{"id":6518,"date":"2025-04-30T11:11:09","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T11:11:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/6518\/"},"modified":"2025-04-30T11:11:09","modified_gmt":"2025-04-30T11:11:09","slug":"red-wings-dismiss-two-coaches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/6518\/","title":{"rendered":"Red Wings Dismiss Two Coaches"},"content":{"rendered":"

Detroit<\/a> Red Wings coach Todd McLellan<\/a> is making changes to his staff, he revealed on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll have an announcement going out, but these two are aware that they won\u2019t be returning,\u201d McLellan<\/a> said. \u201cAlex Westlund is the goaltender coach. L.J. Scarpace is one of the video coaches.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt might not seem significant in those roles, but those are significant roles. Those are important people in our organization.<\/p>\n

Westlund joined the staff when Derek Lalonde<\/a> was hired as Detroit coach in 2022. Prior to joining the Detroit staff, he worked five seasons as goalie coach for the AHL Hershey Bears.<\/p>\n

Todd McLellan has made two changes to his staff. Most notably parting ways with his goaltending coach Alex Westlund. pic.twitter.com\/2oKDaYFJ3C<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Jennifer Hammond (@HammerFox2) April 29, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Sparpace worked under Lalonde and previous coach Jeff Blashill prior to McLellan. He joined the Red Wings in 2019-20 after working two seasons as a video coach with the Carolina Hurricanes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose were really good people,\u201d McLellan said. \u201cI talked about our staff and how they fit in. It\u2019s sometimes not a reflection on the job they do, but just something that we needed to do in the in the coach\u2019s room to stir things up.<\/p>\n

Red Wings Concerned by Goaltending Performance<\/p>\n

Westlund\u2019s fate was likely sealed by a Red Wings team save percentage that rated 22nd overall in the 32-team NHL.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need better goaltending, and that\u2019s not just on Alex Westlund<\/a>,\u201d McLellan said. \u201cThat\u2019s on the goaltenders, the head coach, and everybody else that\u2019s involved in it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Derek Lalonde & Alex Westlund \u2192 2024 U.S. Men\u2019s National Team Coaching Staff.<\/p>\n

Congrats to Newsy & Westy! \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 pic.twitter.com\/nWnIDtLmHF<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) April 26, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n

While McLellan were search for a new goalie coach, he was expecting that the video coach would be an internal hire.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll likely look at promoting from within,\u201d McLellan said. \u201cThat hasn\u2019t been confirmed yet, but we also want some growth within the organization when people are capable of accepting more.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we move forward throughout the summer, we\u2019ll fill those two spots.\u201d<\/p>\n

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