Red Wings Weekly #1 – Dubious Debuts

Gibson’s Gruesome Genesis

Oct. 9 vs. Montreal Canadiens, 5-1 Loss

With the infusion of youth into the opening night lineup , excitement was reaching a fever pitch Thursday night before the puck had even dropped. The energy in Little Caesars Arena was electric and the Red Wings’ play early in the first period earned that. Dylan Larkin scored Detroit’s first goal of the 2025-26 season on an early power play, and the building was rocking. There’s no way Montreal could put this genie back in the bottle right? . . . right?

Zachary Bolduc scored Montreal’s first goal after Albert Johansson and Travis Hamonic gave him a breakaway by playing a quick game of “whose man is it anyway?”. Less than three minutes later the Habs scored again following a bad pinch by Johansson and some uncommitted defending of the ensuing two-on-one by Hamonic. Just like that, Detroit’s third pair is -2 and the team’s lead is gone. The real back breaker was Mike Matheson’s goal from the top of the left faceoff circle, snuffing out any hope Red Wings fans had built up for this opening night matchup.

Johansson and Hamonic were on the ice for another goal against in the second period before being split up, but the damage was already done in just under seven minutes of ice time together at five on five. That pairing should be shot into the sun, never to be seen again. Also, maybe it’s worth it to see what Jacob Bernard-Docker would look like as the 3RD next game. Just a thought.

Detroit’s fire and energy through the first minutes of the game dissipated quickly and the team looked defeated well before the final horn sounded. John Gibson is going to want to burn the tapes from this game as he allowed five goals on just 13 shots, allowing 3.5 goals above expected (stats via. Natural Stat Trick). That isn’t exactly an auspicious start to his Red Wings tenure, but this is just one game and that third pairing gave up a ton of time and space to a young Canadiens team that thrives off the rush. 

Okay, breathe. That was just one game, how bad can the final 81 be?

I Believe in Chemistry (and Miracles)

Oct. 11 vs. Toronto Maple Leafs, 6-3 Victory

After an abysmal season opener and a couple days of getting publicly ripped by their head coach, the Red Wings came out flying in this one and *checks notes* allowed the first two goals of the game. That made it seven straight unanswered goals for Detroit who were looking to be in dire straits already in this young season. 

On Toronto’s first goal, a lapse in d-zone coverage left two Maple Leafs below the deepest defender, and Cam Talbot was left out to dry. On their second, Talbot had no chance either as Nicholas Roy tipped the puck down from about five feet in front of him.

Thankfully, mercifully, Detroit’s offense got moving in the second period, largely due to the phenomenal connection between Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat. A lot has been made about Marco Kasper’s addition to Detroit’s second line, but the chemistry between those wingers is what makes that line truly special. A couple of nifty passes including a seeing eye pass through the slot by DeBrincat were integral to Detroit’s first and third goals, with Lucas Raymond scoring career goal 99 to tie the game on Detroit’s second goal. 

Max Domi tied the game early in the third off a mis-communication between Moritz Seider and Ben Chiarot, but Detroit responded well and Raymond scored goal number 100 shortly after on the power play. Simon Edvinsson received a pass from Talbot shortly after Anthony Stolarz had vacated Toronto’s net for the extra attacker, and he chucked it the entire length of the ice into the open cage to put the game away before Andrew Copp added another empty netter.

It may not have been the prettiest game, but Detroit never gave up fighting, even down 2-0 which wasn’t something that could be said for their performance on opening night. With a solid goaltending performance and contributions on and off the score sheet from the club’s youngest players, this feels like a very repeatable performance for this year’s Red Wings.

3 Takeaways From the Week

1. Give John Gibson a Chance

After Gibson’s atrocious first impression, some Red Wings fans are nearly ready to write him off entirely and lean on Talbot. However, this team needs a goalie tandem and they need to give Gibson a better effort to work with. If Gibson has another game that bad this season, I would be shocked, partly because that was a nearly historically bad performance. Regardless, I expect Gibson will become just as trusted as Talbot, and I still believe the high-end outcome for him is higher than anything possible with Talbot as the starter or 1A guy in the tandem.

2. The Kids are Alright

After a very dramatic first week, Detroit’s rookies haven’t been making the headlines quite as often, but that’s not to say they’ve been disappointing. They were always going to have a tougher time once they played against full NHL rosters who care about the games so lets see how they’ve been holding up through their first two career games. 

Axel Sandin Pellikka is being deployed like Detroit’s third best defender (which he is), and he has thrived alongside Simon Edvinsson so far. He has played on both special teams and is acquitting himself quite well at even strength with excellent advanced metrics highlighted by an Expected Goals For Percentage (xGF%) north of 75%. 

Emmitt Finnie is playing a ton at even strength on Detroit’s top line, but hasn’t been trusted with regular special teams duty yet, playing just a single shift of penalty kill so far. The Red Wings’ first line hasn’t quite clicked yet at even strength, though they did score their first goal together with Finnie earning his first career assist. Finnie certainly hasn’t blown anyone away, but he’s been reliable and decent which is more than can be said for everyone Detroit has tried to fill out that top line with over the years.

Michael Brandsegg-Nygård (MBN) has looked great so far, with a team leading six hits and a willingness to grind and get pucks on net that will earn him plenty of ice time down the road. The only players who have created more individual Expected Goals (ixG) than MBN to this point are DeBrincat and Larkin and I hope they find a way to get him more power play time because I see the vision.

3. Can Someone Get Seider a Real Linemate?

Moritz Seider has had one (1) lineman on the backend so far in his career who made him better, and they traded him away for future considerations, sweetening the deal further with a second round pick. Every other player that Seider gets significant time with drags down his effectiveness and this year looks to be no different once again with Ben Chiarot stapled to his side at even strength. There’s already a significant gap in performance by most major advanced metrics between the two, despite spending the vast majority of their even strength minutes together thus far. For Detroit to maximize Seider, especially at five on five, they need to find him a long-term running mate, and Chiarot just isn’t it.

3 Stars of the Week

1. Lucas Raymond – 2 goals

1. Patrick Kane – 1 goal, 3 assists

1. Todd McLellan – 2 absolutely scathing media availabilities

Prospect to Watch

Max Plante – 6 points through 4 NCAA games

Max Plante was Detroit’s second round selection in the 2024 Draft, 47th overall. He had a great freshman season with the University of Minnesota-Duluth last year and was a good player for Team USA at the World Junior Championship last January. Plante is a skilled winger who plays hard and doesn’t shy away from contact despite coming in around 5-foot-11. He’s off to a hot start this season, with three goals and six points through his first four games, putting him in a great position to be a top-six player for Team USA in December. 

Upcoming Games

Monday, October 13 – 2 PM ET @ Toronto Maple Leafs

Wednesday, October 15 – 7 PM ET vs. Florida Panthers

Friday, October 17 – 7 PM ET vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

In Other News

• Kane, Raymond Help Lead Red Wings to 6-3 Win Over the Maple Leafs

What did you think of Detroit’s first two games? Do you have any remaining hope for John Gibson? Who do you think should be Moritz Seider’s long-term linemate? Sound off in the comment section below!