Red Wings' Lineup Changes May Have Unlocked Something Detroit Badly Needed

The Detroit Red Wings could not find their offense in the first two games. The defense was outstanding, but there just wasn’t enough offense to win.

With some lineup adjustments and the return of a familiar face, Detroit may have found something that works.

The Red Wings got their first win against the Ottawa Senators 5-3 on Tuesday. After scoring just two goals combined in the first two games, this was an encouraging sign.

What was most noticeable was how different the offense looked.

Alex DeBrincat scored twice and added an assist. Lucas Raymond recorded three assists and Viktor Arvidsson finished with a goal and an assist. For his debut game of the season, despite all the boos and hissing, Dylan Larkin added a goal and an assist.

This is the offensive balance the team had lacked in the first two games of the year.

Todd McLellan may have found something to build on.

Red Wings’ Lineup Adjustments

Detroit Red Wings right wing Alex DeBrincat Credit: Brian Bradshaw Sevald-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Clearly seeing that things weren’t working, McLellan started to experiment with forward combinations during Sunday’s game against Winnipeg.

One significant change was seeing DeBrincat away from Raymond and putting him alongside Emmitt Finnie and Michael Brandsegg-Nygard.

That moved Arvidsson into a more prominent offensive role.

McLellan must have liked what he saw because he carried those changes into the Tuesday game. One would be silly, though, not to recognize the impact Larkin made with his return.

With Larkin’s return, McLellan had the option of keeping Debrincat skating with Finnie and Brandsegg-Nygard. Detroit dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen. That gave them the ability to rotate players through different combinations.

With just one game recorded, those lines seems to work.

DeBrincat scored Detroit’s first goal just 32 seconds after Ottawa had taken the lead.

Later in the first, DeBrincat helped set up Larkin for his first goal of the season. Arvidsson recorded the primary assist here.

Then Arvidsson scored on the power play on a rebound from a Larkin shot. Raymond assisted on that goal and then later set up Justin Faulk for his first goal of the season.

That made five different Red Wings finishing the night with multiple points. Quite a change.

It wasn’t just one combination being successful and for Detroit, that is certainly an encouraging development.

Larkin’s Return Changed Detroit’s Offense

Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin (71) shoots the puck during the second period against the Ottawa Senators Credit: Brian Bradshaw Sevald-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

No matter how Detroit’s fans are still feeling about their past captain, his role on the ice can’t be denied.

The veteran center had to sit out the first two games of the season while he recovered from an upper-body injury.

It was clear that Detroit struggled to replace his production, given that they were shut out by the New York Rangers and then scored twice against the Jets but it wasn’t enough.

When Larkin came back into the lineup, Detroit automatically had more options.

With DeBrincat available then to center another offensive group, Detroit was armed with two dangerous scoring combos instead of having one with most of the offensive talent.

Larkin also provided a boost to the power play line, contributing to Arvidsson’s goal.

Tuesday was a reminder to everyone the impact Larkin can have on the team.

Clearly, it was just one night and that one performance doesn’t suggest that the offensive struggles of this team have been solved. In fact, not too many of this team’s troubles are finding solutions right now.

But it was encouraging.

The forward groups could continue to change when injured players rejoin the team. Marco Kasper, Mason Appleton and J.T. Compher have injuries that can continue to complicate this situation.

Tuesday at least suggested that McLellan is working toward finding multiple combinations that are capable of creating offensive opportunities and then finishing the job.

Hopefully, some of this will carry forward to the Friday matchup against the Seattle Kraken.

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