How can you put into words what this line is doing together. DeBrincat, Larkin, and Raymond haven’t spent the most time together during their combined tenure as Red Wings, and that may have been a huge mistake. This season, more than the rest, has seen a top line that has three borderline superstar-level players on it. Detroit has players tied for 6th, 7th, and 8th most points in the NHL, and they are, of course, Larkin, DeBrincat, and Raymond in that order. I’m going to be diving a little deeper into just how good this super-line has been for the Red Wings.

Detroit’s Top Line is Dominating the Play:

7th in xGoals%: When these three are on the ice, Detroit is expected to be scoring 69.6% of the goals that go in. Of the lines above them, only Robertson-Johnston-Rantannen have a better xGoals/60. Simply put, this line is offensively dominant while they’re on the ice.

13th in xGoals Against: If the offensive stats didn’t sell you, how about this. They are also one of the best defensive lines in hockey. Now, a lot of this has to do with the fact they simply don’t allow the other team to possess the puck in their end, but hey, the best defence is a good offence.

Outperforming the Internal Competition:

Dylan Larkin’s Lines (where a goal was scored for Detroit):

Finnie-Larkin-Raymond: 9GF 4GA 56.1 SF% 56.3 CF%

DeBrincat-Larkin-Raymond: 7GF 3GA 71.7 SF% 66.7 CF%

Finnie-Larkin-Appleton: 4GF 0GA 38.5 SF% 34.8 CF%

For Larkin at least, there is some debate. I will admit the Finnie and Appleton line seems to be a statistical anomaly because being a +4 with those underlying numbers isn’t promising. However, when looking at the Finnie vs. DeBrincat combination, the similar goal totals may give some pause. However, Detroit accounting for nearly 16% more of the shots and over 10% of the shot attempts makes the presence of this line so much more evident. Although it’s close, there isn’t much of a debate; they’re good with Finnie, they dominate with DeBrincat.

Individual Heaters:

It’s not just the advanced stats, each player on this line is on a heater of their own.

Lucas Raymond: 5GP 2G 8A 10P

Dylan Larkin: 5GP 4G 2A 6P

Alex DeBrincat: 5GP 5G 3A 8P

Against All Odds:

It’s not like they’re being cushioned either. Larkin and Raymond have long been known to take on some of the hardest matchups of any forwards in the NHL. This season, it’s more of the same for Larkin. He’s starting 57% of his shifts in the defensive zone and doing it against the opponents top lines. Not only do Larkin, DeBrincat and Raymond dominate play, they do it against hockey’s most dangerous forwards.

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