Detroit Red Wings shuffle lines heading into Ottawa matchup

6 days ago 2

The Detroit Red Wings head on the road as they try to shake off as big a letdown as they've had since early in the season.

They take on the Ottawa Senators on Monday, Jan. 5 (7:30 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network Detroit) in the first of four meetings between the Atlantic Division rivals this season. The Wings (24-15-4) are in second place in the division, a point behind the Tampa Bay Lightning (who have played two fewer games) but dinged by a 4-1 loss at home to the Pittsburgh Penguins over the weekend that coach Todd McLellan described as a "complete letdown."

The Wings were beat in every facet of the game but goaltending.

Even within that Saturday game, McLellan tinkered with his lines, putting Marco Kasper on the line with Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond. Kasper was back in the spot at Sunday's practice, but with Elmer Söderblom on the other wing.

Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin (71) waits for the puck drop on a face-off against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the first period at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026.

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Lucas Raymond, Larkin's usual right wing, was on a line with J.T. Compher and James van Riemsdyk. Emmitt Finnie, who earned a spot on Larkin's line out of camp, was with Michael Rasmussen and Mason Appleton, a checking line rather than a scoring one.

The only line left unchanged was the second one, with Andrew Copp centering Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane.

"Sometimes things go stale, and we haven't had an overabundance of five-on-five scoring from certain groups," McLellan said. "The Copp line has done a real good job. They've been carrying us in that category, or department, if you will. And we need a little bit more from some others. So shuffle them up a little bit to see what we get from the groups."

McLellan described the Copp group as the team's first line, and said he wasn't sure about putting numbers on any of the other lines.

"Razor and Larks, and Emmitt, they're the one line that hasn't had a lot going for them even strength," McLellan said. "They're great players and we're going need them to win, but it just hasn't gone well lately. It's been a while since they produced. They've got to find their games and maybe separating them for a little bit will help. Very easy for us to go back to them."

Söderblom has been a healthy scratch since the Wings lost at the Carolina Hurricanes on Dec. 27. He'll re-enter the lineup, while Nate Danielson, a first-round pick from 2023, will watch from the press box at Canadian Tire Centre. He has two goals among seven points in 28 games.

"Nate is going to have to produce some offense over over time," McLellan said. "He's still figuring out the game here and I think he's got a tremendous toolbox. He's got to put it all together. We'll help him with that."

In the afternoon, the Wings recalled forward John Leonard, who had two goals and two assists in seven games with the team earlier this season.

Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com.

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