Shuffled Lines Cast Copp Into New Role as Red Wings Desperately Need Results
For obvious reasons, the Red Wings shuffled their lines after Tuesday's loss in Buffalo. Can Andrew Copp help break Detroit of its present rut on a new-look third line
In advance of tonight's game with the Arizona Coyotes, there can be no denying that the Detroit Red Wings (1) have responded poorly to Dylan Larkin's absence once again and (2) needed a thorough re-shuffling of their lines after Tuesday's humbling 7-3 defeat in Buffalo.
"Some different looks, maybe giving a little different feel to some lines," said coach Derek Lalonde yesterday, when asked about the new-look forward alignment that debuted in the day's practice. "A little more grit here, something a little different there. Obviously you get in a situation like this, it's an opportunity to blend it up a little bit, and that's what we did."
Among the changes Lalonde made was reconstructing his third line such that it now featured Andrew Copp between Robby Fabbri and Alex DeBrincat. The new unit seems to fit more into "something a little different there" than "a little more grit here." It is a much different set of wingers for Copp than those he began the Sabres game with (Michael Rasmussen and David Perron).
Meanwhile, DeBrincat has played consistently with Patrick Kane since Larkin's injury (before that those two played alongside Larkin together), and Fabbri plus DeBrincat along Copp's wings skews much more toward scoring than the checking role Copp has played throughout much of the season.
"I look back at that Vegas game, and I talked about the optimism that I had with the Vegas game," said Lalonde Wednesday, when asked about Copp's performance and role with Larkin out. "He was arguably our best player that night. He was 64, 65% on face-offs. Every key face-off, I kept throwing him out there, and he was winning it. He was getting defensive stops. I really liked his two-way game. He's one of those guys were gonna need more of with Dylan out, ask more of, and I think he's more than capable of doing it. He's one of two players now playing in every situation."
Since Larkin's injury, Copp's ice time has increased with each passing game from 12:12 in Colorado last week all the way up to 18:17 Tuesday night in Buffalo. He hasn't scored, but he's given two assists, and whatever you may think of plus/minus, his even rating since Larkin went out looks pretty good considering how poor Detroit's results have been as a team. Copp has also won 68.4% of his face-offs in Larkin's absence.
"I don't think it necessarily changes my approach," Copp told The Hockey News back on March 5th, the day after Larkin's injury was announced. "Everyone's gotta step up....You gotta try to take what you can given the circumstances. We know he's gonna come back in a few weeks...hopefully we can get everybody else going another notch, and when we insert him back in hopefully we're going to another level."
Suffice it to say, things haven't exactly followed that script, and instead, the Red Wings seem desperate for Larkin's return, but, there will be at least three more games to play before that return comes.
As for Lalonde's point about Copp now playing in all situations (he seldom featured on the power play when Larkin was healthy), Copp said of his role on the man advantage, "It's something that I've done in my career, done at a high level, especially my last couple years in Winnipeg. Just be tenacious, be good in front of the net, win puck battles, win face-offs, all that kinda stuff."
And of course, Lalonde will no doubt be counting on that sort of two-way effort from Copp with his new line-mates, but Copp will also need to help provide an offensive spark. If Copp's role throughout the year has been to play a reliable 200-foot game, DeBrincat's primary (though of course not exclusive) function since he arrived in Detroit has been to score, and that hasn't come easily of late.
DeBrincat has just six goals and 10 assists in 28 games this calendar year. Four of those goals came in a three-game stretch in late February, and he hasn't found the back of the net since. Detroit's problems during its present six-game win streak are myriad, and there is no single quick fix to get the Red Wings back on track, but it seems clear that one thing that must change to stop the current skid is an increase in DeBrincat's production.
This season, Copp and DeBrincat have played just 58:46 together at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick. The only regular Red Wing forward this year with whom Copp has played less is Larkin (just 11:43). Now, heading into a game that feels as "must-win" as any mid-March game with the Coyotes possibly can, Lalonde is counting on this relatively unfamiliar duo to help spark his team.
Copp has not always been a popular figure amongst Red Wing fans because of his lack of production (70 points in 146 games since signing with the team in the summer of 2022), but those relatively modest point totals bely his actual role. A good Copp game has had little to do with the scoresheet and more to do with winning shifts, forechecking, and overall solidity. However, without Larkin, it's undeniable that Copp (and, in his own way) J.T. Compher must find a way to contribute more offensively than they are counted upon for with Larkin in the lineup.
A Rasmussen-Copp-Perron line could very well have a productive evening without scoring by forcing play to the opposing end and helping to establish the team's forechecking identity. DeBrincat-Copp-Fabbri? That's a line that needs to provide some meaningful offense to serve its maximum purpose, and while that hasn't always been Copp's task to handle, it will be tonight in a game Detroit has to win.
"It's just been part of who I am for a while," said Copp, when asked about adapting to different roles. "Versatility is really important. I think that's how management and coaches see me, that I have the ability to play power play, penalty kill, center, wing, either wing really. I think that's important to solidify yourself coming up especially. There's not always gonna be a center spot open. You gotta be able to play the wing. You gotta be able to kill penalties, be out there six-on-five, all that stuff.
So, as the Red Wings skate into what feels like the most important game of the season (after all, could Detroit be credibly considered a playoff contender if it loses twice in a week to Arizona, even without Larkin?), Lalonde and his staff will be counting on Copp's versatility to manifest in his familiar two-way reliability, but they'll also need offense from him and DeBrincat with the fate of the season seeming to hang in the balance.
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