With their 5-2 win against the Vegas Golden Knights, the Detroit Red Wings have clawed their way back to a winning percentage, holding a 6-5-2 record as of Nov. 8.
It was a busy night in Detroit, with plenty of storylines at play. Let’s whittle those narratives down to eight observations.
#1: Lucas Raymond is the real deal. First and foremost, let’s re-hash what everybody already knows. Raymond is a beast. He scored his sixth goal of the season to tie up the game in the first period, ripping a one-timer on the power play. Raymond is not just a playmaking winger like the draft reports said – he now has a lethal shot. He is consistently one of the better forwards on a nightly basis. He’s just 19 years old.
#2: Moritz Seider is also a phenom. He didn’t show up on the stat sheet against the Golden Knights, but he was all over the ice making plays. He’s the best defenseman on the roster right now. Seemingly never shaken and always thinking one step ahead, Seider is playing well beyond his years right now. He’s just 20 years old and he’s only getting better.
#3: The power play has shown flashes of excellence. Detroit’s power play has been pretty hot and cold this year (a major step up from an ice-cold showing last season), but it was red-hot against Vegas. They scored on two of their four attempts on the man advantage, getting some great looks and solid amounts of time in the offensive zone. Raymond, Dylan Larkin and Tyler Bertuzzi are lethal goal-scorers and Seider is getting better at quarterbacking the power play. Nick Leddy is also looking strong as the second option. This team can be really, really good on the man advantage, they just need consistency.
#4: The second line is heating up. Detroit’s second line had an excellent showing Sunday evening. After a slow start, Pius Suter scored a goal and tacked on an assist – he now has two goals and two assists in his last two games. Robby Fabbri also scored a goal on a feed from Suter, his third of the season. If Zadina can also pick up the pace (he’s starting to look comfortable on the power play he slipped an excellent pass to Raymond on the power play for a goal), the Wings will have a real one-two punch with their top two lines.
#5: Vladislav Namestnikov is improved from last season. Namestnikov was a bit lackluster last year, never really finding a comfortable spot in the lineup (to be fair, he was shifted all over the lineup last season). As a third and fourth line winger, Namestnikov is starting to find a role for himself on the team. He scored his fifth goal of the season, which is currently the fifth most on the team. Yes, it was a bit of a greasy goal, but it was a good reward for a forward that has been playing better hockey of late.
#6: Neutral zone defense is fantastic. For the first two periods, the Golden Knights just could not get comfortable in the offensive zone. The Wings were extremely aggressive in the neutral zone, poke-checking and crowding the opposing forwards, essentially just causing havoc in the middle of the ice. Vegas was only able to penetrate the defensive zone when Detroit deployed a more conservative defensive scheme, setting back the defense and turning down the aggression.
#7: The Wings are an annoying team to play against. Detroit is starting to become a tough out for opponents, even those with superior talent. Detroit had more blocked shots and more hits than the Golden Knights. Typically, those stats aren’t essential for the outcome of a game, but it is becoming reflective of the way the Wings play hockey. They might get beat by talent, but they are going to grind their way through 60 minutes, laying out hits, blocking shots and making life tough in their defensive zone.
#8: Thomas Greiss was on it tonight. Greiss was lights out, especially in the third period. As pressure in the defensive zone mounted and Vegas mounted scoring attack after scoring attack, Greiss just kept slamming the door shut on a potential comeback. He let just one third period goal in despite facing 20 shots. It’s starting to look like the Wings have a legit goalie tandem backing up the crease.