Detroit Red Wings Weekly Recap: Wrapping Up Week 14

Welcome to my 14th regular season Detroit Red Wings weekly review. This week, the Red Wings played four games, going 1-3 on the week.

Detroit lost 4-3 against the Columbus Blue Jackets, lost 6-3 at the Colorado Avalanche, and lost 4-3 at the Arizona Coyotes. The only win for the Detroit Red Wings came on Thursday night, a 3-2 win against the Vegas Golden Knights.

A long week gives the Detroit Red Wings a 1-3 record.

Positives

Forward Lucas Raymond has certainly been playing well as of late, and that continued this week.

Raymond scored two goals this week to bring his hot offensive totals to four goals and four assists for eight points over his last six games.

After struggling earlier in the season, Raymond seems to have found his scoring touch from last season when he was in talks for the Calder Trophy.

Center, and captain, Dylan Larkin also had a good offensive week, posting one goal and three assists for four points. He is quietly putting together a good offensive season, which seems surprising as the Detroit Red Wings’ offensive woes as a team continue.

Larkin always has a knack for getting offensive production at the right time, and that continued this week.

Jonatan Berggren is continuing to show the Red Wings that he can play at this level. He has been consistent in his play since his recall and is playing like a veteran.

He is small, but he has shown flashes of greatness and can also go into the corners and win board battles. This season, Berggren has seven goals and ten assists for 17 points in 31 games. He is pushing hard for a full-time role in the top six next year.

Negatives

Defenseman Ben Chiarot continues to play uninspired hockey in the defensive zone. There’s been sloppy play, turnovers, no physicality anymore, and a knack for leaving an opposing forward left alone.

His defensive play can be summed up on one statistic. He is a team-worst -17 in the +/- category. At first, he was paired with Moritz Seider, then he was randomly placed with the second and third pairing. It is anyone’s guess as to where he ends up at the end of the season.

For a lack of a better phrase, the team looks to have given up a bit. Early in the season, when the Detroit Red Wings were winning, everyone was on the same page and doing everything right.

The team has been struggling lately and the same effort and determination are just not there anymore. It would not surprise me come the trade deadline if some major moves are made to send a message.

Speaking of Larkin, it turns out his camp and the Detroit Red Wings are not close to a contract extension. This is not a good sign for both parties involved, as one has to think about where Larkin will be playing next season.

If general manager Steve Yzerman gets the feeling Larkin will not re-sign with the Red Wings, could Larkin be seeing his last few weeks as a member of the Detroit Red Wings?

One would have to think a deal does get done, but we have seen weird things before in contract talks not getting a deal done.