Fabbri out a month, Berggren recalled, DeBrincat's mindset returning to Ottawa, Gostisbehere reviewing the PP, and everything else you need to know before Red Wings-Senators this afternoon
Fabbri out a month, Berggren recalled, DeBrincat's mindset returning to Ottawa, Gostisbehere reviewing the PP, and everything else you need to know before Red Wings-Senators this afternoon
The Detroit Red Wings will play the first leg of a back-to-back this afternoon, taking on the Senators in Ottawa before a home date with the Calgary Flames tomorrow evening.
While many Red Wing fans and media may have the team's unsuccessful trip to the Canadian capital last February at the top of mind, head coach Derek Lalonde insists that his team's focus is on the challenge of taking on another Atlantic Division power, not settling an old score.
"I know the media thinks those were huge games and why we traded everyone and emotional and big. In our locker room, they were just two more games," Lalonde said yesterday afternoon, before his team traveled to Ottawa. "There's no doubt in my mind we still would've done what we did at the deadline if we won those two games. I don't want to downplay it, but, for me, it's just another game versus a top team in the league that's proving themselves to be maybe as good as there is in our division."
"You like through their roster—their 12 forwards, their six D, who they acquired for their goaltender—and this is a legit top team in our league," he added.
Though Detroit is riding a three-game win streak, Lalonde is not entirely satisfied with the Red Wings' last two performances, crediting Ville Husso with getting the team out of hot water when things have gone awry in front of him.
"We need to clean up some mistakes, some sloppiness in our play," Lalonde said. "Look no further than the last two games, we got bailed out in period one in Columbus with some exceptional goaltending, and I would say the same in the third period against Pittsburgh."
It's in the defensive third of the rink in particular where the second-year coach sees a need for improvement.
"We had to block over 20 shots the other night," he noted. "That means they had the puck a lot. Love the attitude and our ability to want to block shots, but the message today was 'We're getting exceptional goaltending, and we're outscoring our mistakes. It's not sustainable.' So we'd love to clean up some of those bad reads within our zone, bad reads on our track that gave easy offense to our last two opponents."
That defense will be put to the test this afternoon at the Canadian Tire Centre, as the Sens are tied with the Red Wings and Los Angeles Kings for the NHL's lead in goals-per-game (19 in four games each for an average of 4.75).
Roster Movement
-Friday brought with it injury news that prompted some roster movement. At his press conference, Lalonde revealed that Robby Fabbri will be out for a month longer, after initially having been described as "day-to-day" since being hurt late in the season opener in New Jersey.
"It happened late in New Jersey, he skated the next day, we almost played him the next day," Lalonde explained. "It was a true day-to-day, and then as it didn't respond well throughout the week with those skates, they did some deeper testing, and they found something that they did not like, so he's going to be out one month."
He clarified that he was told by the medical staff that Fabbri will be out four weeks from yesterday, rather than from the initial injury and also that it is an injury to his lower body but not the same knee injury that has proved problematic for him in the past.
-Lalonde then noted that an unnamed Red Wing forward had to leave practice early. While he suggested it wasn't a major injury, he indicated that Detroit would roll with 11 forwards and seven D should that forward prove unavailable for today's game.
-Friday evening, the Red Wings recalled Jonatan Berggren from Grand Rapids on an emergency basis, while placing Fabbri on injured reserve retroactive to October 12th. After Berggren began his season with the Griffins, it was exactly this circumstance that would provide the shortest path back to his NHL return—an injury to one of Detroit's attacking players.
DeBrincat Returns to Ottawa
Of course, the biggest story of today's game is Alex DeBrincat's return to Ottawa, where he spent the 2022-23 season before being traded to his hometown Red Wings over the summer.
After a season of mixed results with the Senators, DeBrincat informed the team that he was not interested in a long-term deal to remain in Ottawa as a restricted free agent. To some fans, it sounded like a trade request, and the end result was the deal that sent him home to Detroit.
"We'll see I guess," said DeBrincat, chuckling, yesterday afternoon when asked about the reception he anticipates upon setting foot on the Canadian Tire Centre ice again today. "I'm not expecting a very warm one. I think it'll be a good game between two good teams and should be a fun one."
