Wings on a roll: ‘Got our identity going’
Seven-game run boosts team into third place in division
Helene St. James
SUNRISE, Fla, – Derek Lalonde figured he might just look at the NHL standings for a change.
The Detroit Red Wings sing varying tunes on the topic — some admit they look, some say they don’t — but right now, why wouldn’t they? They head into Raleigh, North Carolina — Friday’s last stop on a three-game road trip — to face the Hurricanes while on a 6-0-1 roll that has edged them into third place in the Atlantic Division.
“The way we’ve come together, we got healthy after Christmas, and on the West Coast trip, we got hot,” Dylan Larkin said after scoring the decisive goal in Wednesday’s 3-2 overtime victory over the Florida Panthers. “We got on a roll, got our identity going. It’s been great.”
Larkin’s goal was his 18th of the season. The Wings’ best line of the evening was the Michael Rasmussen-Andrew Copp-Christian Fischer trio, which was key to the first two goals. Copp won the draw that set in motion Rasmussen’s goal, and Rasmussen’s strength won the puck battle that set up Robby Fabbri’s goal.
“Ras was a force, and Copper was all over it, and Fisch complemented them really well,” Larkin said. “Those guys got us going. They got us back to 1-1 and then they get a second one. It’s good. It’s what we need. We need a different hero every night and that’s been the story.”
Of their place in the standings, Larkin said that, “You look at it. I believe we’re right where we deserve to be.”
There was a key stretch early where the Wings showed they weren’t going to be pushed around by the physical Panthers, highlighted by Ben Chiarot getting into it with Matthew
Tkachuk.
“I think we woke them up a little bit,” Larkin said. “They like to scrum it up and Benny did a great job with Tkachuk. They had a battle going all night. It was similar to a playoff game. There were a lot of individual side battles going on and that’s huge for us. It’s not always about going and fighting someone. Guys are going at it with each other and winning one-on-one battles for 60 minutes.”
It’s the second straight game the Wings have rallied from a third-period deficit to win.
“I think we’re understanding that if you just play hard for 60 minutes, good things are going to happen,” Alex Lyon said after making 32 saves against his former team. “You can’t really worry about a goal here or there. You just focus on bringing your best for 60 minutes and let the chips fall where they may. I think that is the best way to approach it.”
The Wings (23-16-5) began the trip by banking a pair of points against another Atlantic rivaL, the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“Back-to-back comeback wins, it gives us some confidence,” Rasmussen said. “It’s good to know those are possible for us. When it’s not going our way, we keep it close. At 2-1, all you need is one.”
After struggling through December, collecting just 11 points in 15 games, the Wings have 13 points in seven games in January.
“I’m very happy,” Lalonde said. “I just think there’s a lot of consistency in our game and we are getting rewarded with some results. It was very similar to our last game out — battle for 40 minutes, down 2-1 going into the third, we have a chance. I give the guys credit. It’s very hard to win in this league, it’s very hard to win on the road, it’s very hard to beat top-echelon teams, especially trailing going into the third.
“I’ll peek at the standings tonight. We’ve gotten what we deserved here by playing the right way. Still have a long ways to go, you can see all those teams bunched up. The division is too good, the conference is too good, you have to find a way to get some of these runs and fortunately we are in the midst of one right now.”
The Wings have dug in the last two games without the services of Patrick Kane, who suffered a lower-body injury early in Toronto. Their perseverance has built a reserve of confidence, while keeping a steady outlook.
“It feels good, but it doesn’t come for free,” Lyon said. “If you take it for granted and the second you start to think that it’s just momentum that is going to build on itself, that is when it is going to go back the other way. We just have to continue to stay on the details. We have to move forward.”
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com . Follow her @helenestjames .