The Red Wings have made a long-awaited change behind the bench. The team announced Thursday that former Kings head coach Todd McLellan has been signed to a multi-year deal to become the 29th bench boss in Detroit franchise history. Head coach Derek Lalonde and associate coach Bob Boughner have been relieved of their duties.
Three straight losses heading into the holiday break were the final nail in the coffin for Lalonde, who had been on the hot seat for over a month. Darren Dreger of TSN reported in late November that a three-game homestand, during which they ended up going 1-1-1, was likely Lalonde’s last chance to finish out the season. While he got some grace to continue in his role beyond that, general manager Steve Yzerman’s patience has now run out.
The Wings both expected and needed to take a step forward in 2024-25. They finished with a 41-32-9 record last season, just narrowly missing out on their first playoff berth since 2016 and also marking their first season above .500 since that year. But a horrid campaign offensively so far for the Red Wings, who rank 29th in the league at 2.56 goals per game, has them with a 13-17-4 record at Christmas and eight points back of the Senators for the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Yzerman hired both Lalonde and Boughner in the 2022 offseason after the Wings cleared out their previous coaching staff, led by Jeff Blashill. It was Lalonde’s first crack at being an NHL head coach after winning two Stanley Cups as an assistant on Jon Cooper’s staff with the Lightning. Earlier in the decade, Lalonde had served as a head coach with the USHL’s Green Bay Gamblers, the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye and the AHL’s Iowa Wild.
The 52-year-old Lalonde’s tenure behind the Detroit bench ends with an 89-86-23 record (.508 points percentage) in 198 games. Since the beginning of the 2022-23 season, the Red Wings’ record ranks 26th in the league, their 3.03 goals per game ranks 19th, and their 3.33 goals against per game ranks 27th.
Unlike last season, keeping the puck out of their net hasn’t been the Wings’ biggest problem. Thanks to veteran Cam Talbot putting up All-Star numbers in his 17 starts, things are likely better than they would otherwise be under a Lalonde system that’s posted below-average numbers at both ends of the ice. Detroit isn’t close to controlling the majority of shot attempts (46.8%), scoring chances (46.7%), or high-danger chances (45.5%) at 5-on-5, nor were they last year or the year before.
It’s also not surprising to see Boughner leave. His responsibilities included overseeing the team’s penalty kill, which clicked at a near-league-worst 68.8% rate this season. The 53-year-old previously served as the head coach of the Panthers (2017-19) and Sharks (2019-22), where he accumulated a 147-147-45 record for an even .500 record and failed to make the playoffs in any of his five seasons behind the bench.
In comes McLellan and assistant Trent Yawney, who have worked together in McLellan’s previous head coaching stops in San Jose, Edmonton and Los Angeles. It’s also a return of sorts for the veteran McLellan, who served as an assistant on Mike Babcock’s staff in Detroit from 2005 to 2008 and won a Stanley Cup.
Detroit is the 57-year-old McLellan’s fourth stop as an NHL head coach, and today’s news ensures he’ll suit up behind an NHL bench for the 20th straight season in some capacity. His last job with the Kings started in the 2019 offseason and ended last February, replaced midseason by Jim Hiller. In 1,144 regular-season games as a head coach, McLellan has a 598-412-134 record (.581) and has made the playoffs nine times. In those nine postseason appearances, he’s fared worse with a 42-46 record and never advancing to a Stanley Cup Final.
McLellan and Yawney will now be tasked with cleaning up the Wings’ possession game and penalty kill, the former of which should ideally lead to an influx of offense as the season progresses. Unfortunately, it may be too little too late for a playoff berth this season. Detroit has less than a one percent chance of ending their postseason drought at the time of writing, according to Dom Luszczyszyn of The Athletic.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
I guess there was one more present under the tree for Red Wings fans.
“Merrry X-mas! Now get out”
About time, wish it was Q but something had to change. Now find a way to get rid of the veteran defensemen.
Holl-y hell it’s bad
About time. And the blob of veteran dmen is atrocious. And SY is stuck with them unless he buys them out. His neck better be on the block also.
I’m ok with this hire. Todd McLellan was an assistant for the Red Wings under Mike Babcock and won the Cup with the Wings in 08’. Steve Yzerman played his last season McLellan’s first season as an assistant. Todd McLellan has a track record of success wherever he goes. Juniors, minors, NHL. It’s too bad it didn’t work out for Derek Lalonde. Hopefully this change isn’t too late to save the season.
See ya, Uncle Fester.
I actually thought Lalonde would be the first coach to go this season, And I predicted that Quenneville would be the replacement.
It was looking like the team, including their normally hard charging players (few as there are) had all sort of quit in December. Losing is hard but there was something else afoot here. Guessing it might have been a loss in confidence or respect for the bench crew. It is the job of the captains to let management know what the heck is going on,…or not going on in the room and on the bench.
For whatever reason, LaLonde didn’t work here, good luck to him in the future.
Be interesting to see what McLellan can get out of this poor/aged roster.
Time to tap the AHL for players who want to make their spot in the NHL. Three Wings can be sent down to AHL and 3 AHLers brought up. Time for the youngsters to challenge those who just can’t bring their A game every night.
AND start scratching some who are just skating around taking up time and space, dare I say “lazy”? Wings get forechecked in the body and cough up control constantly. Wings however seem OK with using the stick as a forecheck method, which ends up as an organized break out for the opponents. Practices should focus on puck control and passing, both are miserable. Alas, easy for me to say, just just a commenter.
Which 3 down and which 3 up???? Better yet, trade the 3 for picks, even a 7th. But this doesn’t happen till Todd gets 10 games in.