DeBrincat has some experience with returning to an old home, having had to go back to Chicago (where he spent the first five years of his career) last season as a Senator.
"Little different circumstances," he said of that experience. "Obviously not as much time there, but still formed some great relationships there and have a lot of good buddies on that team, but we're going in there for business and hoping to come away with two points."
The winger acknowledged that he heard some of the vitriol that came his way from Ottawa's fans and media during the offseason, but that he took comfort in knowing the reality of his circumstances.
"Over the summer when a lot of that stuff was coming out, I saw a little bit of it, but it is what it is," he said. "I know what happened behind closed doors and what the situation was. A lot of the stuff coming out wasn't exactly how it played out. It is what it is. They'll write what they want to write, and that's fine with me."
Though he harbors no ill will toward his former employer, DeBrincat does believe there is a sense of rivalry blossoming between the Sens and his current team, as the two squads vie to elevate their respective Atlantic Division stations.
"There's definitely a rivalry there I think," said DeBrincat. "Each team wants to prove they're better than the other, and I think we play them a couple times, and obviously in-division match-ups are always important. I know being on the other side of it we were definitely fired up to play the Wings, and they're definitely important games to mark yourself throughout the league."
PP Scalding Start with Shayne Gostisbehere
Through four games, the Red Wings boast the NHL's top power play—connecting at a remarkable 46.2% clip. A major factor in that success is new personnel. Detroit's top unit features three players from last year's team, but two newcomers as well: DeBrincat and Shayne Gostisbehere.
The Hockey News caught up with Gostisbehere after yesterday's practice to hear more about what's gone right in the early stages for the Red Wing man advantage.
"I think for our power play, it's quick puck movement," said the veteran blue liner. "That's the biggest thing: We don't want guys stickhandling, ticking it. Another thing is we have shooters and weapons on almost every spot on the power play, and I think it opens up a lot. It's five-on-four, there's going to be someone open, so it's just us finding that."
Detroit offered a demonstration of that puck movement on David Perron's power play tally Wednesday night against the Penguins, with the five-man unit whipping the puck around the offensive zone before Perron eventually deposited the rebound of a Dylan Larkin shot past Tristan Jarry.
Though it took just 16 seconds for Detroit to strike, the Red Wings established possession all throughout the offensive zone before hitting the target.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-mhm6AEqo0[/embed]
Gostisbehere, in collaboration with Moritz Seider, offered an illustration of the value of Detroit's brisk exploration of the offensive zone. The duo exchanged a pair of high-ice passes that might not have looked all that productive but served to create space on the opposite side of the rink, which Larkin and Perron would eventually return to.
"It's setting up the next play," Gostisbehere explained of those passes. "It's a set in the sense that we're it quick, and it shifts their box to one side. They have to come over, and then once they're shifted, he goes right over to the other side and they have to slide again. So I think for us, having our sets, that's that quick puck movement. Mo can just stickhandle the whole time, or I can just stickhandle the whole time, but that's just getting touches. [Passing instead of handling] makes them at least be aware."
When asked what reads or keys he's looking for in an opposing penalty kill, he offered, "How they forecheck, what their pressure is. Some are a lot aggressive. Some are diamonds. Some are very passive in the sense that they don't attack. They allow us to make plays, but you just gotta be ready for whatever they throw at you."
For Gostisbehere, despite how it may seem, there is a certain benefit to playing an aggressive PK, because of the way it necessitates quick puck movement: "Sometimes it's a little better playing against a lot of pressure, because those quick passes—you have to. You can't hold on to the puck, so it gets the power play moving a little more, but I don't really have a preference."
The Red Wings won't finish the year clicking at nearly 50% on the man advantage, but they could endure a long plummet back down toward Earth and still wind up with a healthy improvement on last year's 21.11% success rate.
Where to Watch
Today's game will be broadcast on Bally Sports Detroit, with Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond in the booth. Within the market, the game will be available on Bally Sports Detroit and the Bally Sports+ app for cord-cutters. Out of market, the game will be available through ESPN+.
