Patrick Kane, Todd McLellan Media | Oct. 7, 2025

Patrick Kane, Todd McLellan Media | Oct. 7, 2025

sponsor camp. Yeah, I mean I think it’s great. I think it’s um you know, first off, they’re rewarded for how well they play at camp, which I think is is a great thing. You know, it makes training camp uh meaningful and u there’s reason we’re you know, scrimmaging and playing games and um trying to prove our worth. So, I think uh you know, that’s great in the first sense. And then also just um have some youth around here like uh some of that uh youthful like excitement and just um you know the energy is uh is great to have around the room. So um you know really happy for all three of these guys and they’re definitely deserving of uh of earning a spot. How prepared do you guys feel? I mean you’ve had a lot of instruction over the past almost 3 weeks and been very vocal on the ice. No, I think uh I think it’s been a great camp. Um you know, obviously a lot of guys played well. Um you know um the attention to detail and uh instruction like you said on the ice has been um helpful for sure. And um you know, you get all that stuff sorted out, you can just go play and not think as much, right? So um it keeps things um keeps the mind simple and just uh just go out there and play. Patrick, you know, when a team’s trying to uh end a long playoff drought, how important is it to have to start off with, you know, some fresh new elements? You got the the young kids, Todd, coming in in this starting the season for the first time. Uh new starting goalie, Gibson, just kind of a different look at the start. Yeah, a lot of a lot of positive changes for our team this year and um a lot of familiar faces back, too. Um, I think we saw how important Todd was coming in last year and what he did for our group and how he helped everyone um, you know, play at their best level just across the board, not just certain guys, but um, across the whole lineup. So, I think that’s, you know, it’s obviously huge to have him. Um, um, you know, you think about the position we’re in as a team. I think it’s extremely important to get off to a good start and uh that might might be the most important thing this season is you know having a good start. Uh getting oursel um you know ahead of the eightball a little bit here in case there’s any ls or different stretches in the season that really don’t go our way. But I think we’re confident in our group confident the way we play. If we play you know up to our capabilities and the way we’re supposed to I think we’re going to be in a good position. How are you feeling physically heading into this? Is this the best you felt in a while or Yeah. Yeah. I feel really good. Um, you know, definitely, um, you know, happy with where I’m at physically and happy just like mentally. Um, kind of, uh, coming into camp. I thought I had a way better camp this year than last year and, uh, feel like I’m moving better as well. So, uh, in a good spot, so happy where I’m at. Did all the scrimmaging help you guys? I mean, you seem like it was pretty physical throughout the camp and everything. Yeah, I think it’s a great way to go about camp. I mean, there’s there’s no better drill than, you know, playing hockey or playing five on five, right? I mean, that’s the game, right? You can do all these, you know, taking tack drills and different things like this, but um you know, being able to play five on five, get used to the scrimmage, get used to the game pace going up and down the ice, get your conditioning going. Um I think it’s a great way to start camp. Um we did that all the time in Chicago, a lot of scrimmaging. Um a lot of practices up and down the ice. Um so, you’re definitely ready by the time season rolls around. How would you describe Todd’s teaching style? I mean, I definitely think he has a presence. Um, when he talks, like you’re listening, you’re um um paying attention to what’s going on. Um and then, you know, he’s not afraid to point out mistakes. He’s not afraid to keep uh you know, anyone in the room accountable, no matter who it is. I think that’s a that’s a great part of coaching as well. Um, and um, you learn from your mistakes here. And I think he wants you to be aggressive. He wants you to um, not really worry about making mistakes, but if you do, you know, we’re going to learn from it and make sure it doesn’t happen again. So, um, that’s kind of how it’s been throughout campal stuff excite you. I mean, yeah. Yeah, it’s it’s amazing. I mean, um, you know, we’re talking in here. We’re we’re an original six franchise, you know. Well, um, I mean, you look around the room, there’s incredible players that have represented this organization. There’s incredible players that are just around the room that were here, um, you know, doing special things before in the ’90s and 2000s. Um, you know, guys like Eiserman and Lindstöm and Cromwell and, you know, Dad, Sue, Zetterburg, you know, you see those guys around the room, it definitely brings um brings your mind to the attention of what happened here before you and how successful this organization was. So, um, you know, it’s great to be here as a Redwing and just, uh, representing the team, especially in this this special year for for 100 years. Todd, uh, with this much time in between the last preseason game and and the opener? Uh, just what’s kind of the the mindset as far as what you hope to get out of practice, and is there like a balance of how hard you you you make them go before that opening? No, I I wish we were playing today. Um it felt like we were well we were running on fumes um eight games and whatever it was and all of a sudden this break comes would have been nice to play today but but we’re not so so be it um or pardon me play tomorrow. The two practice it would have been good so play tomorrow but um as far as planning for the week like we we pushed them hard yesterday and we’ll taper down a little bit today. We’ll try and make them feel fast tomorrow. clean, crisp, fast, and let them go. And tomorrow, we won’t overburden them with uh systems or structure. It’ll all be skill stuff and get them ready from there. I know Raymonds and Cider were wearing A’s on their jerseys at the end of the preseason. Have you decided on what the leadership group will look like for this year? Um yeah, that’ll be 23man big. Um, you know, it’s every coach, every staff gets to um determine who the leadership group is. And inevitably, you just keep, well, we can’t leave him out, so you add another guy in, and pretty soon threequarters of your team’s in the leadership group. You may as well have the rest of them in on it. I don’t have leadership meetings where we bring in bring guys in. If I if I or our staff doesn’t have a good handle of what’s going on with the team and we need to meet, um, then shame on us. we’re doing a poor job of communicating every day. Um, so I think a lot of the leadership stuff is done that way. Um, we meet individually with players on a regular basis, whether it’s casual at the meal in the meal