PREVIEW: Red Wings try to stretch point streak to four straight contests on Saturday against Sharks

DETROIT – Coming into the finale of their three-game homestand with points in three consecutive outings, the Detroit Red Wings will take on the San Jose Sharks at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday night.

“To this point, it’s been a fairly resilient group with everything going on,” Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan said. “They’ve been able to compartmentalize some of the things and focus on the game. They’ve given each other, and the staff, a good effort in practice. We’ve adjusted the way we’ve played, structurally, a little bit and they’ve picked that up fairly fast. It’s allowed us to check better than maybe we have in the past, I believe. On the other side of the coin, we’ve still got to find some ways to manufacture some offense and clean up the penalty kill a little bit.”

Puck drop between Detroit (2-3-2; 6 points) and San Jose (4-3-0; 8 points) is set for 7 p.m. ET, with broadcast coverage on Detroit SportsNet and the Red Wings Radio Network (97.1 The Ticket in Detroit). Once Saturday’s game is complete, the club won’t be back at Little Caesars Arena until Oct. 29.

“We’ve grown in a lot of areas,” Lucas Raymond said. “I think our defensive game has been really good during a lot of stretches. Obviously, a few games that we would’ve liked and that we’ve felt we were right there, but we’re going every game. I think our last game was probably one of our best.”

Raymond was talking about Thursday night’s 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers, where goaltender Daniil Tarasov stopped 17 shots while Anton Johansson and Andrew Copp provided the offense.

“We were patient,” Raymond said. “We stuck with our game, kind of let it come to us and got rewarded towards the end with Copp’s good goal. Before that, there was plenty of opportunity to win it. It didn’t frustrate us. We kept it going, and I felt like that was big.”

Raymond said Johansson’s smile and emotion following his first NHL goal reminded him of his own, back on Oct. 19, 2021.

“It was against Columbus at home, such a special feeling,” Raymond said. “Obviously, it’s like different tiers and different types of firsts you take. You make your NHL debut – it’s a dream come true. Then, you get your first NHL goal – it’s an unreal feeling. Everyone here is very happy for him. He’s such a great guy and a great player.”

Through seven games this season, Raymond (four assists) is in a three-way tie for third on Detroit’s scoring leaderboard with Viktor Arvidsson (three goals, one assist) and Justin Faulk (one goal, three assists).

Although the 24-year-old forward has yet to find the back of the net, McLellan expressed confidence that Raymond will eventually be rewarded for continuing to play the right way.

“I don’t think his confidence is wavering,” McLellan said. “He’s probably a little frustrated more than a shortness of confidence. He’s had some looks. He’s had the puck on his tape in real good spots, but it hasn’t gone in for him. We’re going to keep working with him and hopefully, he pulls himself through it.”

The Sharks kicked off a six-game road trip with a 4-3 shootout victory over the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena on Thursday. Macklin Celebrini, who converted San Jose’s only shootout attempt, paces his club with eight points (two goals, six assists). Behind the youngest active captain in the NHL, Will Smith (three goals, two assists) and Tyler Toffoli (two goals, three assists) have five points each.

“They’re a skillful team with a lot of good, young players,” Raymond said about the Sharks. “For us, I think it comes down to our game. If we play our game the way we’re supposed to and we trust each other out there, things will open up offensively and we’ll shut them down defensively. It’s going to be a fun, high-paced game, and hopefully we can get out of here with a win.”