Andrew Copp is finally finding his groove with the Detroit Red Wings

Things started relatively slow for Andrew Copp in his first season with the Detroit Red Wings, but the former Michigan Wolverine is finally beginning to find his groove, and it’s a welcomed sight.

Copp, 28, recorded just two goals and 11 points over his first 20 games with Detroit; this after a 21-goal, 53-point campaign between the Winnipeg Jets and New York Rangers last season. The former Wolverine missed most of training camp/preseason due to injury, so his slow-ish start was also due to a lack of reps with his new teammates. Copp finished last year strong, with the Rangers notching eight goals and 18 points over 16 games with New York.

The two-way center also performed well in the postseason earning 14 points, including six goals in 20 contests. The pending free agent was dealt ahead of the trade deadline to the Rangers from the Jets in a package that included Morgan Barron, a first-round pick (Brad Lambert), and a third-rounder (Elias Solomonsson).

The Ann Arbor native returned home to his hometown Detroit Red Wings, this summer as general manager Steve Yzerman continues to navigate the franchise through its lengthy rebuild. The Red Wings were in dire need of depth-scoring forwards to take some pressure off captain Dylan Larkin, Lucas Raymond, and Tyler Bertuzzi. Yzerman addressed the issue in free agency by signing Copp, in addition to David Perron and Dominik Kubalik. Detroit is also getting tremendous production from rookie winger Jonatan Berggren this season.

Andrew Copp is getting comfortable with his hometown Detroit Red Wings.

Following Detroit’s 7-5 victory over the Jets, Copp spoke about how he approached the offseason contract negotiations and how he’s adjusting to his new team.

“There were a lot of balls in the air as those couple of weeks happen,” said Copp, who chipped in two assists as the Red Wings earned a 7-5 win over the Jets on Tuesday. “There’s interest from a lot of different areas, but I think I went in with a little bit of a top group and Detroit was definitely in that top group, so it ended up working out, for sure. But it wasn’t exactly seamless, I would say. It was definitely an interesting process, one having gone through it now, will prepare me if there is a next time.“It’s been good. There are things that you don’t necessarily anticipate or you think is going to be a little bit different. Once you’re in the season, you get a couple more dinners here and there, but it’s not like I’m driving home an hour to see my family every day. You get into the groove of the season. Hockey wise, it has been a bigger adjustment for me. Going back to centre full time, coming back off the injury, I haven’t really felt like myself until the last couple weeks. It’s good now, but it was a little bit of an adjustment over that period of time. Otherwise, life is good.”

As previously mentioned, Copp hasn’t gotten off to the start he’d likely hoped with his hometown club, and the goals haven’t exactly come in bunches. Still, Copp is finding his role, playing behind his friend and former college teammate, Dylan Larkin. Larkin anchors Detroit’s top group, and Copp is quickly adapting to his role following Larkin as the team’s second-line center.

Copp is currently centering a line consisting of Michael Rasmussen and Jonatan Berggren. It’s a unit that has a nice blend of size, skill, and checking ability. Copp recorded two assists on Tuesday evening at home against his former Winnipeg Jets team. Berggren also scored in the contest bringing his season point total to 15 over 26 games.

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The Detroit Red Wings will continue to lean on Andrew Copp as the season grows old. He’s totaled three goals and 23 points over 39 games this season. One area Copp needs to improve is his five-on-five play. His Corsi For Percentage during five-on-five situations is currently 43.4%, and 0.3 goals/60 minutes are each a career low. His -5.8 Relative Corsi For Percentage is also less than desirable.