room, whether it’s official in a in an office. Um, you know, so everybody does it differently. That’s just how we approach it. And, uh, expect, you know, season A’s are important, but at the end of the day, it really doesn’t matter. It’s it’s what you can bring as an individual to provide some sense of leadership and and Finny Nygard and and Axe have something to give in that in that realm at some point. Um I get it. They’re real young, but they have to develop their leadership skills as well. Hey Todd, with those three kids, what do you I mean I don’t think anybody expects them to take their foot off the gas pedal, but what do you guys tell them now? It’s like look, you made it here, but now you got to keep going. Yeah, we we kind of get out of the way. Like we don’t want to be um you know, creating more anxiety or anything like that for them. They know what’s ahead of them. They’re probably as excited as can be. Um and uh you know, if I was going to tell them anything and and there may be the odds escape by just go play, go play play your heart out. Um you know, if if a mistake occurs, we can live with that. That’s that’s what we coach for. We’ll help you fix it. uh you have teammates around you that’ll protect you in certain situations from from mistakes, just go play. How about JVR any closer? Yeah, he’s starting to look like a hockey player now. Um which is is a good thing. He’s got a little spark in his eye. I think he can sense that the season’s coming, too. Um you know, will we use him uh versus Montreal? Uh we’ll we’ll make that decision over the next little bit, but he’s starting to get more reps in with uh with the group and in in tight type action, physical. Um all good signs. You pretty uh settled in on what your defense pairings are going to be. I mean, you look like certainly show. Um we’ll start that way. Um I don’t think it’s ever really set in stone. even within a game like if it’s not going well, especially early in the year, you’re you can mix things up quickly. Uh the luxury we have is Albert can play both left and right. So that really allows us to move people around um a little bit more than than if somebody couldn’t. Um but we’ll um we’ll start and by the end of the first period, we might be blending them. Um when when will we get to common partners or pairs? I can’t answer that question. It’s just got to guys have to gel and all three pairs have to gel. Just follow what is the status yesterday which is the same as yeah that there is now that would be a better question for Steve or Aaron Khan. Uh but my understanding is based on on his circumstances there’s a category I guess where where because he’s missed basically all of training camp where he can be while he gets up and running and catches up. In terms of looking back on just carrying over the chemistry from last season with new faces in the lineup too. How do you guys build on that and kind of integrate that during these next couple days and going in the regular season? I know preseason gave this group a good opportunity to do that. Yeah. um you know the the team building that’s gone on uh right from pre Traverse City uh prior to I got wind of you know the guys getting together and and building on uh you know getting to know each other the new players whether it’s wives included or not I don’t know but the family the Redwing family got together there and then I thought um Traverse City there’s a big aspect to team building up there where guys get out and whether it’s golf fish or just be around each other um Now we get back here and um it’s been an interesting uh process watching it happen because there’s there’s so many young players that were here for a long time that it really forced different veterans to get involved with them and help them out with the questions they may have or hotel issues, cars, how where do we get go to the airport? Some of them didn’t even know where that that happened. Um so the fact that we had that many players here for that long I think helped that and promoted it. Uh chemistry as we go forward will continue to build. Um you know it happens through winning but it also happens when it doesn’t go so well. It tests your metal a little bit and um we’ll get opportunities to uh to push that as the season goes on. I am not today. No. Is it raining? Is there still going to be a game? Okay. So, it’s just drizzling. Uh, no, but I’m going to be watching it. I have uh we have some family friends that are in town and um that duty calls, but I will be will be watching. Todd, just to clarifying the question about who’s going to wear the A’s, are you planning on rotating in between a lot of people? No, we’ll we’ll um we’ll be an original six team. We’ll have a captain and a couple of assistants. Um and that’s where we’ll be. And have you have you decided? I mean, we’ve decided it’s cider and rain. Yep. It’ll be those those three will wear. Um, I’ve talked to the rest of them that, you know, when I got here last year, I didn’t even know who I knew Larkin was the captain, but we had six, seven rotating A’s. I didn’t even know who wore them on any given night. Like, we’re original six all my years here. There was clear definition of who was going to go. But that didn’t prevent um you know when Nick Cromwell was a younger player when I was here or whoever else was around that group, Chris Draper and Kurt Maltby, they didn’t wear A’s, but they led and um you know that’s what what we’re going with. And you know, uh, I you got several veterans in here who who could wear the A, but the fact that that you got two relatively young but experienced guys. I mean, what does that say about their burgeoning leadership skills? Um, it says that th those younger players are still evolving in that role and that they’ve got a lot of help around them. Um, guys that have worn those letters um for a long long time. Um, I expect our younger letter wearers to lean on Patrick Kane and and Cop and Comper and Sherro and uh, who else had them last year? Like there was multiple guys like lean on them. They they all have good experience and and the ones that were wearing them, I don’t expect them to change one bit. They haven’t. They’ve been great. Um, so I think we’re in a good spot. Tad, what have you thought of Patty Kane’s training camp? I mean, doesn’t seem like he’s slowing down by any stretch. No, he um you know, he he he’s not slowing down and his mind is working. He uh I say this every time I talk about him, he loves the game. We we’re on the road. He’s watched every minute of it. He comes and asks questions about certain situations. Um you know, that type of stuff. So, um he’s he’s on it. He keeps us on our toes, let’s put it that way. Um so, he’s uh he’s had a good camp. He’s only played the three games. That was enough for him. Um, you know, you you saw him in the games use his assets and um he’ll be an important player for us this year. All good. Okay.

Patrick Kane and Todd McLellan speak with the media following Detroit’s practice at Little Caesars Arena on Tuesday October. 7, 2025.