Picture it: the year was 2017.
Seven years might not seem long for some people, but maybe some reminders will help.
How about “Shape of You” blaring on Spotify? At the call center where I worked, we were flooded with confused iPhone users. Apple users aren’t the most friendly bunch to change. The good ole’ reliable is what they expected. Imagine throwing an iPhone at them without the home button.
Yes, the phone that shook the Apple world was released. The iPhone X had no home button. I can tell you just how fun it is trying to describe to anyone (let alone people my grandparents’ ages) over the phone how to swipe up on their new iPhone to get back to the home screen. Forget the task of closing applications. (Plot twist: It wasn’t fun at all.)
The new iPhone and Ed Sheeran’s smash hit weren’t the only ones making a splash in the world.
A 20-year-old Chicago Blackhawks second-round pick made his National Hockey League (NHL) debut.
After seven years in the NHL, Detroit Red Wings star Alex DeBrincat is still underestimated (not undersized)
The only thing small about Alex DeBrincat is the amount of time supposed analysts dedicate to watching him play hockey. It’s time to flip the worn-out narrative that DeBrincat is undersized. Flip undersized to underestimated. Understudied. Undervalued. Pick your poison, but DeBrincat has shown in his NHL career that his size shouldn’t enter an evaluator’s mouth again.
Years ago, questions abounded whether DeBrincat could play well or even be effective in the NHL. Even today, the right-handed shot is only 181 lbs and is listed at five feet, eight inches on Elite Prospects. Here, we are given a scouting report from around the time he was drafted:
"DeBrincat is a small player with a dynamic skill set and a pure sniper. He is undersized, but can be very nasty to play against and shies away from no one. He skates well and is very effective around the net. He is hard to contain for such a small player, and has great chemistry with anyone he plays with..."Tyler Parchem, EP 2016
Three times.
DeBrincat’s size is mentioned three times in this short write-up.
To the credit of Elite Prospects, the entire site does phenomenal work. They provide incredible scouting reports of any hockey player with the hope of playing in the NHL. As balanced and respected as any outlet covering ice hockey, this scouting profile illustrates the focus of DeBrincat’s career.
He’s small. He’s a great scorer. He’s feisty. He’s small.
I can totally respect the fact that this analysis was written back in 2016 as well. At that time, DeBrincat wasn’t in the NHL, and there were legitimate question marks about whether he could play in the NHL.
My problem isn’t with Elite Prospects, but with the current analysis of DeBrincat. It’s the same old song, a tale as old as time, whatever you want to call it. They just copy and paste the same tired analysis without watching DeBrincat closely.
I guess, in some ways, their profile sums up his play. At this point, why are we even mentioning his size, though? What value does it bring to the discussion, how does it negatively impact his game, or why does anyone care? Not everybody needs to be six-foot-four and two hundred pounds to be effective in the modern NHL.
The lucky few fans who get to watch DeBrincat game in and game out know that his size is meaningless. When a guy has the heart of a lion, anything seems (and may very well be) possible.
One would think that over his 592-game career, DeBrincat’s 243 goals and 250 assists (for a combined 493 points) would speak louder than the few inches others deem he’s missing.
The best American-born hockey player gets it. Literally, Patrick Kane followed DeBrincat from Chicago, by way of the New York Rangers, to a team he hated growing up in the Detroit Red Wings just to play with him again. This fact is far more telling than anything a few more pounds of muscle might mean.
I sit back and think how wild it is sometimes.
In some ways, DeBrincat changed the entire Red Wings franchise around. Before he and Kane suited up in the Winged Wheel, we had a revolving door of okay forwards. Usually, we had a couple of free agents sign—likely with an excessive contract (dollar amount, term, or both) just to fill roster spots. As often as not, I was concerned with young players coming in and learning from these veteran players who didn’t have the best habits for young players to learn from.
Then, there was also the question of skill. It’s hard to grow when there aren’t the best role models to learn from (like how to shoot a puck or thread a pass through traffic).
Having DeBrincat essentially demand a trade to the Detroit Red Wings and signing a reasonable deal at $7.875 per season made things even sweeter. The cherry on top is that Kane and DeBrincat have signed contracts at a reasonable set of contracts, which is almost unfathomable.
According to the NHL website, DeBrincat leads the Red Wings with 29 goals scored and 24 assists for a total of 53 points in 60 games played. Meanwhile, Kane has played in 50 games, scoring 15 times and assisting on 23 goals for a total of 38 points.
In addition, both DeBrincat and Kane have a combined 10 game-winning goals for the Red Wings this season, so far (Kane with six and DeBrincat with four game-winning goals). The next closest are Lucas Raymond and Simon Edvinsson, tied with three game-winning goals (had to include this because Edvinsson is ridiculous—three game-winning goals as a young defenseman in his first full NHL season).
Not only is it impressive to have so many game-winning goals between two players who factor into less than 15% of the Detroit Red Wings’ current cap hit, according to Puck Pedia, Kane and DeBrincat are providing leadership to the team that it so desperately needed.
Don’t get me wrong, Dylan Larkin is a fantastic player and captain, but he can’t lead this team alone. Having two players of DeBrincat and Kane’s caliber to learn from will only help this team grow.
Without the hard work and chemistry DeBrincat built with Kane, I’m not sure the Red Wings would be sniffing a playoff spot, let alone holding onto one as we speak. Thank goodness DeBrincat is just that likable and compatible with other players (a key part of his game overall).
Aside from the chemistry he builds within his team and his goal-scoring ability, I think DeBrincat’s physicality is underrated.
I mean, Elite Prospects understood it back in 2016 with the line: “Shies away from no one.” To this day, this saying holds true.
Whether DeBrincat is pulling a six-foot-four-inch Moritz Seider down by his jersey or delivering a clean, hard hit in the corner, DeBrincat isn’t afraid of anyone. He stands up for himself and his teammates.
The physical play doesn’t end there. DeBrincat is one of the best screens I’ve seen since the rebuild started for the Red Wings. Constantly moving in and out of the opposing goaltender’s vision, DeBrincat makes it difficult for anyone to focus on where the puck is or how they can stop it.
Todd McLellan, head coach of the Detroit Red Wings, is a huge fan of DeBrincat’s overall game. It’s clear with the ever-growing ice time and post game comments that DeBrincat is a guy that McLellan relies on not just for scoring, but as importantly to build positive momentum for the Red Wings.
At times, DeBrincat’s line can get caught in their own end, but for the most part, DeBrincat is relied upon for providing exciting and effective minutes for his team.
In the ESPN broadcast Saturday night for the Stadium Series, DeBrincat was interviewed. He mentioned that even though the Detroit Red Wings were down 3-1 against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Wings were confident in mounting a comeback. A comeback in which he played a vital role (not just talking the talk, but actually scoring the game-tying goal).
No matter how poorly or wonderfully a game goes, we get the same DeBrincat in his media availabilities. An optimistic, level-headed guy who is ready to help his team take the next step in their season. He seems to create a positive environment all around him.
In his seven-year career, DeBrincat has shown that while the world remains the same in its view of him, he’s so much more than a small sniper with a bit of feistiness.
The Detroit Red Wings and its fans, myself included, are so lucky to have him—even if outsiders still doubt him.