DETROIT – Alex DeBrincat’s first season with the Detroit Red Wings began with high hopes and ended in frustrating fashion. He burst out of the gate, forming instant chemistry with Dylan Larkin, producing nine goals and 13 points in his first seven games. He rekindled his connection with Patrick Kane at various times during the season and was the team’s representative at the NHL All-Star Game.
But a rugged 19-game stretch from Feb. 29-April 9 (one goal, six assists, 2.1 shooting percentage) derailed a potentially promising season.
The Red Wings, fighting for their playoff lives, went 5-12-2 during that stretch. The Red Wings acquired DeBrincat from Ottawa last July hoping he would regain his 41-goal form from 2018-19 and 2021-22 with Chicago. Instead, he tallied 27 goals and 67 points, nearly identical from the previous season (27 goals, 69 points).
“I would have loved to have been more consistent,” DeBrincat said right after the season. “I think when you’re going through those slumps there’s still other things you can do to be effective, be beneficial to the team. Those are the things I try to do.
It’s not always perfect. “Each year in this league I think I’ve gotten better. I’m hoping to just get better next year and be more consistent.
I think consistency is what makes great players and I want to be a great player.” The Farmington Hills native is only 26, so better years could be in store as he enters the second year of a four-year contract with an.
