PREVIEW: Red Wings host Flyers for We Are Hockeytown: Hockey Fights Cancer Night on Thursday

DETROIT – Teaming up with the American Cancer Society and Fifth Third Bank, the Detroit Red Wings will host We Are Hockeytown: Hockey Fights Cancer Night when the Philadelphia Flyers stop by Little Caesars Arena on Thursday night.

“It’s pretty special,” Emmitt Finnie said of Hockey Fights Cancer Night. “Obviously, this night is for (Physical Therapist and Assistant Athletic Trainer Russ Baumann) and his family. For me personally, my mom has cancer, so it’s an important night for me too.”

Behind all the activities and fundraisers before, during and after Detroit (1-3-2; 4 points) and Philadelphia (0-5-3; 3 points) drop the puck at 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+/Hulu/Disney+ and 97.1 The Ticket), this night in particular serves as a reminder of the incredible strength of cancer fighters and the community that rallies around them.

“Russ, who is a long-time trainer here, (his wife, Jennifer) lost her fight last weekend, and that’s personal,” Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan said. “Then, there’s a lot of others - Kelly Chase, a good friend of mine. A lot of people are affected by it.”

For more information on Thursday’s We Are Hockeytown: Hockey Fights Cancer Night, fans can click here.

“We all get to gather and recognize people that we’ve lost and the fights that go on,” McLellan said. “Hopefully, the future cures – that’s what we’re here for. It’s a real good environment for a lot of different reasons. The mass number of people who are here that are gathering and are affected by it. The fact that this is something that the NHL has done for multiple years now… I think that’s something we can all be proud of. The amount of funds that have been raised through different causes through sports that have helped not only cancer but also other diseases. We’re worried about winning and losing, signing players, trades and all that type of stuff. This human stuff is what’s real, and it affects all of us. You don’t have to be a player or coach. You can be a fan or media person, and you all have your own stories.”

Detroit has gone past regulation in two consecutive games, most recently dropping a 5-4 decision in overtime to the visiting New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night.

“I think we all have higher expectations for how it’s been going,” Nate Danielson said. “We’ve had bits and pieces…You saw how we did in Montreal (last Saturday night): it was a good game, but one where we just couldn’t score. Then, against the Devils, we scored, but it kind of fell apart a little bit. So, I think just being able to put it all together is the biggest piece right now.”

During Thursday’s morning skate, Danielson worked on the wing of the Red Wings’ top line alongside Dylan Larkin and Viktor Arvidsson. McLellan believes it will be an “unreal opportunity” for the 22-year-old forward to play in that spot against Philadelphia, and he hopes Danielson can take and run with it.

“(Danielson) has real good skills,” McLellan said. “You can see him in practice. In certain situations, he handles the puck well. He has good vision. He’s got a good shot. He has tools that scorers have, and it’s just a matter of putting it all together. A little bit of confidence. A little more pop in his game, if you will. And hopefully, that will lead him to capitalizing on some of the offensive opportunities.”

Danielson, who has one assist through five games this season, is willing to play wherever the coaches need him.

“I feel like the center kind of has a little bit more of that defensive responsibility,” Danielson said. “Honestly, I think it’s mostly just getting used to being on the wing. It’s probably just getting used to not coming through the middle with speed as much and being on the wall a little bit more.”

Having yielded the game-opening goal in seven of their eight contests this season, the Flyers battled back from a two-score, third-period deficit in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Seattle Kraken at Xfinity Mobile Arena on Tuesday. On the campaign, Christian Dvorak (two goals, one assist), Travis Sanheim and Trevor Zegras (one goal, two assists apiece) and Travis Konecny (three assists) have each tallied three points.

“We need to be ready to go and make this a hard place to play,” Danielson said. “They’re going to be desperate, but so should we.”