DeBrincat, Gibson, Larkin & McLellan Post Game vs STL | Oct. 28, 2025

DeBrincat, Gibson, Larkin & McLellan Post Game vs STL | Oct. 28, 2025

ask for a better way to start the spring shift, I guess. Yeah, for sure. It’s good to get the two points there. Um, you know, obviously a little bit of a rough start, first shift, goal against, but I thought we battled back well, hammer a great fight to get us in the game. Um, it’s a good win. What’s the key to shaking off giving up an early one like that? Obviously, you know, that could change momentum pretty early on. Yeah, I think that’s just more of a bad bounce than anything. So, um, you know, I guess we did a good job of, you know, keeping composure and, um, you know, staying with it, but, you know, sometimes it’s going to happen. Um, goes off a guy’s foot and ends up right on his stick. So, um, you know, it’s a good way to battle back. Defensively overall, what did you like about the way you guys played tonight just one then after that? Yeah, I think we did a good job of um, staying above their their um, centers and not not giving them too much on the rush. So, um, I thought our sort outs on the rush were a lot better today than than previous games. And, um, you know, I think that was a a big part of it. You knew the goals were going to come and now you got two in two games. It’s got to feel pretty good. Yeah. I mean, I think, uh, you know, sometimes they go in, sometimes they don’t. So, just got to keep going, keep shooting, and, um, I’m lucky enough to get the one today. You guys talk a lot about road mentality. How did you see that play out tonight? You talked about just fending them off, and then what does it need to carry over into the next couple games? Yeah, I think um definitely uh on the road it’s it’s a lot tougher. So, you got to have a good start and um kind of put them on their heels early. So, um you get some confidence, get some momentum and and kind of go with that. Thanks, guys. Good way to start the road trip. Yeah. Uh obviously, it’s a long big uh road trip, so put a lot of emphasis on wanting to get off to a good start and started off with a win. And I think maybe the first five minutes they came out, but after that, we stuck to our game, played our game. uh pretty much all the way through. How do you shake up that early right off the bat and then just settle down after that? I don’t really think there’s anything to get worked up about. It’s it’s going to happen. So, nothing anybody else could do. It’s they got a good bounce and we got a good bounce right after. So, then it’s even wash and just go play. What are you seeing offensively in front of you right now? What it’s allowing your teammates to get these goals and maintain that as well in the scoring? Yeah, but I think we’re uh we’re playing connected. We’re playing together. I mean, uh draw a pretty good game plan before the games and I think we’re just going out executing it well, sticking to what works and playing connected. You like what you guys do best? Yeah, I mean I think we play well. I mean some nights there’s maybe a couple bad bounces or here and there, but I find really good effort. How much are you looking forward to? I’ll worry about Wednesday and Thursday first. I made a decision about when those are done. That’s fair. I mean, it’ll be fun, but I’m pretty laidback, easy going guys, so going at the win, and that’s my focus. It’s a good way to start this trip. Yeah, it is a really good start to the trip and and uh you know, I think a good road game out of our team and and something that we’ve been looking to do. And um the third point is is a total team win. I think all all the lines were good. all the the deep pairs uh played really solid and and Gibby was great. We we had a great third period as well. So, a lot of positives and and uh you know, a really good way to start the trip. I mean, a lot of like you said, a lot of positives. The tracking was good. It just seemed like you guys were more connected this night, too. I mean, compared to the start of Saturday, I mean, what’ you think defensively? You guys played awfully well. Yeah, we did. We blocked. We we cleared the the net front. Um, you know, I think once we started getting the puck by Bennington, uh, it by him, he’s such a good, uh, you know, he’s so good at playing the puck and, um, you know, he ignites their breakout. So once we started getting by him, kind of changed the game as well as Hammer’s fight. Um, you know, was it was uh, you know, two things that I think changed the game and and uh, the things we worked on in practice translated and and that was a lot of tracking, a lot of Dzone and and um, knowing knowing your assignments. you and Cat multi-point nights, but then there’s offense spread out up and down the lineup. How much easier does that make on you guys when that’s spread and harder on other teams when everyone seems to be contributing? Well, it’s just so important to win as a team and and everyone contributes, everyone feels good about themselves. Um, you know, I think uh even uh you know, some guys that were not on the score sheet that that uh you know, were on it last night. So, I