Red Wings 2, Oilers 3 (OT) Game Notes

Last night, the Detroit Red Wings (4-4-1) picked up a point with an overtime loss to the visiting Edmonton Oilers (4-4-1) by a 3-2 final score, after Leon Draisaitl scored 18 seconds into the extra session for a two-goal night on his 29th birthday.  Let's review the night's action.

The Game in One Quote

I wrote about this dynamic last night, and I talked about it in a video this morning (you can catch that in the featured video above), so I don't want to belabor the point now, but the simple fact is the Red Wings' ostensible risk aversion in sitting back to defend has clearly proven unsustainable.  Copp does an excellent job of walking through why.  Yes, Detroit values defensive responsibility, and that is a worthwhile goal, but if all you do is sit back and defend, you are inviting a degree of pressure that you cannot possibly absorb.

I don't think it was a coincidence that it was Draisaitl, rather than Connor McDavid, who ultimately undid the Wings with a two-goal night.  Draisaitl's game relies on his hyper-efficient creativity in the offensive zone.  When Detroit allows a playmaker of Draisaitl's ilk (of which there are admittedly quite few) that amount of time and that number of opportunities, it will never end well.  To Copp's point, generating some sort of sustained attacking pressure would serve the Red Wings' defensive ambitions, rather than distract from them.

Number to Know: 17-6

Per Natural Stat Trick, the Red Wings accrued a 17-6 advantage in five-on-five scoring chances in the first period.  To cut that back to just high-danger chances, it was a 3-1 advantage for the home team.  I bring this up to underscore Copp's point about the importance of offense to the defensive solidity Detroit aspires to.  In the first, the Red Wings played probably their best period of the season.  They did that not by sitting back and defending, but with connected, fluid puck play, and forechecking pressure that drove play away from Cam Talbot's net.

That forechecking style put the Red Wings put the Oilers in difficulty, and crucially, it did so in a way that left Detroit in sound defensive positions when it did lose possession.  That first period ought to serve as proof of concept for the Red Wings' path forward.  Of course a team chasing a game like Edmonton in the third is going to generate some zone time, but Detroit can ill afford to accept that to the extreme degree it did last night.  Instead, the Red Wings must find ways to consistently drive play to the offensive zone and keep it there a while, especially against a high-octane opponent like the Oilers.

Observations

Penalty Kill Shows Signs of Progress: 

One positive for the Red Wings last night was the penalty kill, which had been a sore spot throughout the young season.  Detroit went 2/2 in successfully killing off Oiler power plays last night, and while the Edmonton power play hasn't quite found its customary rhythm in the new season, that's nonetheless encouraging considering its longstanding might.  The Red Wings killed off a late Copp tripping minor, just to force overtime.  As Derek Lalonde said after the game, "You're 2-2 with a minute 50 left, and you see that power play go over the boards, I think you'd be okay with getting a point."  It's also worth pointing out that the number of power plays is significant to the success of the kill.  Yes, 2/2 is not exactly a high volume night for the Wings' killers, and that is no coincidence.  With each additional penalty

Copp Tweak Shows Potential:

The Red Wings brought a different flavor to their forward group last night in large part by moving Andrew Copp from center (where he has spent the majority of his tenure in Detroit) to the wing, alongside Patrick Kane and J.T. Compher.  That trio paid immediate dividends for Lalonde, combining for two goals last night.

"I love the center-wing caliber with a guy who can do both," said the coach of moving Copp to the wing.  "I just think with a lot of our guys, it's a little bit less on them to be on the wing, a little less taxing, and they've produced and done some good things on the wing.  We have the luxury of moving some guys around."

Meanwhile, when asked about an expanded offensive role in the early season, Copp (who already has four goals and two assists to his name) offered a long and candid answer, saying "I would argue that the role wasn't expanded until tonight.  I'd say it was actually decreased, to be honest.  I think it's in my game.  When I signed here, that was part of it.  It hasn't necessarily clicked exactly the way I wanted to.  Part of that is myself, part of that is injury from two years ago, and part of that is deployment as well.  I was relied on as a checking line player, playing against the other team's top lines and no power play.  I think that can kinda change your outlook and your mentality too.  I'm definitely not up here complaining.  I'm just kinda stating what has happened I guess.  I wanna contribute offensively.  That's a big part of my game.  I think going to wing today is a big part of who I am, being able to play up and down the lineup, being able to play center, both wings, both special teams.  It's kinda who I've been."

One of the strengths of the Red Wings' forward group is its versatility, with players like Copp, Compher, Joe Veleno, Michael Rasmussen, and now Marco Kasper who can be effective in multiple roles and deployments.  I don't think Copp needs to play on the wing ever night, but I do think taking advantage of his (and on occasion other Red Wing forwards') diverse skillsets is a way of maximizing Detroit's roster.

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