Back in the day, there was a time when the combination of Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat and Erik Gustafsson were the cause of nightmares for the Detroit Red Wings.

During the 2018-19 season, that trio were linchpins on a potent Chicago Blackhawks power play that was clicking at 20.17%. Kane led the Blackhawks in scoring that season with 44 goals and 110 points. DeBrincat was third on the club with 41 goals and 76 points. Gustafsson would enjoy a career year. He wound up with 17 goals and 60 points.

SHOWTIME Patrick Kane rockets a one-timer past Markstrom to put Detroit up 1-0.

4 game point streak for Kane. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/whyrzbtx6N

— Ryan Hana (@RyanHanaWWP) February 17, 2024

On the power play, Kane was contributing nine goals and 30 points. DeBrincat would account for a team-high 13 power-play goals. Gustafsson put up 4-14-18 numbers when Chicago was enjoying the man advantage.

Two years ago, none of the three were Red Wings. Now that they all are, that chemistry they possess on the power play is already surfacing even during training camp drills.

“Gus does find a way of transporting the puck from the blue line and giving Patrick some time,” Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde said. “He seems to find a way to bring it to the sweet spot. So there is some chemistry between those three.”

It’s one of the reasons why when defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere was opting to take his power play expertise elsewhere in the summer, Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman was setting his sights on acquiring UFA Gustafsson.

“He runs a great power play,” Detroit captain Dylan Larkin said.

Red Wings DeBrincat Raves About Gustafsson

Lalonde went to the video when determining whether Gustafsson would indeed be a good fit for his team. The study of that chicago power play proved to be eye opening.

“One of a coach’s first exercises is to watch them from their past,” Lalonde explained. “The beauty of technology in this day, you can literally pick out any time of the season.

“I watched a lot of their power play and there is some chemistry there.”

The coach didn’t need to look far to find salesmen willing to step up and pitch him on the advantages Gustafsson could bring when Detroit was in a man-advantage situation.

Red Wings were down 3-1
(Thanks thrown stick)

Come soaring back with goals from Gostisbehere, Larkin and guess who…

DEBRINCAT #LGRW 

This power play is

pic.twitter.com/NhdO3ILz0K

— Jim Costa (@JimCosta_) October 25, 2023

“I think he’s a great passer on the power play and off the power play,” DeBrincat said of Gustafsson. “I think he’s a guy that can really make that first pass out of the zone.

“He’s very deceptive. On the power play you may think he’s shooting, but then he’s giving a nice pass over for a one timer. So I think he adds that aspect of it.”

That deception in Gustafsson’s game is also what Kane finds most enticing.

“He was so deceptive up top, really knows how to run the top, maybe as good as anyone I played with, to be honest with you,” Kane said. “He was a key component to our power play.”

The Red Wings are hopeful that the Chicago trio will be key components to their power play this season.

The post Can Gustafsson, Kane And DeBrincat Rediscover Chicago Chemistry With Red Wings? appeared first on Detroit Hockey Now.

On the surface, playing in the NHL for the Detroit Red Wings seems like a great job. And for the most part, it certainly is just that.

There’s the adulation, the fame, the chance to play a children’s game for a living and you get summers off. Oh, and the money’s not bad, either.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t pitfalls along the way.

Consider two of the newest Red Wings, for instance. Both goaltender Cam Talbot and defenseman Erik Gustafsson were unrestricted free agent signings. For each of them, Detroit will be their eighth NHL stop. They were even crossing paths previously for 17 games with the 2019-20 Calgary Flames.

“You never really get used to it,” Talbot said of the packing and unpacking. “I can tell you that much.”

For Gustafsson, the Red Wings are his eighth team in the past six seasons.

“It’s been a lot of teams, but it’s always fun to get an opportunity on a new team, an Original Six team, too,” Gustafsson said of arriving in Detroit. “It’s always a challenge to come in as a new guy.”

G Cam Talbot will wear jersey number 39 for the Detroit Red Wings. Number last worn by Alex Nedeljkovic in 2022-23. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/Cnu1IJtoLP

— NHL Jersey Numbers (@NHLNewNumbers) August 16, 2024

In Talbot’s case, the Red Wings are his seventh team in eight seasons.

“I seem to be part of it every summer,” he said of the NHL transactions wire. “It’s really nerve-wracking.

“It has been a bit of a whirlwind lately, moving from team to team.”

Red Wings Players Think About Family Impact

For the player, changing teams is impactful.

“I think every experience is different,” Gustafsson said. “I don’t want to come in and be the voice of the room right away.

“It’s something you have to learn and read, too.”

At the same time, there’s a group of guys awaiting them in their new dressing room who succinctly understand the lifestyle and are ready and willing to make the adjustment as seamless as possible. The newcomers are quickly assimilated into the team culture.

“It’s easy, the hockey part,” Talbot said. “You can kind of plug in and play. Guys always integrate you into the team.”

That isn’t necessarily the case for the rest of the family. Spouses are left to deal with the headaches of moving. Children must switch schools and say goodbye to their friends. It can be a very traumatic experience for a youngster.

“You never really fully get used to it, especially with a young family now,” Talbot said. “Taking the kids out of school and moving them all the time, having to leave their friends, that’s the hardest part for me.

“My kids have been troopers, but hopefully I’ve found a spot for a couple of years here and we’ll be able to kind of settle down a little bit.”

Detroit Stability Appealing To Kane

It was that latter notion that was playing a role in Patrick Kane’s decision to re-up with the Red Wings rather than test the UFA waters on July 1.

For his first 16 NHL seasons, Kane was with the Chicago Blackhawks. Since February 28, 2023, he’s become somewhat of a vagabond. Kane was moving to the Arizona Coyotes in a paper transaction, then on to the New York Rangers and finally, the Red Wings.

“For me, my heart was set on Detroit and coming back to Detroit.”

WATCH: Patrick Kane wanted to return to the Red Wings, and loved his time in Detroit. He said he can watch some of Ken Daniels' goal calls "for the rest of my life." pic.twitter.com/1FC958h74a

— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) July 9, 2024

Stability, the opportunity to again put down roots in one location, was appealing to him.

“I think just we were looking back on kind of what I’ve been through and what the family has been through in the past 18-plus months,” Kane admitted. “I mean, obviously you’re in Chicago for whatever it was, 16 or 17 years, and then I had go to New York for a couple months.

“Then I had the (hip) surgery and I was rehabbing in Toronto. And then you have to pick a new team. And I went to Detroit and I was there for 50 games. All that happened within 18 months.

“So, even if I did a one-year deal, it wasn’t like it was gonna seem very short or anything like that, especially with what we’ve been through.”

The post Journeymen Red Wings Discuss Life on The Move appeared first on Detroit Hockey Now.

Growing up in Yaroslavl, Russia, they were the childhood heroes of Detroit Red Wings forward Vladimir Tarasenko.

The Russian Five were iconic in his view.

“I think this is Detroit as a team,” Tarasenko explained. “It’s one of the most famous, if not the most famous team in the world.

“Like, when you talk about how to give it a history and no offense to other teams, but we grew up in Russia. A lot of people follow Detroit because of the Russian Five.

Vlad Tarasenko said when he got his first play station, he played as the Red Wings. The Russian Five being very popular where he grew up. #LGRW

— Daniella Bruce (@daniellabruce_) July 8, 2024

“When I had my first PlayStation. I was playing for Detroit too, with my friend. So, yeah, this was the team all the kids in my neighborhood where I grow up, when we talk about hockey.”

In Scandinavia, a similar scenario was playing out inside the childhood home of Detroit defenseman Erik Gustafsson in Nynashamn, Sweden. He also worshipped at the altar of the Red Wings, but his iconic hero was a different winged wheel legend.

“The history of this club, my favorite defenseman growing up was Nicklas Lidstrom,” Gustafsson said. “It’s obviously a great organization.”

Tarasenko Wore Fedorov’s 91

When he broke into the NHL with the St. Louis Blues in 2012, Tarasenko donned the No. 91 jersey made famous by Red Wings superstar Sergei Fedorov. Many hockey people drew parallels between the young Tarasenko and Fedorov, but he insists he wasn’t a massive Fedorov fan.

“I mean, I wouldn’t say, like, I don’t want to lie to you. I wouldn’t say I was, like, super fan,” Tarsenko said. “I like how he played a lot, but in that time, when I was young, we don’t have many options to follow the league.

“So it’s not like nowadays where you can YouTube the highlights and see whatever you want. Like the place where I grew up, back home in Russia, we don’t really have NHL on the TV at that time, so it was hard to follow.”

As he made the grade in the NHL. Gustfasson befriended another Swedish defenseman playing for the Red Wings, Niklas Kronwall.

“When Kronwall was playing, I was working out with him in Sweden, so I know him,” Gustafsson said.

Erik Gustafsson, signed 2x$2M by DET, is a two-way puck-moving defenceman who's especially useful in the offensive zone. Has come into his own in the past two seasons as a very strong option to win minutes with a third pairing. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/h6UxNOTRP1

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) July 1, 2024

Now the director of European player development for the Red Wings, Kronwall reached out to welcome Gustafsson into the fold.

“I signed and then we talked a little bit, it wasn’t too much,” Gustafsson said. “We texted each other.

“He was very happy I was part of the organization.”

Ready To Help Red Wings Return To Glory

Both players were UFA additions this month. Each is excited to be part of this legendary NHL club. They’re also anxious to help the Red Wings return to the glory days they witnessed as fans during their youth.

“I was very happy they called my agent and could get a deal done,” Gustafsson said. “I’m happy to be a part of this team.”

They want to be part of the solution in seeking to return playoff hockey to Hockeytown.

“It’s pretty exciting to join a team, wear the jersey and try to help the team win,” Tarasenko said.

The post Strong Red Wings Ties Among Newcomers to Club appeared first on Detroit Hockey Now.

Patrick Kane knows Erik Gustafsson better than anyone on the Detroit Red Wings roster. He was quick to point out just how efficient an offensive-zone performer the Swedish defenseman can be when he’s on top of his game.

“He’s a really, really good hockey player, great offensively, makes a lot of good passes, a lot of good plays,” Kane said.

The two played together with the Chicago Blackhawks from 2015-20. During the 2018-19 season, Gustafsson would account for 17 goals and 60 points. Of that number, four goals and 18 points came on the power play.

Goal by Vincent Trocheck assisted by Erik Gustafsson#Capitals 1 #NYR 1 1st pic.twitter.com/5ohoCKo9q8

— Sᴘᴏʀᴛs 24/7 (@Sports_24x7_) April 23, 2024

“He was a key component to our power play,” Kane said. “He was so deceptive up top, really knows how to run the top, maybe as good as anyone I played with, to be honest with you.”

Of course, it must be noted that Gustafsson has never come close to matching that 60-point output in the rest of his NHL career. He put up 42 points in 2022-23, a season split between the Washington Capitals and Toronto Maple Leafs. Last season, with the New York Rangers, Gustafsson’s six-goal, 31-point output was his third-best as an NHLer.

Then again, it’s also worth noting that the 50 points accounted for last season by Red Wings defenseman Shayne Gostisbere was his most productive campaign since a 65-point season with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2017-18.

No one was anticipating Gostisbehere to be that effective with the Red Wings. So maybe it’s not out of the question for Gustafsson to also up his numbers playing a more opportunistic role in Detroit.

Red Wings Think Gustafsson Can Replace Gostisbehere

That’s what the club is envisioning. They foresee that like Gostisbehere, Gustafsson will be filling a third-pairing role and be quarterbacking one of their power-play units.

“Erik Gustafsson will replace the Ghost as that offensive, probably on the power play guy,” Detroit GM Steve Yzerman said. “We expect him to be on one of the power play units.”

Erik Gustafsson, signed 2x$2M by DET, is a two-way puck-moving defenceman who's especially useful in the offensive zone. Has come into his own in the past two seasons as a very strong option to win minutes with a third pairing. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/h6UxNOTRP1

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) July 1, 2024

Knowing he’ll be filling that role and that more will be expected of him is a factor that Gustafsson finds to be exciting.

“I have been playing power play ever since I came over here,” Gustafsson said. “It’s something I like to do and something my game is meant to do.

“I like to run it and try to give the puck to the forwards to shoot, create lanes and stuff like that. I feel very confident playing on the power play. While I don’t know what’s going to happen, hopefully I can get an opportunity.”

Can Gustafsson actually fill the void left by Gostisbehere? Kane is giving him at least a Ghost of a chance.

“I think having that familiarity with Gus, and obviously that was when we had a good power play there,” Kane said. “(Alex) DeBrincat was on the other side as well. So, maybe that’s something we look at.”

The post Red Wings Counting on Gustafsson Filling Gostibehere Void appeared first on Detroit Hockey Now.