Detroit Red Wings devour New Jersey Devils, 5-2, on Larkin hat trick: Game thread replay
Detroit Red Wings (14-13-3) vs. New Jersey Devils (10-13-5)
When: 8 p.m. Saturday.
Where: Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.
TV: Bally Sports Detroit.
Radio: WXYT-FM (97.1; other Red Wings radio affiliates).
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Game notes: The second half of the Pistons/Wings doubleheader at Little Caesars Arena features a trio of stars who still aren't old enough to drink legally (at least in the U.S.). The Devils are led by 2019 No. 1 overall pick Jack Hughes, who spent his pre-draft time playing for the U.S. National Development Team in Plymouth. Hughes has only played in 11 games this season, due to injuries, but he has five goals and three assists. (He also signed a hefty eight-year, $64 million extension last month, so the coneys are on him.)
Five picks after Hughes went to the Devils, the Wings selected defenseman Moritz Seider, who is having a whale of a season, with three goals (tied for 18th among rookies) and 17 assists (tied for first among rookies) in his first 30 games. He's one of only 31 rookie defensemen in the modern era (since the NHL expanded in 1967) with at least 20 points in his first 30 games. The 20-year-old is also logging some grownup minutes; his 22:22 average ice time is second on the Wings, behind only defenseman Filip Hronek.
Of course, Seider is tied for the rookie assist lead with his teammate, Lucas Raymond, who also has 10 goals, for 27 points in his first 30 games. Consider some other rookies in the modern era who put up 27 points in their first 30 games: Nicklas Lidstrom (1992), Mike Modano (1990), Brett Hull (1988), Dino Ciccarelli (1981) and Peter Forsberg (1995). And of that list, only Modano was a teen, as is Raymond. (Here are the 25 teens in the modern era with at least 27 points in their first 30 games, in case you were curious.)
Two key members of the Wings organization it won't feature? Coach Jeff Blashill and goalie Alex Nedeljkovic, who entered the NHL's COVID protocol on Saturday morning along with assistant coach Alex Tanguay and forwards Carter Rowney and Givani Smith.
After the Wings are through with the Devils, they'll get an extra day off, as their Monday-night matchup against the Colorado Avalanche was postponed due to a COVID breakout in the Avs organization. So the Wings will be off till Thursday, when they travel to St. Paul, Minnesota, to take on the Wild.
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Contact Ryan Ford at rford@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @theford.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings beat New Jersey Devils, 5-2: Game thread replay
