DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings seem to have a newfound confidence coming out of a midseason four-day break.
They are scoring more. Their power play has perked up of late. Jonathan Bernier continues to give them a chance to win every game he starts.
They gained five out of a possible eight points against Tampa Bay and Carolina, two of the top four teams in the NHL based on points percentage, in the first four games of a six-game homestand.
“They’re obviously two of the best teams in the league, so to get five out of eight (points) is a good step for us,” coach Jeff Blashill said following a 4-2 victory over the Hurricanes on Tuesday.
“I thought tonight was one of our better games of the season. We played fast, we played hard, we managed the puck pretty well. We weren’t without mistakes, but we created a lot of chances and played the way real hockey teams have to play. It was a good step.”
The Red Wings are 9-17-4 after 30 games, a record they feel was adversely affected when as many of five regulars were out for several early-season games due to COVID-19. With 26 games remaining, they believe they can make significant progress.
“A number of games we played good hockey and didn’t have results to show for it and now we’re in a spot where we’ve played pretty good hockey and starting to see results,” Blashill said. “It’s important reinforcement for guys to keep their belief up. We’ve got lots of season left. Let’s continue to grow as a hockey team and continue to grow as individuals.”
Adam Erne scored a pair of power-play goals in the first period Tuesday. A power play that has been dismal most of the season has gone 7 for 24 over the past eight games.
“We feel pretty good about ourselves, the way we played,” Erne said. “That’s the way we want to play every night and hopefully we can continue to do that because that’s led to us beating some of the better teams in the league.”
The Red Wings have scored 14 goals in their past four games.
“I think it’s obvious we’re more confident with the puck, and in this league that’s huge,” Erne said. “We’re making efforts to make plays instead of just making the easy play sometimes. I think there’s a middle ground we’ve kind of found that we’re not playing too risky where we’re turning pucks over. but we’re still making plays when they’re there to be made and that’s big for us.”
The Red Wings have played 21 games without Tyler Bertuzzi, their best forward early in the season who is not expected back anytime soon due an upper-body injury. Getting Dylan Larkin back during this four-game stretch has provided a boost, after he missed the previous four games.
“When we’re fairly healthy we’ve been a pretty solid team,” Blashill said.
More: Red Wings’ power play gets boost from unexpected source
The Link LonkMarch 17, 2021 at 05:09PM
https://www.mlive.com/redwings/2021/03/red-wings-gain-points-confidence-against-top-teams.html
Red Wings gain points, confidence against top teams - MLive.com
https://news.google.com/search?q=Red&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US:en
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