Detroit Red Wings: Wrapping up week 2 of the 2023-24 season

Welcome to my second 2023-24 regular season Detroit Red Wings weekly review. The Red Wings have been on a tear to open the season and the play was on fire this week as well.

Detroit started the week with two wins, 5-2 in Ottawa against the Senators and 6-2 against the Calgary Flames.

The next two games resulted in no wins but they managed to grab two points. The Red Wings lost 5-4 in overtime against the Seattle Kraken and dropped the final game 4-1 against the Winnipeg Jets.

The Detroit Red Wings continued to play very well in week two of the season.

Positives

The Red Wings have one of the hottest lines in the NHL today. Dylan Larkin, Alex DeBrincat, and Lucas Raymond have been on fire since game one and they are all contributing offensively.

This past week, the line combined for 18 points with Larkin grabbing a team-high nine points on three goals and six assists. DeBrincat was next with four goals and one assist for five points.

Raymond scored one goal and three assists for four points. This is by far the best line Detroit has had in many years.

Larkin keeps pouring in points and is second in the league scoring with 15 points, only two points behind Jack Hughes of the New Jersey Devils.

Since his NHL debut, he has been one of the consistent performers the team has put on the ice, which is why he is the captain. This is the best start offensively in Larkin’s career as he has two of the best linemates he has played with.

Larkin may not finish this high at season’s end but he will continue to contribute offensively at the pace he always has.

Defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere has to be the second-best pickup this off-season for General Manager Steve Yzerman. Signing a one-year, $4.125 million contract, he has been nothing short of amazing to start the year.

His experience on the power play is showing as he is the quarterback of the second-best power play, which is operating at 38.7%. He does not shoot to score but his placement of shots in the right spots for deflections or rebounds is amazing.

He is underrated as far as off-season signings are concerned but he has shown tremendous offensive abilities in his short run in Detroit. He has three goals and six assists for nine points in eight games and is a +1.

Negatives

Nothing to be overly concerned with at the moment but defenseman Moritz Seider has had a slow start to the 2023-24 campaign. Seider has done well offensively with one goal and seven assists for eight points but at times he looks lost defensively.

His physical contact is still there but positionally something is not right. At only two weeks into the season, there are no alarms going off but something to watch.

Speaking of slow starts for defense, Jeff Petry is not looking at home in a Red Wings sweater. His play, and offense, have been nowhere to be found and he has even sat in the press box.

He was brought over to provide leadership and offense but the offense has not been found as of yet. Maybe he needs more time to adjust to his new surroundings but he has to find his way because his stay in Detroit could be a short one.

After an incredible second half of the 2022-23 season, forward Michael Rasmussen has been slow offensively. Big offensive numbers are not his thing and something he is not known for but he finished last season on an incredible streak.

He has been playing in the middle six on the wing, which is the best play for him considering the center depth the Detroit Red Wings have. Last season, he struggled in the first couple of months but then it all came together so let us hope that is what is going on here.

The Detroit Red Wings have a big week coming up with three games. Saturday, October 28, the Red Wings take on division leader Boston Bruins, who are two points ahead of Detroit in the Atlantic Division.

Next, Detroit heads to New York on October 30 to take on the Islanders, followed by a date with the Florida Panthers on November 2.