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NHL: After 10 games, the Red Wings are flying high

darren cooper
By:
Darren Cooper
31/10/2023/
NHL
Detroit Red Wings Sport News

Highlights

  • Detroit’s record through 10 games of the regular season (6-3-1) is the best for the Red Wings since 2014.
  • The Red Wings are trying to end a streak of seven straight seasons without making the playoffs.
  • Seven of the Red Wings next eight games are at home in Little Caesars Arena, including a showdown with unbeaten Atlantic Division rival Boston.

Winning Wings hockey is back.

Maybe it won’t last for the entire NHL season, but hockey fans throughout Michigan have to be thrilled with the performance of the Red Wings who are 6-3-1 after an overtime win over the Islanders Monday night. It’s the best start for the club since 2014 when they were 6-2-2 at this juncture.

Detroit fans have waited seven seasons for their team to get back to the playoffs. Top Michigan sportsbooks have noticed. In addition to puck lines and over/under markets on each Wings game, the Red Wings have risen up the future bets at both DraftKings Sportsbook and FanDuel.

What Do the Oddsmakers Say?

Coach Derek Lalonde’s team entered the 2023/24 season with tempered expectations. The Red Wings weren’t considered contenders to win the Stanley Cup or even make the playoffs.

But after 10 games, sportsbooks have noticed. DraftKings has the Wings rising at +5000 to win the Stanley Cup and now +125 to make the playoffs. FanDuel lists Detroit at +7000 to win the Stanley Cup and +128 to make the playoffs.

FanDuel also has Wings first-year winger Alex DeBrincat up to +2500 to finish with the most goals in the NHL. The Michigan native is tied for the league lead with nine goals. He scored 41 goals for Chicago in 2018-19 and 2021-22.

The Secrets of Success

The Red Wings acquired DeBrincat in a big off-season trade with Ottawa hoping he could spark the offense and he has done that and more. Detroit has 40 goals through the first 10 games, the first time it’s scored that many goals in a 10-game stretch since 2011. Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin has a team-high 15 points, including 11 assists. David Perron has a pair of game winning goals, and star defenseman Moritz Seider has a goal and nine assists.

Putting the puck in the net isn’t easy, but a team can get hot and it can carry over. DeBrincat has been hot and the rest of the Wings are feeding off him.

Blocking Their Way

Despite their success, the Red Wings still don’t lead the Atlantic Division. The big, bad Bruins have yet to lose a game through nine games, standing at 8-0-1. Boston spanked Detroit 4-1 last week. Detroit has the fourth most points in the NHL (defending Cup champs Vegas have 19 points) and have done this all with starting goal Ville Husso struggling.

Husso is 4-2 this season, but has allowed 23 goals, the most in the NHL and his goals against average is a whopping 3.28. Back-up goalie James Reimer is 2-1 and his goals against average is only 1.68. No one is thinking goalie change yet in Detroit, but if the numbers stay like this it’s inevitable.

Detroit is back on the ice Thursday and is about to start a five-game homestand. They get the Bruins at home on Saturday looking for some early payback.

darren cooper

Born and raised in Louisiana, Darren Cooper has a fond appreciation for bayous, Mardi Gras beads and the sports betting industry. Darren has worked for multiple print and online publications since 1998, primarily as a sports columnist in the Northeast. He’s covered a Super Bowl (it was a blowout), the World Series (same) and the NBA Draft (man, those guys are tall). For the last few years he’s dug deep into the sports gambling industry as it exploded across America, learning how the legal sausage is made and how while all the sportsbooks look the same, they all have different identities and styles. He’s learned to always bet within his means -- and take the under. When not in front of his computer creating, Darren spends time with his three boys. He runs, reads and is always looking for the next big thing to write about.