The Detroit Red Wings lost their first game after the Four Nations Faceoff in overtime to the Minnesota Wild by a score of 4-3. This comes as the Red Wings are in a battle for the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. The Red Wings blew a two-goal lead with seven minutes left in regulation. After the game, the head coach of the Red Wings, Todd McLellan, said that Detroit started the game playing ragged. With the roster moves and injuries after this weekend, the Red Wings’ play may become more ragged.
“I thought Larks looked gassed tonight,” McLellan said. “Razor probably not his best either. (The 4 Nations Faceoff) could be catching up to them.” Perhaps this is only a function of the 10 days off that the Red Wings had. Prior to the Four Nations break, the Red Wings were playing well. The Red Wings have a record of 15-5-2 under McLellan. It could be argued that the Four Nations break came at the wrong time for the Red Wings.
The Red Wings finished their weekend with a game against the Ducks, a game which they won in overtime by a score of 5-4. Patrick Kane scored the game-winning goal with 1:01 left in overtime, his 14th goal of the 2024-25 NHL season. Showtime seems to be rounding into form prior to the break. Kane has scored three goals and added two assists in his last five games played. Kane has been the most talented offensive forward on the Red Wings since joining the team during the 2023-24 season.
The Red Wings have 61 points with a record of 28-22-6. The Red Wings’ next game will be a rematch against the Wild, this time in Minnesota, where the team will look to play a complete game against one of the top teams in the NHL. The Red Wings Ragged play began against the Wild, and now the team has the chance to rectify this. However, the Red Wings will be without Andrew Copp for this rematch as he has undergone pectoral surgery and will be out of the lineup for four to six months.
At 30 years old, Copp is not the scoring threat that the Red Wings thought he would be when they signed him. Copp has scored 10 goals and added 13 assists in 56 games played for the team this year. However, he can play a 200-foot game that is valuable in today’s NHL. Copp has 18 takeaways for the Red Wings during this season. This is the sixth most of any Red Wing during the 2024-25 season.
Additionally, following the two weekend games, the Red Wings made a roster move, trading goaltender Ville Husso to the Anaheim Ducks for future considerations. Husso had suffered many injuries during his time as a Red Wing, most recently a lower-body injury while on a conditioning stint with the Grand Rapids Griffins in mid-February. Husso is 30 years old, and this move provides the Red Wings with more salary cap space. The NHL’s trade deadline is on March seventh. Perhaps this is a move before the move to improve the Red Wings’ roster as they make a push for the playoffs.
The Red Wings have stabilized their goaltending position with the duo of Alex Lyon and Cam Talbot. These two goalies have played 55 games for the Red Wings during the 2024-25 season. In that time the Red Wings have a record of 25-15-4. All of these goaltending moves have been made as the team waits for Sebastian Cossa to make his way to the Red Wings’ roster.
There are 25 games left in the NHL regular season. The Red Wings have the most difficult schedule remaining as they look to make the playoffs for the first time in nine seasons. The team has played well since hiring head coach Todd McLellan. This would have been unthinkable two months ago. In 23 games with McLellan as head coach, the Red Wings have a record of 16-5-2.
ITR 30: Down The Stretch – Inside The Rink
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