Detroit — For the Red Wings to be as successful on the road as they’ve been at home to begin this season, it’ll take them playing a certain type of game.

Not simple, or wide open, or tight, or aggressive.

It was an interesting answer that coach Todd McLellan produced to the question of how the Wings need to play.

“We have to play our game,” McLellan said.

The games in Buffalo (Wednesday) and on Long Island (New York Islanders, Thursday) begin a stretch in which the Wings play seven of their next eight games away from Little Caesars Arena.

It’s never easy to win on the road. But the Wings feel they might have the right formula these days, playing with so much confidence.

“We’re starting to figure out who we are and what works for us on the road,” McLellan said. “You can’t get away with wasting minutes. What’s that? Not being ready to start, going to sleep for 10 or 15 minutes, because it comes back to bite you. Sometimes you can get away with that a little bit at home, but on the road, teams make you pay.”

A good start is usually a necessity for a hockey team away from their home rink. Giving a home team some early confidence, especially against young teams such as the Sabres or Islanders, can make it a long night.

“When the gun goes off we have to be ready to run, and we have to keep running,” McLellan said. “We can’t let our guard down at all. We have to have a good understanding of how a team plays and we can counter a bit. We need good performances, and not everybody will be going every night, but we need 15 to 16 good skaters every night for us to have a chance to win on the road.”

Defenseman Moritz Seider agrees a good start is vital, but also feels playing a simpler game makes for a better chance of winning on the road.

“A good start, obviously, is a big thing for us,” Seider said. “We want to get going from the start. Other than that, we want to keep it simple and don’t want to fuel their power play in any kind of situation. Those are usually momentum changers. Then we need to have a good road mentality. Be simple with the puck, get shots early and make them defend.

“Kind of pin them in their zone and hopefully strike on offense.”

The Wings were a .500 hockey team on the road last season after McLellan took over (11-11-3) — they were below .500 before McLellan — and appeared to have a different mentality and played a more determined brand of hockey.

In the NHL, generally, you play well and earn points on the road, you’ll make the playoffs.

“It’s very important to be a good road team,” captain Dylan Larkin said. “I really believe that once Todd got here last year, we started to play better on the road.

“It’s important to be really dialed in on these road trips.”

The Wings have won five straight after a season-opening loss, but only one game has been on the road — a late victory over Toronto on Mason Appleton’s winner with 45 seconds remaining.

Now, they need to transfer that winning formula away from Little Caesars Arena.

“If we’re able to take our game, it’ll give us a chance on the road,” McLellan said. “Obviously, we don’t get matchups and there are things that don’t go your way. But if we can bottle up and take our game on the road, we’ll give ourselves a chance.

“If we want to play something different on the road and we’ve got to figure that part out, it won’t be so good.”

Kane out

The Wings will hit the road without forward Patrick Kane.

The veteran forward, who was hurt Friday crashing into the boards, will miss the games against the Sabres and Islanders.

“He did skate (Tuesday), which is a good sign,” McLellan said. “We’ll evaluate him when we get back for the Saturday game (home against St. Louis).”

McLellan moved up Michael Brandsegg-Nygard in Kane’s place, with Alex DeBrincat and Marco Kasper.

“That’s where he was last game and we’ll look at lineups and what the opposition has,” McLellan said. “We feel Brands can play in that position and contribute. But we also feel all three will play well together and he’ll fit in that hole if we go in that direction.”

Red Wings at Sabres

▶ Faceoff: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, KeyBank Center, Buffalo

▶ TV / radio: FDSN, TNT, HBO Max / 97.1

▶ Notable: The Sabres (2-4-0) had hoped for a positive start to the season after having missed the playoffs the last 14 consecutive years but lost their first three games. … Buffalo lost 4-2 Monday in Montreal. … Former Wings G Alex Lyon (2-4-0, .924 SVS) has appeared in all six games for the Sabres.

tkulfan@detroitnews.com

@tkulfan