The Detroit Red Wings are 2-2-1 in their last 5 games. It’s not exactly an impressive record – until you consider the fact that they did it against two of the best teams in the NHL (the Lightning and the Hurricanes). Things don’t get much easier for Detroit, as they host a series with the Dallas Stars.
The Stars
Dallas has had a rough 2021 season thus far. Almost immediately, the team was forced to cancel multiple games due to Covid, and their team has struggled to maintain a .500 win percentage. However, this is still a talented team looking to kickstart their first real winning streak of the year, and will likely give Detroit everything they have.
Red Wings Outlook
Bobby Ryan will be out against Dallas, after missing the last game due to an upper body injury. Evgeny Svechnikov will likely take his place. Although he had a relatively quite night in Tuesday’s win against the Hurricanes (partly due to the fact he played the least amount of time out of all Detroit forwards, with just over nine minutes), he remains one of the more intriguing storylines on the roster. Tyler Bertuzzi has no schedule to return, and Jeff Blashill says he has not even returned to skating yet. Though there is this:
UPDATE: Forwards Frans Nielsen and Evgeny Svechnikov have been recalled from the #RedWings taxi squad. pic.twitter.com/Jxcy78Zc1n
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) March 18, 2021
The Filips are the players to watch against the Stars. Filip Hronek is carrying a four game point streak into Thursday’s matchup (notching an empty netter for his first goal of the season), and is looking for another against Dallas. Filip Zadina has seemingly improved with every game – his confidence is growing, and he seems to be starting to take that next step that Detroit needs him to take. Captain Dylan Larkin seems to be hitting his stride – playing lights out since returning from his short stint on the injury reserve. He has played some of the best hockey of his career the past couple of weeks.