Detroit Red Wings forward Marco Kasper has the support of his teammates amidst his sophomore slump.
There's no denying that Detroit Red Wings forward Marco Kasper is experiencing the doldrums of the dreaded sophomore slump, having not registered a point in his last 10 games while also going a minus-7 during that stretch.
Thursday evening's 5-0 loss to the New York Islanders was the latest frustration for Kasper, who not only found himself demoted to the fourth lines but was also whistled for a 10-minute misconduct in the second period.
Kasper, who dropped the gloves near the end of regulation against Islanders defenseman Tony DeAngelo, still has the faith of his teammates.
Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features.
"He's a good player, there's no question about it," said Andrew Copp following Friday's practice. "I think he'll find his way. He's played almost 100 games now. He came in and played more than I ever did in my first couple of years, I think I averaged six minutes for my first 60 games."
Copp reiterated that the game of hockey is such that a player can experience peaks and valleys during a long 82 game season and that things can turn on a time.
"I think he's going to be just fine, he might be going through it right now, but we still have a lot of faith in him from game to game," Copp said. "He could score a hat trick tomorrow, and we could move on from this conversation for the rest of time, but it's a weird League. One game can make the change, and we have all the faith in the world in him."
Kasper explained that he's grateful for the support of his teammates while also noting that the Red Wings' dressing room is a tight-knit group.
"It's huge," Kasper said of the support of his teammates. "We have a great group of guys in here, you can talk to everybody, and they'll help you. It's good to hear. We trust each other, it's such a huge part."
Kasper and the Red Wings will host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday afternoon (1 p.m. ET).
Never miss a story by adding us to your Google News favorites!
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum