Dylan Larkin skating, but other Red Wings must step up to stop ‘shocking’ slide
DETROIT – Dylan Larkin was back on the ice Friday at the start of practice, testing his lower-body injury, stickhandling and shooting.
He left after about 10 minutes, once the drills began, and won’t play this weekend when the Detroit Red Wings host Buffalo (12:30 Saturday, Bally
Sports Detroit) and visit Pittsburgh (6 p.m. Sunday, BSD). But seeing their captain on the ice provided a bit of positive energy for a team in desperate need of something.
PREVIEW: Red Wings look to snap losing streak against Buffalo on Saturday afternoon
Eager to snap seven-game losing skid, Detroit will face Buffalo for second time this week.
Detroit — The Detroit Red Wings will play the Buffalo Sabres for the second time in four days on Saturday afternoon at Little Caesars Arena, eager to turn the tide after Thursday’s loss against the Arizona Coyotes.
Puck drop between Detroit (33-27-6; 72 points) and Buffalo (32-30-5; 69 points) is slated for 12:30 p.m., with broadcast coverage on Bally Sports Detroit and the Red Wings Radio Network (97.1 The Ticket in Detroit).
Thursday’s game marked the seventh consecutive loss for Detroit, its first on home ice since Mar. 2 against Florida.
Detroit kept it close for the first 40 minutes against Arizona with the help of a first period goal from Lucas Raymond. But the Coyotes pulled away by outscoring Detroit, 2-0 in the third period.
“It seems like things just aren’t going our way,” Alex DeBrincat said.” We’ve just got to stay positive. We have to end this sooner rather than later, obviously. If we can keep looking at the good things we’re doing and try to emulate that for 60 minutes I think we’ll be good. We have a good hockey team. Obviously, this is an unfortunate stretch and we’ve put ourselves in a bit of a tough situation but there’s a lot of games left. We can get out of this hole and be right back where we want to be.”
Detroit head coach Derek Lalonde said while there are multiple aspects of Detroit’s game that need to change to be successful, it starts on the defensive end.
“If you chase offense especially in the way we’re built, we’re not going to be successful,” Lalonde said. “The winners at the end of the year it all looks the same no matter who it is, how they’re built and how much talent they have. It still starts from the net up.”
Detroit captain Dylan Larkin skated during the start of Friday’s practice, but it’s unlikely that he will return for the next couple of games. Larkin has been unavailable due to a lower body injury sustained against Florida on Mar. 2.
“It’s good to see him skating,” DeBrincat said. “He’s clearly a big part of our team, leadership wise and he’s probably our best player. It’s tough having him gone but other guys need to step up and we need to figure out a way out of this. Hopefully we’re in a better spot when he comes back.”
Detroit looks to slow Buffalo down on Saturday and split the season series. The Sabres are riding a three-game winning streak and most recently shut out the New York Islanders, 4-0 at home on Thursday.
Alex DeBrincat | Derek Lalonde | Media Availability
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