In his first season in Detroit, DeBrincat is among the 32 players in the first wave of selections for the 2024 All-Star Game
In his first season in Detroit, DeBrincat is among the 32 players in the first wave of selections for the 2024 All-Star Game
However you may be feeling about the Detroit Red Wings on the heels of a December to forget, there can be no denying that Alex DeBrincat—the Yzerplan's marquee summer acquisition—has lived up to his billing.
This evening, DeBrincat earned national recognition for the performance he's delivered in his debut season with his boyhood team, as the NHL named him among the first wave of selections (one player from each team) for the 2024 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto.
Though he's shown a diverse skillset in 38 games as a Red Wing, DeBrincat was brought to Detroit for a single purpose: to score goals. The Red Wings desperately needed to improve their offensive firepower, and the Farmington Hills native could do just that.
There was some concern about just how much scoring he might to the lineup after a middling season in Ottawa a year ago, but DeBrincat has more than delivered on the Red Wings' investment. With 17 goals and 21 assists (both team highs), he is off to a point-a-game start to his tenure in Detroit.
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Just last week, DeBrincat showed a combination of skill and snarl in picking up a Gordie Hat Trick against the Nashville Predators—leaving no doubt that he could provide value beyond his finishing touch.
DeBrincat is not the only Red Wing with a credible all-star case. Dylan Larkin remains the team's best player, and he's played that way for most of the season. Lucas Raymond has made good on a "best shape of his life" preseason narrative, playing a central role in the best hockey we've seen from Detroit all season. Alex Lyon still hasn't played all that much, but in the action he has seen, Lyon's played at an all-star level in net.
However, even if other Red Wings have a case, there can be no denying that DeBrincat deserves his all-star nod, meeting lofty expectations upon his return to his hometown and delivering team-leading production to provide a sorely needed offensive boost. Detroit's 2024 playoff aspirations feel much more serious than the team's did a year ago, and DeBrincat is arguably the biggest single reason for that shift in sentiment.
This year's game (February 3rd at ScotiaBank Arena, home of the Maple Leafs) will be DeBrincat's second all-star appearance. The first came in 2022 in Las Vegas, when he was a Chicago Blackhawk.
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