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Dylan Larkin and the Detroit Red Wings will play the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday with a new coach behind the bench. The Red Wings fired former coach Derek Lalonde on Boxing Day. In his place is veteran bench boss Todd McLellan, who won a Stanley Cup as an assistant coach in Hockeytown back in 2008.
Midseason coaching changes have become more common in the NHL. However, they are incredibly rare in Detroit. In fact, the last in-season coaching change the team made came in 1985 when Harry Neale was fired after 35 games. The rarity of such a move doesn't matter, though. Larkin believes this is a move the team needed, as he mentioned at Friday's press conference.
“We were missing something, and ultimately Steve (Yzerman) made the decision. That's something you don't want to happen,” he said in a clip shared by WXYZ Detroit reporter Brad Galli. “I really like Derek (Lalonde) and Boughs (Bob Boughner) as guys. They are really good people and you never want to see that. But I feel like something needed to happen. Now we move forward.”
Red Wings hope Todd McLellan can right the ship
The Red Wings are one of the worst teams in the NHL at this point. Detroit is second-last in the Eastern Conference and bottom of the Atlantic Division. Bringing Todd McLellan in as head coach certainly isn't the solution to this issue. But the team believes it can be an important first step.
McLellan has found success at each of his previous three stops. He took the San Jose Sharks to the Western Conference Finals twice in 2010 and 2011. He also brought the Edmonton Oilers within a game of the 2017 Western Conference Finals. And he helped the Los Angeles Kings get back to playoff contention during his time with the franchise.
McLellan has helped teams get to the postseason. But he is walking into a completely new situation in Detroit. He is taking over a team midseason for the first time in his career. Moreover, this is the first time he has taken the reins of an Eastern Conference team. All of this makes for some adjusting early in his tenure.
Dylan Larkin and the Red Wings are hoping to salvage what they can in 2024-25. Detroit hopes McLellan can get the team within the Wild Card race by the end of the year. In 2026, the goal is likely to put in a legitimate challenge for the Wild Card and potentially make the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
