3 glaring observations after the Red Wings’ home loss to New Jersey

It became clear in the first quarter of the season that the Detroit Red Wings were missing something. Well, the truth is that they are missing several things. It was difficult at the beginning. Head coach Derek Lalonde is certainly on the hot seat, and if a move does happen, assistant coach Bob Boughner probably won’t be far behind with his worst penalty kill in the league.

Alex Tanguay leads the forwards and has done a great job with Detroit’s power play, but he hasn’t gotten much offense in the group at even strength. It’s difficult to blame the assistant coaches for Detroit’s lack of five-on-five ability because they don’t really know how much influence they have on in-game decisions. What we do know is that Boughner takes the penalty kill and Tanguay has full control of the power play. One of these special teams is really good, maybe above average; the other is hot dog water.

I won’t break down the entire game, I’ll leave that to Anthony Ibanez, but there are a few glaring issues that I noticed on Friday afternoon. Well, not just Friday, but I’ve decided to highlight at least three of them now.

The Detroit Red Wings have to sort out their penalty shootout

I’ve already called it hot dog water; What else do you want from me? The Detroit Red Wings shot the league’s worst penalty kill at just 68% on Friday, more than 10% worse than the league average, and gave up a whopping three more power play goals on four opportunities for New Jersey. This is easy to calculate, and even I can imagine that a 25% kill rate won’t be enough. How can that be possible when both Cam Talbot and Alex Lyon have performed above average in goal?

It’s not because of a player or a coach that you’re feeling so bad. It’s a collective effort, or lack thereof, but Ben Chiarot isn’t doing anyone any favors. The Red Wings continue to rely on their veteran defenseman, who often plays like Detroit’s third-best option, but he is by far their worst player. More on this in a separate article soon, but something has to change. If Boughner truly has full control of the penalty kill, how can his manager allow him to continue using the same players who fail well into the season and expect different results?

The Red Wings recently signed Tyler Motte, who has minimal offensive contributions but was brought in to bolster their penalty kill. However, this strategy doesn’t seem to work. Detroit has a variety of so-called two-way forwards, including Motte, Michael Rasmussen, JT Compher, Andrew Copp, Christian Fischer and Joe Veleno. This group has only managed to score goals a total of 14 times this season. In contrast, the trio of Dylan Larkin, Alex DeBrincat and Lucas Raymond have combined for 28 goals. While it’s understandable that Larkin, DeBrincat and Raymond are expected to be the primary scorers, the first group needs to contribute offensively, particularly from the bottom six lines. If they are not effective on special teams (particularly on the penalty kill) and rarely generate scoring chances, you have to question their value to the team. Sometimes players, coaches and managers need to take a hard look in the mirror to find solutions.

In the backend, the Red Wings have to rely even more on Moritz Seider and Simon Edvinsson

That was hard to predict given how many “hard” minutes this top pairing has already had to play in Detroit, but the Red Wings will have to rely even more on their two best defenders because they have no other choice. Moritz Seider and Simon Edvinsson play a lot and are used as Detroit’s best penalty kill options. Seider also plays on the power play, and I advocated for Edvinsson to see some time at the point even with the man advantage.

The 1.90 meter tall defender showed great vision, outstanding creativity and running ability when joining the rush; He would add something to an already successful power play unit if they want a left-handed shot upfield. If you look around the league, top defensemen like Cale Makar typically play 25 minutes a night; Edvinsson and Seider have young legs and should be able to handle the extra two or three minutes at this point in their careers, and the more minutes they play, the less Detroit asks of their back four. To be fair, Seider averages just over 24 per game, but Edvinsson is at 21, while Chiarot averages 12 seconds behind.

Back to the penalty shootout. With that top defensive pairing solved, Detroit usually goes to Ben Chiarot and Jeff Petry. It’s time to try something different; Chiarot gets lost in the defensive zone far too often and takes too many chances in the neutral zone and offensive blue line, putting his partner in a terrible position. He deviates from his assignment more than any other veteran player I’ve seen in years. Basically what I’m saying is that Petry isn’t as bad as you make him out to be, but Chiarot is just as bad as you think and more.

During Friday’s game, Petry ironically blocked a cannon shot during a penalty shootout while Chiarot was serving a four-minute high-sticking penalty in the penalty area. Petry had to miss a few shifts after the blockage, but was able to return to the game. Upon his return, he was paired with rookie Albert Johansson and the two looked pretty efficient. I would like to see this pairing play second pairing for an entire game, leaving Justin Holl and Ben Chiarot as the third unit. If Detroit’s top pairing can play 25 minutes a night, Petry and Johansson can expect to play around 18 or 19 minutes, while the third pair will need around 16 minutes against weaker competition.

The Detroit Red Wings are missing a board member from their top six

One thing the Detroit Red Wings are clearly missing at the top, especially in their top six, is a board player with scoring ability. I never realized how much David Perron or Tyler Bertuzzi meant to the Detroit Red Wings. Detroit is really missing someone who can effectively win those 50/50 board battles in the offensive zone and score some timely goals.

Recently, head coach Derek Lalonde moved Vladimir Tarasenko up front, opposite Lucas Raymond and Dylan Larkin in the middle. Tarasenko is a proven goalscorer despite his slow start, but is best suited to a defensive role. Although the results weren’t as we’d hoped, Tarasenko’s interplay with Marco Kasper and Jonatan Berggren provided a very reliable third line for most of the first six weeks of the year. I’d love to see this unit reunite, but with Patrick Kane coming off an injury and no one else able to play on the top unit, Lalonde is a bit handcuffed.

If the Detroit Red Wings had a player like Perron or Bertuzzi paired with Larkin and Raymond or Larkin and DeBrincat, the team could field a second unit with Compher or Kasper alongside Kane (if he’s healthy) and either DeBrincat or Raymond. The Red Wings could easily swap Kasper and Compher since both have played second-line centers this season. I currently prefer Kasper, but I also see him playing well in the third row.

With Kane injured, the Red Wings put Motte on the second line with DeBrincat and Compher, but he really shouldn’t be running on the second line for an entire game. This situation leaves Lalonde with little choice but to use Veleno alongside Kasper and Berggren, which is another less-than-ideal option. Obviously the choice is limited.

Detroit’s line of control, consisting of Fischer, Rasmussen and Copp, serves its purpose, but we must recognize that that is all they offer. The Red Wings also desperately need speed. While two-way forwards are always important, Yzerman seems to have focused too much on that aspect, resulting in a team that lacks both speed and creativity in the offensive zone. Yzerman may prefer to win games by scores like 3-2, but that approach isn’t sustainable in today’s NHL. It’s time for him to rethink his player management strategy.

Ultimately, Yzerman must find a way to improve the team’s offense. It may be time to call up Nate Danielson and Amadeus Lombardi sooner than expected. If that isn’t feasible, Yzerman should start exploring trade options to bolster the current roster.