After being urged to shoot more, Detroit Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond said that he's not feeling any lingering effects from his injury earlier this season and wants to step up his game.
The next 11 games for the Detroit Red Wings will determine whether or not they break their lengthy postseason streak.
Currently, they're three points outside of the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference after two damaging losses earlier this week to the Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators.
If they are to go on a run and get themselves back into the race, they'll need their top contributors at full speed.
One such player is Lucas Raymond, who elevated his game at this time of the season in 2024 with multiple clutch performances. However, Raymond has just two goals and two assists in his last nine games, and in three of his last four games, he's been credited with only one shot on goal.
Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features.
Raymond missed time in October after being driven shoulder-first into the boards by Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Chris Tanev, but he dismissed any lingering effects from that incident, or from any more recent one.
"I feel good," Raymond said. "At this time of the year, I doubt there are many guys that are walking around feeling at their best, but that's part of it. I feel good, my body's not going to stop me or anything like that. Like I said, I feel good, and I'll be ready to go."
Raymond was recently singled out by head coach Todd McLellan, who stated plainly that his shot totals are far lower than they should be. Having proven that his shot can be a nightmare for opposition goaltenders, Raymond knows he needs to use it more - but wisely.
"Obviously, I like my shot, and I want to shoot when I get into spots where I feel like I can score," he said.
McLellan noted that not only is Raymond fully aware that he must utilize his shot more, but that he also must use it while situated in high-danger scoring areas rather than simply firing pucks from distance for the sake of it.
“He’s paying attention to it; he wants to," McLellan said of Raymond wanting to raise his shot totals. "Now, just coming down and ripping a shot from the blue line, sometimes that’s counterproductive. He’s gotta put himself in a scoring position and then use the shot.
He’s aware of it, and he’s going to keep working, and sometimes you bring it up to an individual, but you’ve also got to give them space to figure it out and put it into play.”
It's officially crunch time for the Red Wings as they enter the final stretch drive of their season that will determine whether or not Stanley Cup Playoff hockey comes to Little Caesars Arena for the first time.
For that to happen, the Red Wings need Raymond to appear more often on the scoresheet.
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.