think the offense is is uh is picking up and and um you know, I couldn’t be more impressed with uh Ras’s line in the in the third period. The way they set it up down low and used their three big bodies and they scored a nice one in the second. That’s important goal for us, but um they really uh you know took some time off the clock and tired out third D. How do you carry this one over into this back toback now? It’s part of the road trip. Yeah, I mean that’s the standard for the trip and and um we showed we can play like that against a desperate team that that played really hard. Uh so we got to we got to be ready to go in LA which is um you know a tough building to play in. Don, what have you seen out of Gibby so far this season? I mean what kind of presence kind of confidence does he give you guys back there? Yeah, he’s calm. Um, you know, he’s he’s one of the calmer, cool collected goalies I’ve been around and um, you know, nothing seems to phase him and um, he’s had a great great response and and he’s been a great presence. Him and Tal both in our locker room. Good way to start the road trip though, I think. Uh, you mean the first minute or the the other 59? How do you shake that? I mean, that’s the probably the last thing you need. Uh that’s not what we wanted, but maybe again it um you know woke us up and got us going. They they came out with some intensity and I’m not sure in the first three or four minutes of either the first or the second period we were ready to match it, but after that I thought we played a pretty solid game. We we played well offensively when we needed to. I thought we checked much better um through the neutral zone coming into our zone and we were connected on our breakout. So all of a sudden you’ve got the puck a little bit more and uh when that happens they have less scoring opportunities and it tends to go your way. Defensively, what did you what stood out to you from this one and the way you guys kind of limited to them? Well, we spent two full practices really working on um you know some of our sorts coming into our end up ice uh responsibilities and u we saw massive improvement in that area. So those practices were valuable. The players paid attention. and they applied the uh you know the the lesson if you will in the game now can we maintain it can we keep doing it um we’ll see when we get to California your thoughts on that fourth line gets one in but the JVR rafts and just the way they play tonight yeah they were obviously there’s there’s two of them there that haven’t been playing or hadn’t played in the in the last couple games and very hungry very detailed in the game used their size uh checked well and then JBR seems to settle things down for them So, um, you know, there that’s a pretty big strong heavy line and, uh, they used it tonight. But, you know, that Cat’s going to score. You I’m sure you weren’t too concerned about that the start of the season, but just the way you can get on one of these streaks now. what makes him such a, you know, dangerous offensive player in the area. You know, scores, pure scores, which I consider cat. Um, you go in spells where you don’t score, but you’re still getting a lot of chances. Um, if you’re not a a real true scorer, you go in spells and you’re not getting chances. You don’t know when it’s going to come again. Cat had more chances um, you know, in the first 10 games this year than any 10ame segment, I think, last year that I coached. and it just didn’t go in for him. Um, but he stuck with it. He continued to shoot tonight. Um, we talked about simplifying the power play, just firing away a little bit with some people in that front. Got rewarded, so good for him. Lin talked about both goalenders just being so steady for this group early on this season. How big of a role have they played behind the scenes in terms of letting this group kind of find its game? Well, they give us some confidence. They’re both uh we consider them really good goalenders. Um they’re both anxious to play. Uh they’re both ready to play and you know there’s been some games that that have gone away on on each of them but really as us as a team and then the other nights they’ve been outstanding. What have you liked about specific just calmness? Yeah, he’s there there’s not a lot of panic back there. He’s you can tell when he puts the equipment on he’s done this before. been there, done that, and um you know, he’s made some real good saves in tight with a lot of the scrambles and there was a wraparound today. He had to make a save and then get across to the post and you know, I don’t know if uh if it always looks pretty, but we’ll just take the save any way he can get it. Well, you mentioned the competitiveness earlier in the season. You can see that in that, you know, can’t you? I mean, just he he competes in Gibby. Oh, certainly. Yeah. Um again, not a surprise to me after seeing him all those years. And um in California. But, uh, he’s a gamer. When when it’s time, he plays.

Alex DeBrincat, John Gibson, Dylan Larkin and Head Coach Todd McLellan speak with the media following Detroit’s 5-2 win in St. Louis on Tuesday October 28, 2025.