NEW YORK — Three games into their season, the Detroit Red Wings have demonstrated why there was concern over their power play.
Erik Gustafsson, touted as a player who could replace Shayne Gostisbehere, has been a healthy scratch the past two games, but that might change by the next game as the power play has dropped to 1-for-11. That's despite being able to put Dylan Larkin, Patrick Kane, Lucas Raymond, Alex DeBrincat, Vladimir Tarasenko and Moritz Seider on the ice, amongst others, in various iterations.
It's been an early-season trend that the Wings have a power play in the first period or first half of a game where they get really good looks, and yet can't finish. And it's been a big reason why they're 1-2-0 headed into Thursday's rematch with the New York Rangers.
WHY HE WAS DEMOTED: Red Wings 'haven't given up on' Ville Husso after he clears waivers and is sent to minors
"We haven't gotten any quality looks at the net," captain Dylan Larkin said after Monday's 4-1 loss at Madison Square Garden. "I think we've done a good job setting up possession and we've moved the puck around well.
"I also think that for whatever reason right now, we do really well on the first power play and then we kind of go to sleep for the rest of our opportunities. That can't happen. Every time you go over the boards, you need to try and make it count."
The power play was a key reason behind the Wings' success last season, finishing ninth in the NHL at 23.1%. So far this season, it's at 9.1%. Again, it's three games, but it should also concern the team.
"The power play hasn’t produced, we only have one on the year," coach Derek Lalonde said. "We’ve been having some looks, but we have to start putting it in the back of the net."
Gostisbehere led last season's Wings with 29 power play points. David Perron had 17 on man advantages. Robby Fabbri and Daniel Sprong each had 12. All are gone, through walking in free agency or trades. Gostisbehere played the point on the first unit, and had a knack for setting up teammates.
Gustafsson got a chance in that spot in the first game, which the Wings finished 1-for-5 on power plays; the one they scored was during 5-on-3 play. Having put Seider on the point on the first unit the last two games, and experimented with Ben Chiarot on the point on the second unit, Gustafsson may get a reprieve from watching games in street clothes.
"We’ll probably get Gus back there on a look," Lalonde said. "And again, we have a lot of options, it’s just, the hands don’t perfectly line up at times. But we have to play fast through it."
Special teams and goaltending can win or lose games, and other than Ville Husso's struggles the first 25 minutes of the first game, Cam Talbot and Alex Lyon have delivered in their respective appearances. The penalty kill, for that matter, is 8-for-10. But if the Wings want to make things a little easier on themselves, correcting the power play is crucial.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com . Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames . Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter . Her latest book, “The Franchise: Detroit Red Wings , A Curated History of the Red Wings,” was released October 2024. Her books, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” and “The Big 50: The Men and Moments that made the Detroit Red Wings” are available from Amazon , Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Dylan Larkin on Detroit Red Wings' power play: 'We go to sleep' after first chance
Local News
Comments / 0