Why the Detroit Red Wings have to like their coaching hire

The Detroit Red Wings went through with the next step of the Yzerplan when general manager Steve Yzerman named Derek Lalonde the 28th head coach in franchise history.

Derek Lalonde is only 49 years old and joins the Red Wings after serving as an assistant coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning since 2018. The Lightning clinched four-straight postseason berths during his time and captured back-to-back championships in 2020 and 2021 as well as a Presidents’ Trophy in 2019.

At the time of being named as an assistant coach, Steve Yzerman was the Lightning’s general manager and vice president. This is what Derek Lalonde had to say after being named head coach of the Wings.

“I’d like to thank Chris Ilitch and the entire Ilitch family, as well as Steve Yzerman and the Red Wings management team for entrusting me with the opportunity to lead this historic franchise. I’m ready to get to work with our group. There’s a very bright future ahead in Detroit.”

This is a great hire for the Wings, as they now have their head coach for the future of the franchise. He is a younger guy not yet 50, and this is his first opportunity to serve as a head coach at the NHL level. This fits Yzerman’s track record as Jon Cooper was also a first time coach when Yzerman and the Lightning hired him in 2013.

Lalonde last served as a head coach with the Iowa Wild in the AHL. He worked for two seasons as head coach putting up an overall record of 69-58-17-8 during that time.

This is a move by a Red Wings team ready to make the jump to the NHL level. They have players like Dylan Larkin, Jakub Vrana and Tyler Bertuzzi as well as young guns like Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider ready to learn from a coach who has experience winning at the highest level.

Being an original six team, the Red Wings have seen a lot of great coaches through the years, and Derek Lalonde has the potential to be one of the next greats for this franchise!