The look on Dylan Larkin’s face reflected the Detroit Red Wings’ situation: Frustration. Anger. Disappointment
Here it is late March, and the Wings have done exactly what they virtually vowed they wouldn’t when the month began: Slide out of the playoff picture.
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Their next challenge comes Friday, March 27, when they head out to take on the Atlantic Division-leading Buffalo Sabres, one of 11 games left for the Wings (38-25-8, 84 points) to avoid their playoff drought reaching a decade.
“It’s like, what are we gonna do, it’s, the room is mad,” Larkin said minutes after his team fell, 3-2, to the Ottawa Senators on home ice. “The guys are mad, that was a big game for our hockey team. And unfortunate, how well we played against those guys all year, and then this one tonight, it just, kind of wipes away our record against those guys, because that was a big game.
“But we’re going into Buffalo on Friday night, so we have to pick ourselves back up, and that’s mental toughness.”
Mar 24, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Ottawa Senators center Lars Eller (89) receives congratulations from teammates after scoring in the second period against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
TUESDAY’S ACTION: Detroit Red Wings wakeup call too late in loss to Ottawa Senators
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Mental toughness. It’s what Todd McLellan has tried to instill since he was named coach in December 2024. But 15 months later, in a crucial game against an opponent that came into the night a point behind the Wings and emerged a point ahead, there were some gob-smacking mistakes. Most notably on the third goal, when Marco Kasper had the puck in the neutral zone only to pass it back into his own zone, for a turnover the Senators turned into a 3-0 lead.
“We have a puck out of our end,” McLellan said. “It was Kas, but he knows better. We’ve already cleared the zone. We’re playing against a team with very few NHL-experienced defensemen, and we have a chance just to push the puck at them. And we bring it back into our end now, and we’re running around, and it’s in our net.
“We’ve done the job we need to do. We’ve advanced. We’ve gained a zone. They didn’t even need to vacate. We dumped the puck back into our zone, so they didn’t need to check up and get onside. And then we chased the mistake into the corner and left the slot open. So mental, not so much structural, but just a mental mistake that goes against the game plan a little bit.”
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Detroit Red Wings host Atlantic rival Ottawa Senators at LCA
Detroit Red Wings goaltender John Gibson (36) makes a save on Ottawa Senators right wing Drake Batherson (19) in the first period at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
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Detroit Red Wings host Atlantic rival Ottawa Senators at LCA
Detroit Red Wings goaltender John Gibson (36) makes a save on Ottawa Senators right wing Drake Batherson (19) in the first period at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
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Detroit Red Wings host Atlantic rival Ottawa Senators at LCA
Ottawa Senators left wing Brady Tkachuk (7) and Detroit Red Wings defenseman Ben Chiarot (8) battle for the puck in the first period at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
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Detroit Red Wings host Atlantic rival Ottawa Senators at LCA
Detroit Red Wings defenseman Justin Faulk (72) skates with the puck in the first period against the Ottawa Senators at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
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Detroit Red Wings host Atlantic rival Ottawa Senators at LCA
Detroit Red Wings left wing J.T. Compher (37) and Ottawa Senators right wing Claude Giroux (28) bro in the first period at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
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Detroit Red Wings host Atlantic rival Ottawa Senators at LCA
Detroit Red Wings goaltender John Gibson (36) os on Ottawa Senators center Ridly Greig (71) in the first period at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
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Detroit Red Wings host Atlantic rival Ottawa Senators at LCA
Detroit Red Wings goaltender John Gibson (36) os on Ottawa Senators center Ridly Greig (71) in the first period at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
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Detroit Red Wings host Atlantic rival Ottawa Senators at LCA
Detroit Red Wings defenseman Justin Faulk (72) and Ottawa Senators center Tim StŸtzle (18) battle for the puck in the first period at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
The plan looked in good shape on Jan. 25, when the Wings sat in first place in their division with 69 points. Now it’s March 25, and they’ve banked only 15 more points and have two teams ahead of them just to get to the second wild-card berth. Since March began, the Wings are 4-5-2, with a minus-1 goal differential and a power play operating at just 14.3%. They missed Larkin for seven of those games, and McLellan warned that his return Tuesday can’t let his teammates think he alone will save them.
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“The Dylan thing, actually, for as much as he means to the team and how hard he goes and us wanting and needing him back, that maybe even set us back a little bit tonight,” McLellan said. “It was great to have him back. Don’t get me wrong. We need him. We need him to be playing and playing at the top of his game. But – OK, we got our leader back. We got our captain back. We can take a little bit of a breath. I’m not sure if that’s really the case, but I think that could be part of it.”
It was noticeable from the start how much less emotion and energy the Wings played with compared to their two previous outings, when they defeated the Montreal Canadiens and played well in a loss to the Boston Bruins.
“We were a little bit slower, a little bit sluggish for whatever reason,” McLellan said. “Everybody’s unhappy with the result and some of the input into the result. We earned the right to be frustrated. We didn’t perform well enough.”
Defenseman Moritz Seider talked about accountability after the game, and about how the Wings “have to be honest with ourselves. That’s a very winnable game, and if we’re not upset with ourselves, we’re doing something wrong.
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“It probably puts a little bit more pressure on us, but nothing changed. A very, very disappointing outcome tonight. You have the chances, you play good hockey, but then simple mistakes end up in the back of the net. That’s frustrating because you’re playing against an opponent, you just open the door for them. It’s kind of hard right now, but I think we have plenty of games left. Great challenge in front of us, great opportunities, and we’ve got to make the most out of it.”
It’s one thing to play well and come up empty-handed because the opposing goalie steals the game for his team, as Jeremy Swayman did for the Bruins on Saturday.
But to not muster more than the Wings did in a game as huge as their final meeting of the season with the Senators – well, the Wings made their own aspirations that much harder to foster.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com.
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Next up: Sabres
Matchup:Â Red Wings (34-29-8) at Buffalo (44-20-7).
Faceoff:Â 7 p.m. Friday, March 27; KeyBank Center, Buffalo, New York.
TV/radio:Â FanDuel Sports Network Detroit; WXYT-FM (97.1).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings playoff hopes drop in March again, Dylan Larkin says