Red Wings Raymond Asesses His Greatest Offensive Asset

Asked whether he’s a playmaker or a goal scorer, at first Detroit Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond hedges.

“I’d like to think a little bit of both.” Raymond said.

So far this season, Raymond is third on the team with 14 goals. However, he’s the runaway leader in lending a helping hand with 38 assists. That’s 12 more than defenseman Moritz Seider, second on the team with 26 apples.

Lucas Raymond tonight:

• 3 primary assists
• 3.50 game score (2nd best of season)
• up to a 66-assist, 91-point pace on the season

Is he Detroit's #1 forward? pic.twitter.com/oz5k8zlLcq

— Big Head Hockey (@bigheadhockey) January 17, 2026

Red Wings coach Todd McLellan knows on which side of this debate he falls.

“I’ve always viewed him as being a pretty good playmaker, not just a pure scorer,” the coach said of Raymond’s skill set.

Raymond led the club last season with 53 assists, contributing to his team-leading total of 80 points. At the same time, he’s also scored at least 23 goals in three of his four full NHL seasons, topping out at 31 goals in 2023-24.

Red Wings Raymond Can Shoot For Passes

Interestingly, when assessing his personal shoot or pass debate, Raymond thinks that the former contributes significantly to the amount of the latter he counts during a campaign.

“I think shots create a lot of things, whether that’s a goal or just a play off of it,” Raymond said. “So, you have to be a shooter, but I might be a little bit more of a playmaker, if I have to pick one. But I try to do as much of both as possible.”

McLellan has urged Raymond to shoot more from a distance. It’s an urging drawn partly from the fact that Raymond has such a quick release that he can score from further out. It’s also in line with Raymond’s theory that his shot, even if stopped by the opposition goalie, can lead to assists.

Alex DeBrincat and Lucas Raymond both reached the 50-point mark of Friday night's game-opening goal, giving the @DetroitRedWings multiple 50-point scorers before the club's 50th game in a season for the first time since 2007-08 (Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk). #LGRW pic.twitter.com/vJoUOOMtnQ

— Jonathan Mills (@JonathanDMillsy) January 17, 2026

In Friday’s 4-2 win over the San Jose Sharks, Raymond dished out three assists. The first one, when he faked a shot and then fed cross-ice to set up an Alex DeBrincat one-timer goal on a Detroit power play, was a fitting example of how Raymond’s elite shot can pose a threat that ultimately results in him drawing assists.

“You think on the power play, the ability to sell the shot, to know the stick (of San Jose penalty killer Alexander Wennberg) was broken, and then sell the shot to get the goalie to bite is playmaking 101,” McLellan said. “There’s some deception in it.

“I thought the poise he had on the empty net goal, too, to just calm things down and not just fire away at an empty net. He looked, he found a teammate (Marco Kasper) wide open, and away they went.

“So I’ve always thought he had real good playmaking skills, and we’re seeing them right now.”