The excitement of three quality rookies joining the Detroit Red Wings gave way to the reality that this team, with or without the youngsters, has work to do to be consistently competitive.
The 5-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens wasn’t the fault of Axel Sandin Pellikka, Michael Brandsegg-Nygard or Emmitt Finnie. Not even close, but no one wearing a Detroit Centennial jersey stood out.
“I thought they were okay,” Coach Todd McLellan said. “I can’t recall them being involved in a lot of the crap, if you will. You know, it’s a different game. That team had already played once. So for those three to get in and experience it now, our team wasn’t real good around them, so they’re not always going to feel comfortable. But I don’t think that they were involved in any of the major issues that we have. But we’ll have to go back and look at it.
Sandin Pellikka and Finnie were even on the night with one shot on goal, while Brandsegg-Nygard was -2. However, Brandsegg-Nygard tied for the team high with five hits. He also produced two shots on goal.
Red Wings In Case You Missed It
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The opener wasn’t much fun, but there were some interesting facts coming into Detroit’s first game of the 2025-26 NHL season.
Red Wings Extra
The Red Wings had at least three rookies (Axel Sandin Pellikka, Michael Brandsegg Nygard, and Emmitt Finnie) make their NHL debut on an Opening Night for the first time since 2018-19, when forwards Christoffer Ehn and Michael Rasmussen, and defensemen Dennis Cholowski, Filip Hronek and Libor Sulak all played their first NHL game on Oct. 4, 2018 vs. Columbus… Patrick Kane (7-13-20 in 18 GP) has 20 career points in season-opening games, tying Pat LaFontaine (10-10-20 in 12 GP) for the second-most by a U.S.-born player in NHL history behind Mike Modano (10-13-23 in 21 GP)…Veteran free agent signee Travis Hamonic had a rough Detroit: Hamonic and Albert Johansson were both -3
Boston: Bruins lose defenseman Hampus Lindholm in the second game of the season. Boston Bruins.
New Jersey: Coach Sheldon Keefe says Devils were “second-best” against the Carolina Hurricanes. New Jersey Devils.
Pittsburgh: Dan Kingerski’s early take: “Wow, these rookies are fun.” Detroit fans hope their rookies will be just as entertaining. Pittsburgh Penguins.
San Jose: Sheng Peng explores with the Sharks’ early quality play is sustainable. San Jose Sharks.