Todd McLellan refused to pin the Detroit Red Wings’ debilitating loss to the Seattle Kraken on any one player.
When speaking after the loss, McLellan said, “Anytime you pull a goaltender, it says something about how you think he played. But this was a 30-man loss — the coaches, the goaltenders, the defensemen and the forwards. We all had a part in it.”
It shows what he thought about goaltender John Gibson’s performance. Gibson entered Friday’s contest boasting a .903 save percentage and a 2.38 GAA. But he allowed five goals at even strength despite the Kraken taking 15 total shots when he was in the net.
McLellan yanked Gibson at the 34:05 mark, which enabled backup Daniil Tarasov to make an impromptu Red Wings debut. Tarasov gave the Wings more stability, saving eight of nine shots and allowing a power-play goal. Still, the damage was done before Tarasov even stepped into the crease.
Red Wings Collapsed As A Team On Friday Night
Detroit started the game well, taking a 2-1 lead thanks to Viktor Arvidsson scoring his third power-play goal of the year and William Wallinder notching his first career goal. Then the Red Wings allowed three goals over the next 3:44.
That alone shows a small collection of evening lowlights, and it supports McLellan’s quip that this one is more than just on the goaltender. Just 39 seconds after Wallinder picked up his first-ever goal, Freddie Gaudreau scored. Gaudreau took advantage of a Red Wings unit that was slow to get back into position.
Just over two minutes later, Matty Beniers outmuscled Wallinder on the boards, forcing a turnover. Jared McCann collected the puck on the boards behind the net with nobody in a red jersey putting pressure on him. McCann backhanded the puck past Alex DeBrincat and Justin Faulk, who were too slow to react. That left Mackie Samoskevich wide open at the left post to finish the sequence.
Freddie Gaudreau scored another one at the 7:44 mark of the second after the Red Wings lost yet another puck battle in their own zone. Ryan Winterton flipped the puck to Gaudreau, who skated into the middle of the left circle and fired it top shelf.
Puck-watching, getting outmuscled on the forecheck, and losing puck battles cost the Red Wings in their ugliest four-minute stretch of the season.
Tack on Ben Meyers’ goal at the 14:05 mark of the second, and you can’t blame McLellan for pinning this loss on everyone. Yes, John Gibson needed to play better. That said, the Red Wings looked completely dysfunctional throughout most of the second period.
Detroit Must Chalk Friday Night’s Loss Up As A Learning Experience
If there is anything to take away, the entire lineup and coaching staff should rewatch this one and know exactly where they went wrong. And the Red Wings have the perfect test coming up on Saturday night when they skate into Montreal to face the Canadiens.
At 1-2-1, Montreal has struggled to find its groove early on. But this is a team that earned a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals last season and is loaded with brewing and established stars. If the Wings want to show that they learned from their awful second period just 24 hours after the fact, then they can start that journey against the Canadiens.
Todd McLellan Delivered Blunt Verdict After Red Wings’ Ugly Loss