For Friday’s game, I’d just tell the Wings team their individual effort in that game will be the basis of their use in the rest of the season. One game opportunity to put it all on the line to insure a future on the roster.
I’d put these 3 on the move it or lose it notice list.
Motte
Veleno
Fischer
With Terasenko put out for a trade.
Fischer is one of the few Forwards who gives 100% effort game in game out. But Motte and Veleno, they can go. I’ve never gotten the Veleno love in particular.
The Red Wings defiance in giving young players a shot has to be the most maddening thing about the team (and Steve). It’s asinine.
I mean every preseason we see young guys completely outplay several guys they’re competing with for spots, and they ultimately get sent to the minors. Kasper, Danielson and Mazur all looked like they belonged this yr–all were sent down to GR, and we get subjected to Motte, Veleno, Fischer, Copp and on and on and on.
It’s not just forwards–I mean this defense group is an abject disaster with no discernable purpose in the way it was constructed. Last year there wasn’t a fan or player in that locker room who didn’t know Ed was one of their best 6 defensemen…and we ended up burning a pro year anyway by bringing up finally for the final 2 weeks. Then we go and trade Walman for NOTHING and watch Ghost sign for barely more than he was making, after he wanted to resign and never got an offer. Its just so amateurish from a front office we expect and deserve more from.
And you can’t tell me Cossa isn’t a better option than Husso or Lyon at this point.
And it’s all so counter-intuitive to how good teams build Rosters in a salary cap era, especially like the flat cap world post COVID the NHL has been in.
You pay your stars. You may your goalie. You pay, maybe even overpay, for specific needs in free agency–like a PP QB in Ghost, or a right shot center, or a true PK1 defenseman. And you are able to afford to do both those things by supplementing your roster with young guys on Entry Level deals. If 4 guys in your top 18/Top 20 w goalies are on their Rookie deals you then have 82-83 million to spend on your roster, 18 to 20 guys or so with two way deals.
What you DON’T want is the bottom of your roster being comprised of aging players on middling or expensive deals, as it limits what you can do in all facets of player acquisition. Our offseason was atricious because of the deals we gave Husso, Copp, Chariot, etc, and it makes the overpays for needed guys like Compher look even more damaging to the Cap situation.
It’s all something you expect to see from a Arizona/SLC or Buffalo franchise, not one led by a GM once considered one of the best in the game.
Maybe the Wings need to stop staffing their scouting & front office departments with all former players and get some outside voices with fresh ideas. I don’t know. This isn’t working though right now.
Yes. This. @Diabetic Rockstar
After Raymond, And Larkin, Yzerman has built a dumpster fire at forward.
A last ditch effort to save the Yzerplan? The way it’s going, a new GM will reap the benefits of this team. Kind of like the Lightning. The Red Wings need a GM that can build a championship team, not just keep tearing it down and drafting. Eventually you need to make trades to help with winning. Kind of like the Lightning.
Derek Lalonde being fired at this stage with Detroit isn’t surprising at all. For whatever reasons, it just didn’t work out. I doubt Lalonde will be offered a head coach position next season. I actually hope he may return as an assistant coach in Tampa where he had a lot of success as an assistant defensive coach. Some guys are just better assistant coaches than they are head coaches. Only time will tell for Lalonde.
As a Kings’ follower, not sure this is an upgrade.
You haven’t seen Lalonde’s (lack of) game strategy then. Lalonde may not have been a net negative on this team, but it was painfully obvious that whatever he was preaching wasn’t getting through, and when guys like Kane and Larkin are visibly disengaged during games, that’s on the head coach. Of course he probably shoulda been fired for the teams complete mess of a PK, of which the strategy seems to be “put 4 guys out there and everyone chase the puck”.
YZERPLAN!
Although it’s bad to want someone to lose their job, firing LaLonde was overdue. Would have liked to have seen Gallant being hired over McLellan, but he at least has a ton of HC experience which neither Blaishel of LaLonde had…hopefully this works out well. LGRW!!!
I think the Gallant train has passed. I wanted him pre-Blashill, and even during the subsequent couple seasons, but I think his shtick (so to speak) has grown a bit stale in this modern speed-focused NHL game.
Red Wings problem wasn’t the coach. GM Yzerman built this team and overpaid for players that are playing in the top 6 and producing bottom 6 production. Also don’t have a #1 C bringing in a new coach isn’t going get red wings into the playoffs.
Good luck with the koala. He relies heavily on veterans, so don’t expect an influx of youth in the top 6 or on D
McClellan somehow keeps finding work.
4 teams since 2008 is not that much. DeBoer is on 5
DeBoer is the Doc Rivers of the NHL
I think Yzerman’s revealing himself as the guy who makes phone calls to get doors open, but not the brains of the operation. Keep him as head of hockey ops because it’s a nice fuzzy story, but the brain should be the one making the decisions.
I think the success of the Lightning *after* he left, has proven that point.
Might be interesting to watch RW vs Leafs tonight, win or lose. Paying close attention to DRW player intensity and effort. Both have been absent in December. Way too soon to expect much of a system adjustment from McLellan and staff.
I’d like to see fore and back checking actually take the guy with the puck instead of trying a weak stick check. Then there’s the passes to no one resulting in turnover…..oh, and trapped in D zone with dump outs and turn over ….then, the dump & chase ending in….turnovers…. Ugh…. Todd, help us!!.
They beat the Leafs 4-2 on Dec 12
…and they are losing 4-0 to the Leafs as we speak. So much for the New Coach Bump. Maybe the problem is beyond coaching, like personnel. How many coaches do you replace, before you look in the mirror.
Sorry…5-0…
I’m wondering why is Laviolette still coaching Rangers. He lost the lockerroom long time ago
They are now going for that high pick. Trade deadline should be interesting