Detroit Red Wings forward James van Riemsdyk has been tremendous for his team this month, scoring six goals in 11 games, including a career-high four-game goal streak.
One of the moves that Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman made during the offseason was to add more veteran leadership to the dressing room, signing James van Riemsdyk to a one-year contract.
While the veteran got off to a slower offensive start than he would have preferred after missing all of Training Camp and the pre-season, he's more than made up for lost time.
van Riemsdyk scored a goal and added an assist in Tuesday evening's dramatic 4-3 overtime victory over the Dallas Stars, including a highlight worthy helper on Dylan Larkin's game-tying goal late in the third period.
He delivered a slick between-the-legs pass to Larkin, who slipped undetected into the slot and finished from in tight to the net—an area where he has made his living for most of his career.
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Afterward, van Riemsdyk said that he and Larkin have worked on finding one another in key areas of the ice, which paid off when it mattered the most.
“We’ve talked about that a little bit (of) when I get the puck there, what he’s thinking and what I’m thinking,” van Riemsdyk said of his assist. “Trying to shield the puck so no one can get a stick on it, and then it becomes a little bit more of an unpredictable play for them to prepare for."
"Trying to get it there. I know I have a few options there, whether it’s Cat on the backside or Larks trying to find his way somewhere a little bit higher. He made a great play to get open and put a great shot there. Great goal.”
van Riemsdyk was absent from Training Camp and the pre-season after his wife gave birth to twins, one of whom needed extra care. Family comes first, as it should, and van Riemsdyk was understandably unavailable during that time.
The good news for the Red Wings is that he's been heating up of late.
His first period goal was his ninth of the campaign and sixth in December alone. It's been a tremendous month for van Riemsdyk, who also enjoyed a career-high four-game goal streak.
He'll have a chance to see his family, who are in Minnesota, over the Christmas break before the Red Wings return to action on Dec. 27.
"I’m going to cherish every second I can with them this year," he said of seeing his family. "I think that’s obviously a really important thing for us, especially for someone like me this year when my family’s not here with me."
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