Red Wings Notebook: Power Play Slows to a Crawl

Like all NHL teams, the power play of the Detroit Red Wings tends to ebb and flow. Or, in this particular instance, to go fast or slow.

Following Saturday’s 2-1 loss to the Boston Bruins, the Detroit power play was still ranking fifth overall in the NHL. The Red Wings are clicking at 28.1% (16-for-57) with the man advantage.

Lately, though, there’s been a lull. The Wings are in an 0-for-7 power-play skid. That was including an 0-for-4 showing in Saturday’s setback.

It didn’t long for Detroit coach Derek Lalonde to deliver a verdict on why this is so. They need to pick up the pace.

JB starts it off. pic.twitter.com/7egNG7KUN7

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) November 24, 2024

“I just think the power play was slow,” Lalonde said. “Like we had good momentum. Then we get on the flank and just stop and all it does is allow them to get position.

“When we were clicking on the power play, it was tic tac toe, fast movement. We’ve gotten back to being very slow on the power play. It’s just not going to be effective.”

Captain Dylan Larkin was of the opinion that indecisiveness was playing a role in the poor power-play performance.

“I think we’re moving the puck around too much,” Larkin said. “We gotta get back to attacking the net. And I think we didn’t do well enough to set up the next guy. It was all five of us on the ice where we kind of just threw garbage around and let someone else deal with the issues.

“And they kill hard, so they pressure really hard. We just have to be cleaner and set up the next play. Give someone a good pass so they can do something with it.”

Bruins Bad, Red Wings Worse

Anything Boston was doing badly, Detroit was proving to be the club capable of doing it worse.

Entering Saturday’s game, the Bruins were the NHL’s worst power-play unit (11.9%). Detroit was the NHL’s worst penalty-killing squad (67.3%). In two power-play chances Saturday, Boston was 1-for-2 (50%).

“You need the power play,” Lalonde said. “They got one.

“Tight game like this, the difference is special teams and they won 1-0.”

🎥 Coach Sacco on the #NHLBruins win in Detroit: "Especially in the third period, we tilted the ice in our favor…we got skating again, we played behind their forecheck…we got some good looks and spent less time defending."

Full postgame reaction ➡️ https://t.co/Lre0GaOsRB pic.twitter.com/xSeCWsvU64

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) November 24, 2024

These are also two of the NHL’s worst teams in terms of third-period shot differential. Boston was minus-54 (150-204). Detroit was minus-56 (132-188).

Entering the third period Saturday deadlocked at 1-1, Boston outshot Detroit 14-4 over the final 20 minutes. And one of those shots proved to be the game-winning goal.

Ice Chips

Larkin’s assist on Lucas Raymond’s first-period goal was his 300th in the NHL. He’s the 15th Red Wings player and 12th Michigan-born NHLer to reach that milestone . . . Former Wings defenseman Jordan Oesterle was a healthy scratch for the Bruins . . . Justin Kea, one of Saturday’s two referees, was a junior teammate of Detroit defenseman Ben Chiarot with the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit in 2010-11 . . . Detroit was dropping to 4-5-1 at Little Caesars Arena.