Exactly a year ago, Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin was in the same position. Facing the media, explaining the outcome of their final pre-Christmas game.

Christmas? More like humbug.

A 4-0 home-ice loss to the St. Louis Blues on December 23, 2024, would soon lead to the downfall of head coach Derek Lalonde. At that juncture of the season, it also led to a very downcast Red Wings dressing room.

“Last year, this night was . . .” Larkin paused to collect his thoughts.

“We got booed off the ice,” the captain continued. “We got booed off the ice all three periods. It was a negative place, where we were down.”

Dylan Larkin buried the GTG and GWG but the highlight of the night is talking to Ace, Bones, Army and Liam after the game ⬇️ https://t.co/kR1Q31yVCm pic.twitter.com/jzU2Oewubv

— NHLonTNT (@NHL_On_TNT) December 24, 2025

A year later, the Red Wings are entering the holiday break in first place in the Atlantic Division with a 22-13-3 slate.

It truly is the most wonderful time of the year. And they are most definitely down with that.

Red Wings Answering The Challenge

“We’re just playing well and sticking together,” Larkin said following Tuesday’s 4-3 overtime win over the Dallas Stars.

“Some things didn’t go our way again tonight. Good start. But then in the second period, we’re down one. And that’s a great learning lesson for a young team to just be patient, get a kill, get a couple of kills, and go to work. And we really were mature.

“Another night where we’ve been challenged.”

Another night where they’ve passed the test.

Detroit is getting better as the season progresses. The Red Wings are 7-2-2 in December.

Yet as much as you might be impressed by all the wins that they are piling up, Detroit coach Todd McLellan is vastly more interested in how they’ve dealt with the situation when failure is dropped into their laps.

Responding To Losses With Positivity

“I thought the key in all of this was how we’ve responded when we’ve lost,” McLellan said. “We’ve left Edmonton (4-1 loss), had to go to Chicago, and played well (4-0 win). We came home against Utah, didn’t have our best, lost (4-1). We went into a tough building (in Washington), played one of our better games (and won 5-2).

“So our ability right now to respond when it hasn’t gone well has been exactly what we needed. I know we’re winning games and we’re putting points in the bank, but that sticks out in my mind as well.”

It’s another sign of the growth within the group. And maybe, just maybe, an indication that what we’re seeing right now is exactly who these Red Wings really are as a team.