How Detroit Red Wings will deal with losing Dylan Larkin for 2 weeks
Joe Veleno stands to get more ice time as the Detroit Red Wings face approximately two weeks without captain Dylan Larkin.
"it's going to be more minutes for Joe," coach Derek Lalonde said Monday after revealing Larkin will miss approximately two weeks with a lower-body injury. "Veleno skated in Larkin's spot on the top line between Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane, and was on the penalty kill. Andrew Copp slid into Larkin's spot on the top power play unit.
"The last time Dylan was out, Joe got into that 18-to-20 (-minute) range," Lalonde said. "He actually got 21-22 one night. But, probably some increased minutes for the whole group.
"Good challenge for us. Everyone goes through injuries. We didn't handle it very well last time Dylan was out, but I think we will respond a little better this time around."
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The Wings went 1-3 when Larkin was sidelined by an upper-body injury in December, but they were also without top-six forwards J.T. Compher and David Perron at that time, and Kane had only just joined the lineup. They went 1-1 when Larkin was out for personal reasons near the end of November.
They go on the road, with the next game Wednesday against the Colorado Avalanche, having lost consecutive games, but on the whole the second half so far has been marked by success. The Wings (33-22-6) have only lost consecutive games once before since the calendar turned to 2024. Lalonde said there's no immediate plan to call up a reinforcement, because Klim Kostin, a healthy scratch the last eight games, is available. If need be, Lalonde could use 11 forwards and seven defensemen.
"I'm confident in the group," Lalonde said. "We're deeper throughout the lineup.
"I think everyone has got to do a little bit more. They understand the task. This group has been pretty good battling in the moment, hence our third-period comeback record. Even our last road trip, we lose the first two games, we're on the back end of it and have a pretty good road trip. The moment right now is Colorado and our current road trip and we'll have to battle and grind for every point available."
Masking Larkin's absence won't be easy. The 27-year-old, who was hurt in Saturday's 4-0 loss to the Florida Panthers, leads the team with 26 goals and 54 points, centers the top line, and plays both special teams.
"He's by far our most minutes guy," Lalonde said. "He's one of the only guys that plays in all three situations — five-on-five, penalty kill and power play. He's a driver for us.
"These are the bumps. You want to stay in that battle, you want to get over that line, you have to fight through some of these things. This is our opportunity on this road trip."
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The injury comes as the trade deadline looms Friday, but a two-week window, even though that could encompass as much as seven games, isn't insurmountable. Veleno (26 points) does not have Larkin's offensive skill set, but plays with pace and solid defensive instincts.
"He can skate and you've seen when someone can have success with Cat and Kane, they just work better when someone is providing some pace for them," Lalonde said. "That was Dylan, and Joe has that ability to do that, also."
The Wings are trying to cement their hold on a playoff spot; even coming off two losses, they're in the first wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference. Being manhandled by the Panthers, who are in position to finish atop the NHL standings, was what defenseman Jake Walman called "a real eye opener.
"It's a good experience. That is what it is going to be like, it kind of felt like that. You could feel it as a player. You could feel the intensity. I think it was good for a lot of the guys in here — it was good for me, good for our D corps, good for our forward group, good for our goalies, good for everybody — to kind of know what it is going to be like, know what it is going to take."
Larkin's injury only emphasizes what Lalonde has preached all season.
"My message to the guys was, all along, if we were ever to stay in this fight, if we were going to stay in this battle right till the end, everything is going be difficult," Lalonde said. "At times it didn't feel difficult. We're in it now."
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.
Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.
Next up: Avalanche
Matchup: Red Wings (33-22-6) at Colorado (37-20-5 entering Monday.
Faceoff: 9:30 p.m. Wednesday; Ball Arena, Denver.
TV/radio: TNT; WXYT-FM (97.1).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: How Detroit Red Wings will deal with losing Dylan Larkin for 2 weeks
