How Can the Red Wings Spark Patrick Kane?
The Red Wings are struggling to score and Patrick Kane is averaging half-a-point per game less than he did last season. How can Detroit address those problems?
The Detroit Red Wings need to score more. Their 78 goals presently rank dead last in the Eastern Conference. As such, it should come as no real surprise that a number of players within the Detroit lineup have struggled to produce at their customary rates. One such player is Patrick Kane.
In 25 games this season, Kane has three goals and eight assists for 11 points (0.44 points-per-game). That's down from 20 goals and 27 assists for 47 points in 50 games played (0.94 points-per-game). For a player whose value derives from his production on the scoresheet, that's not an insignificant drop off.
In his post-game comments after Detroit's win against the Maple Leafs Saturday, coach Derek Lalonde offered a window into that comment, saying, "That was a tough first period for him. It was a little fast at times, but it was again, it's the top six [for the Maple Leafs] is elite, and we ran into some match-ups there, so we got him away from it. And he just got some touches. You can see the offensive confidence come, and he was good second period on, which is a good sign for us." Lalonde points to two factors as conditioning Kane's effectiveness: pace and match-ups.
In the featured video above, I discuss the state of Kane's game and potential paths to increasing his production.