Red Wings Coach Calls Out Underachieving Team

Todd McLellan didn’t go full Sheldon Keefe and single out one of his Detroit Red Wings players for specific criticism. That being said, without naming names the Red Wings coach was painting some of his players with the brush of stinging indictment.

Following Saturday’s 6-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, McLellan was questioning the commitment level of his team. He was wondering whether deep down, some of them are truly willing to to whatever it takes to make the Stanley Cup playoffs.

“We have to be honest with each other,” McLellan said on the team’s website. “We talk about wanting to be in the playoffs, but we’re not sure we always want to be in shooting lanes. We’re not sure we want to do some things. And I’m not saying everybody, we’re just picking and choosing.

“Do we really want to do it around the net? Do we really want to get hit by a puck? And do we want to do the board work when it’s hard?

“If the answer is yes to that from everybody, then we have a chance. If the answer is yes to those questions from 85% of the players, we don’t. And it’s as simple as that. We gotta keep asking those questions and working on it.”

That they are asking these questions at all with just 13 games left in the regular season is disturbing in itself.

Do Red Wings Have Necessary Commitment Level?

While McLellan wasn’t willing to target any specific player, an assessment of Saturday’s highlights – or perhaps more accurately, low lights – was revealing.

On the second Vegas goal, as he was left defending the net front, Vladimir Tarasenko seemed to be doing everything in his power to assure he wouldn’t be hit by the incoming point shot. At the same time, he was making no effort to tie up the stick of Tomas Hertl, the eventual goal scorer.

Might have to start #ExpressiveTomasHertl with the way this guy celebrates goals 🚨 pic.twitter.com/ZafyeeDswf

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) March 23, 2025

The third Vegas goal saw Red Wings forward Jonatan Berggren making a weak attempt to corral a puck along the boards in the netural zone. It led to a turnover.  Ultimately in transition, the result was a Nicolas Roy goal with less than three seconds to go in the opening frame.

McLellan questioned his team’s commitment to do the dirty work that leads to victory. “There are some that seem to get hit by a puck a lot, and then there’s others that just kind of find their way out of it,” he said. “But that’s our job is to get them in the lanes.”

nothing like a buzzer-beater in March 😉 pic.twitter.com/OcNFnig47H

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) March 23, 2025

McLellan also was suggesting that if they aren’t able to find that level of commitment from their players, then maybe it’s time to look for new players.

“If they’re not willing to get there, then we have to look at who we have,” McLellan said. “But it’s more than that. It’s just not shooting lanes. It’s net play, it’s board work, line changes, it’s reading and reacting to situations.

“Some are still gaining experience. Some are making the same mistakes over and over. That’s a little alarming. So keep working at it.”