Red Wings Drop Two From Coaching Staff

Detroit Red Wings coach Todd McLellan is making changes to his staff, he revealed on Tuesday.

“We’ll have an announcement going out, but these two are aware that they won’t be returning,” McLellan said. “Alex Westlund is the goaltender coach. L.J. Scarpace is one of the video coaches.

“It might not seem significant in those roles, but those are significant roles. Those are important people in our organization.

Westlund joined the staff when Derek Lalonde was hired as Detroit coach in 2022. Prior to joining the Detroit staff, he worked five seasons as goalie coach for the AHL Hershey Bears.

Todd McLellan has made two changes to his staff. Most notably parting ways with his goaltending coach Alex Westlund. pic.twitter.com/2oKDaYFJ3C

— Jennifer Hammond (@HammerFox2) April 29, 2025

Sparpace worked under Lalonde and previous coach Jeff Blashill prior to McLellan. He joined the Red Wings in 2019-20 after working two seasons as a video coach with the Carolina Hurricanes.

“Those were really good people,” McLellan said. “I talked about our staff and how they fit in. It’s sometimes not a reflection on the job they do, but just something that we needed to do in the in the coach’s room to stir things up.

Red Wings Concerned by Goaltending Performance

Westlund’s fate was likely sealed by a Red Wings team save percentage that rated 22nd overall in the 32-team NHL.

“We need better goaltending, and that’s not just on Alex Westlund,” McLellan said. “That’s on the goaltenders, the head coach, and everybody else that’s involved in it.”

Derek Lalonde & Alex Westlund → 2024 U.S. Men’s National Team Coaching Staff.

Congrats to Newsy & Westy! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/nWnIDtLmHF

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) April 26, 2024

While McLellan were search for a new goalie coach, he was expecting that the video coach would be an internal hire.

“We’ll likely look at promoting from within,” McLellan said. “That hasn’t been confirmed yet, but we also want some growth within the organization when people are capable of accepting more.

“As we move forward throughout the summer, we’ll fill those two spots.”