you have to approach it that way. Business as usual.”

The Wings were able to keep their two-point lead on Columbus, thanks to an impressive 3-2 victory Tuesday in Minnesota. The Wings have won nine of their last 12 games (9-1-2), are doing it in a variety of ways, and now are seeing more players contribute to the winning ways.

Continue reading Kulfan, Allen set up the home-and-Stadium Series series between the Red Wings and Blue Jackets

Tweets of note: Welcome to Stadium Series hype

From the NHL:

A bit of praise for Dylan Larkin’s Olympic stock

Daily Faceoff’s Matt Larkin posted a list of players whose “stock” rose or sank for the 2026 Olympics in Milan, and he included a certain Red Wings captain on his list;

Dylan Larkin, C, USA

It was apparent from the Americans’ first game that a bottom-six deployment wouldn’t stop Larkin from becoming a crucial component. His blinding speed made him a chore to defend. He delivered the game-winner in USA’s unforgettable round-robin victory over Canada. It was telling that, after Matthew Tkachuk exited the championship contest due to injury, the U.S. turned to Larkin, elevating him into top-six duty. For the tourney, the U.S. had a 5-on-5 expected goals percentage right around 60 when Larkin was on the ice. He began the 4 Nations as a fourth-liner, but he seems to have cemented himself as a third-liner next time around.

Continued; Larkin has shown at both the World Championship and Four Nations Face-Off levels that he’s more than willing to play in any role that he’s given, but his speed and skill levels are clearly high enough that he can be utilized in a first-line role with ease.

Bultman: Wings can replace Copp from within, outside the organization

The Athletic’s Max Bultman offers 2 options for the Red Wings to utilize if the team wishes to replace the injured Andrew Copp–either looking internally or making a trade–and I’ll help you take a gander at the first option:

Their easiest — and perhaps best — option is the one they chose Tuesday, bumping J.T. Compher up into the second-line center spot between Kane and DeBrincat. Compher’s production has dipped a bit this season, but his profile is quite similar to Copp’s as a hard-nosed, responsible center who can play in the hard areas of the ice and provide complementary offense.

In fact, Compher was Detroit’s second-line center over Copp for much of last season, playing just over 300 minutes with Kane and nearly 400 with DeBrincat. Like Copp, Compher won’t usually put up gaudy point totals or flashy offense, but what he does well certainly fits between two more offensively-tilted wingers. There’s a reason Detroit went with him as its first option Tuesday, and if we’re handicapping the possible outcomes for replacing Copp, this is the likeliest possibility by a wide margin.

Once Michael Rasmussen returns from an upper-body injury (McLellan said he was day to day), that would slot Rasmussen in as the No. 3 center and Joe Veleno as the No. 4 — with both Tyler Motte and Christian Fischer able to play that position on a checking line as well.

One other option could be playing Marco Kasper as either the second- or third-line center — which Detroit did earlier this season — but I wouldn’t call it likely at this time. Kasper has worked well playing on the wing on Detroit’s top line, with his speed and forechecking fitting in nicely alongside Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond.

In the long term, Kasper still projects as a center for the Red Wings. But the rookie has 16 points in 18 games since January 10, and it doesn’t sound like McLellan is too eager to shake up something that’s working.

“We’d like to keep him there (with Larkin and Raymond),” McLellan said.

Continued with trade talk (paywall)

McIndoe plays ‘devil’s advocate’ regarding teams making blockbuster trades

The Athletic’s Sean McIndoe plays a devil’s advocate this morning, suggesting why every team should and/or should not make a blockbuster trade at or before the 2025 trade deadline on Friday, March 7th. Here’s what he has to say about the Red Wings:

Detroit Red Wings

Obviously not, because: After years of spinning their wheels, the switch to Todd McLellan seems to have finally flipped the switch. Steve Yzerman has never been a big deadline guy, so he certainly shouldn’t make any panic moves now that things are actually clicking.

BUT: You could play it safe, the way this franchise has done for the better part of a decade. But with a playoff spot in the East there for the taking, and no guarantee that the McLellan bounce will be a long-term effect, doesn’t Yzerman owe it to his exceedingly patient fan base to finally take the next step?

Continued (paywall); I don’t see the Wings’ fan base as exceedingly patient, first and foremost…

And, in all honesty, I’m just not expecting the Red Wings to expend assets for a rental player. If there’s a long-term fit, I could see the Wings make a move, but if it’s just for two or three months, no, thank you.

No fit for Karlsson in Detroit

The Score’s Josh Wegman suggested three possible destinations for Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson, and I think he’s a little off in naming the Red Wings as a possible landing spot for the 34-year-old with a $10 million cap hit (which Wegman suggests the Penguins might be willing to eat half of just to get rid of Karlsson):

If you told a hockey fan in the mid-2010s that Patrick Kane, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Erik Karlsson could all be on the same roster, they’d assume that team would be genuinely competing for a Cup. But that’s not the case in 2025.

The Red Wings are on the fringe of the playoff picture as they aim to end an eight-year postseason drought. They enter Tuesday occupying the top wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, but the race is incredibly tight. That begs the question whether Karlsson would even waive his no-movement clause to join Detroit.

For Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman, it makes more sense to surrender assets for a player with additional term like Karlsson rather than a rental. Karlsson could slot in on the team’s second pair behind Moritz Seider and serve as a key mentor for both Seider and Simon Edvinsson.

LDRD
Ben ChiarotMoritz Seider
Simon EdvinssonErik Karlsson
Erik GustafssonJustin Holl

Detroit could make a trade work more easily than the other teams on this list. Yzerman has a full cupboard of draft picks and one of the NHL’s deepest farm systems. The club also has enough cap space to take on the entirety of Karlsson’s contract, if necessary.

If Karlsson’s willing to go, there’s no reason why Yzerman shouldn’t try to make it happen.

Continued; I just don’t see the point of adding Karlsson and his contract when the Wings could add a more affordable third-pair offensive defenseman and/or a shut-down defender for the third pair.

Simon Edvinsson and Albert Johansson are doing a fine job in the second pair, so why mess with success?

Just as importantly, Karlsson both makes a lot of money for the next three seasons, and he’s also got a no-move clause, so I don’t see him waiving it to go to an up-and-coming team like Detroit when he wants to win a Cup ASAP.

There’s just not a fit here.

An early Red Wings-Blue Jackets preview

The AP posted an early preview of tomorrow night’s game between the Red Wings and the Columbus Blue Jackets:

BOTTOM LINE: The Detroit Red Wings host the Columbus Blue Jackets after Simon Edvinsson scored two goals in the Red Wings’ 3-2 win over the Minnesota Wild.

Detroit is 30-22-6 overall and 16-12-3 at home. The Red Wings lead the Eastern Conference with 51 power-play goals.

Columbus is 28-22-8 overall and 9-16-4 in road games. The Blue Jackets have a 24-8-4 record in games they score three or more goals.

Thursday’s game is the second time these teams meet this season. The Red Wings won the previous meeting 5-4.

TOP PERFORMERS: Alex DeBrincat has 26 goals and 24 assists for the Red Wings. Marco Kasper has four goals and five assists over the last 10 games.

Kirill Marchenko has 23 goals and 36 assists for the Blue Jackets. Kent Johnson has six goals and five assists over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Red Wings: 8-1-1, averaging 3.3 goals, 5.6 assists, 2.5 penalties and 5.8 penalty minutes while giving up 2.6 goals per game.

Blue Jackets: 5-4-1, averaging 3.3 goals, 5.7 assists, 2.5 penalties and 6.1 penalty minutes while giving up 3.1 goals per game.