Michael Rasmussen has been one of the early bright spots for the Detroit Red Wings, and that’s saying something in a season where the veteran group hasn’t given the team much to brag about.
The obvious exceptions are there. Moritz Seider, Alex DeBrincat and Lucas Raymond are all doing their part.
Justin Faulk has looked strong in a limited sample. But outside of that, there hasn’t been much to celebrate from the older hands, with J.T.
Compher before his injury and Ben Chiarot leaving plenty to be desired.
Rasmussen, though, has pushed himself into the conversation.
The former first-round pick is now the second-longest tenured Red Wing on the roster behind Dylan Larkin, and even though he still hasn’t recorded a point this season, his role has grown with every game. In a three-game sample, Rasmussen owns the sixth-highest 5v5 expected goals percentage in the league.
For those who don’t live in the advanced-stats weeds, that means Detroit is controlling the puck and tilting play in its favor when Rasmussen is on the ice. That kind of impact has earned him more trust from the coaching staff, and the ice time tells the story.
His workload has jumped fast over the first three games:
- October 2 vs. NYR: 14:54
- October 4 vs. WPG: 16:09
- October 6 vs. OTT: 20:05
The climb has come for two reasons: injuries have opened up opportunities, with players like J.T. Compher and Marco Kasper sidelined, and Rasmussen has done enough with the puck to keep getting called back over the boards.
Whether that holds up over the long haul is another question. For now, though, Detroit appears to be giving him a real chance to carve out a bigger place in the lineup.
Before the season, Todd McLellan was already hinting at what he wanted Rasmussen to become.
"He's got a fresh start to a new season; he's smart enough and mature enough to understand that," McLellan said. "He's just gotta capture it and stay confident, and that comes through in his play."
McLellan also pointed to the traits that have to drive Rasmussen’s game. "He's a big man and can hold on to pucks well, and he can play heavy along the boards. That's what we're asking everyone to do."
That message matters because last season was Rasmussen’s roughest by pace and production. He finished with 14 points in 64 games, and across 457 career games he has 154 points, which puts him 20th among all draftees in 2017.
McLellan was even more direct about the assignment ahead.
“The abrasiveness and heaviness; he'll have to be a good penalty killer for us to have success."
Right now, Rasmussen is handling penalty-killing duties on the first pair with Andrew Copp, Albert Johansson and Moritz Seider. That’s a notable job considering the Red Wings finished with the 23rd-best penalty kill in the league last season at 77.1 percent.
Detroit will need Rasmussen’s early-season momentum to stick if it wants that number to move in the right direction. For now, he’s given the Red Wings something they haven’t gotten much from the rest of the veteran group: a legitimate reason to keep watching.
In Other News...
Dylan Larkins Return Came With A Reality Red Wings Fans Cant Ignore
Dylan Larkins return to the Red Wings lineup after missing two games with an upper-body injury gave Detroit a familiar jolt, even if the circumstances around him remain anything but simple. He had already been through a summer trade request, and the noise around that decision has not faded, but he was back on the ice and helped the Red Wings beat the Ottawa Senators 5-3 with the kind of night Detroit needs from one of its most important players.
The return also came with a reminder that the situation is still uncomfortable for everyone involved. Larkin heard boos from fans and took some chirping from opponents, but he said his focus is on playing and helping the team win until a trade happens. For now, the Red Wings are getting production from a player whose future has been a topic all season, and that reality is hard for their fans to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Fans Got A Response That Only Deepened The Frustration
The early-season mood around Little Caesars Arena has already turned sour, and Chris Ilitch tried to meet that frustration head-on with a letter posted on LinkedIn. After a 1-2 start, Red Wings fans have made their displeasure clear with chants to sell the team and boos directed at captain Dylan Larkin, and the organization is now leaning on promotions to help fill the building while the noise around the club keeps growing.
What made the response land so awkwardly is what it left unsaid. Ilitchs note addressed the frustration, but it did not touch on Steve Yzermans removal or the ongoing search for a new general manager, and the questions around the front office are only getting louder as the situation around top defenseman Simon Edvinsson adds another layer of uncertainty for a team already trying to calm its fan base. [Read more 🡒]
Dylan Larkin's Return Gave The Red Wings Something They Desperately Needed
Dylan Larkins first game back gave the Red Wings the jolt they had been waiting for. Detroit looked more composed from the start in its home meeting with Ottawa, staying out of early penalty trouble and playing with the kind of urgency that had been missing during a winless stretch that dragged on for nearly six months. Alex DeBrincat led the way offensively with three points, and head coach Todd McLellan had plenty of reason to like the way his team responded around its captains return.
Larkin made the kind of immediate impact Detroit needed, scoring in a game the Red Wings controlled on the way to a 5-2 victory. It was the teams first lead of the season, a small but meaningful marker for a club trying to reset its tone after a frustrating start. The bigger question now is whether this was a one-night spark or the beginning of the Red Wings finally finding the steady play they have been searching for. [Read more 🡒]