Winless Red Wings, who need goals, face high-powered Maple Leafs offense

Where are the goals?

Andreas Athanasiou and Gustav Nyquist look on during the third period of a game against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on October 8, 2018 in Anaheim. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

The Toronto Maple Leafs (3-1-0) have scored an NHL-best 20 goals through four games to start this season. 

The Detroit Red Wings (0-1-2) have scored ... six goals in three games. That's quite the contrast in offensive production. And one team has three wins, the other is winless. This game is pretty simple sometimes. 

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Sure, it's super early in the season and we've only seen small samples of each team. But it's apparent Toronto is sending out a high-powered offense each night with the likes of Auston Matthews (10 points) and John Tavares (6 goals) leading the charge. 

Meanwhile, the Red Wings continue their struggle to find consistent goal scoring. Who will step up and start putting pucks in the net for this offense? Tyler Bertuzzi has two goals, and that makes him the team leader right now. 

Some say Gustav Nyquist is the key, and that he needs to be on the top line with Dylan Larkin and Anthony Mantha. I don't disagree, but we all know coach Jeff Blashill has a thing for switching up line combinations routinely. So we'll see what happens. 

Again, super early, but it would be nice to see the Wings pot more than two goals a game. If you take a look around at the NHL scores on a nightly basis right now, goals are piling up all over the place. The Philadelphia Flyers beat the Ottawa Senators 7-4 last night while the Washington Capitals topped the Vegas Golden Knight 5-2. On Tuesday, the San Jose Sharks scored 8 goals against the Flyers. 

Here's a quick look at goals by team so far this season: 

TEAMGames PlayedGoals For
Maple Leafs420
Capitals318
Hurricanes417
Flyers416
Senators415
Blackhawks315
Sharks413
Canucks312
Stars312
Flames312
Avalanche311
Bruins310
Ducks410
Islanders39
Blue Jackets39
Rangers38
Penguins28
Jets38
Golden Knights47
Canadiens27
Kings37
Predators37
Sabres37
Red Wings36
Blues25
Devils15
Oilers12
Wild22
Coyotes32
Panthers11
Lightning11

 

Goals, goals, goals, goals ... goals -- it's the new NHL whether you like it or not. Personally, I love it, but I digress. 

Thursday night's contest with the Maple Leafs is as good a time as any for the Red Wings to find the back of the net. 

  • GAME TIME: 7:30 p.m.
  • TV: Fox Sports Detroit

It's the first of four meetings between Toronto and Detroit this season. 

Red Wings, Bruins game moved to 3 p.m. Saturday

Saturday's Red Wings-Bruins game has been moved from 7 p.m. to 3 p.m. in Boston. That's due to a conflicting Red Sox playoff game. 

The Bruins beat the Senators, 6-3, on Monday. They play the Edmonton Oilers Thursday night. 

Around the league

  • In a rematch of the Stanley Cup final, the Washington Capitals beat the Vegas Golden Knights, 5-2, Wednesday night. 
  • The Ottawa Senators lost to the Flyers on Wednesday, but Sens D Maxime Lajoie picked up three points. The 20-year-old appears to be a bright spot on this offense. 
  • Speaking of the Senators, if you're not following @brian5or6 right now, do it. 
  • The Arizona Coyotes finally scored (didn't score in first two games) and beat the Anaheim Ducks in a shootout Wednesday night, 3-2. 

There are 14 games on the schedule Saturday, including:

  • Maple Leafs vs. Capitals (7 p.m., CBC)
  • Blue Jackets vs. Lightning (7 p.m.)
  • Blues vs. Blackhawks (8:30 p.m.)

Enjoy. 


This hockey newsletter is authored by Dave Bartkowiak Jr. He can be contacted at dbartkowiak@wdiv.com or on Twitter @DaveBartko. 

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