The winless streak of the Detroit Red Wings in pre-season play came to a halt on Tuesday night in the Windy City, and once again, an intriguing young prospect played a key role in the victory.
Michael Brandsegg-Nygård, who already scored in last week’s victory over the Buffalo Sabres at Little Caesars Arena, fired home his second tally of the pre-season on a one-timed shot from the slot that some fans could have some fans reminiscing of the days of Brendan Shanahan and Brett Hull.
The goal eventually stood up as the game-winner as part of the 3-1 Red Wings win, moving them back to the .500 mark in pre-season play.
Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features.
Last week, Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan touted Brandsegg-Nygård’s release, calling him “a hell of a shooter”.
“The information I’ve received is that he’s a hell of a shooter, and I watched the one playoff game in Grand Rapids last year and I thought he set himself up to shoot all the time,” McLellan said last week of Brandsegg-Nygård’. “If someone gets him the puck, he’s ready to shoot. I think it’s a big part of his game, he has that heaviness and all those other things but for me, the shot isn’t a surprise. I’ve been told it and I’ve witnessed it.”
The Red Wings found the back of the net first thanks to Elmer Soderblom stealing the puck from Chicago’s Connor Bedard and eventually setting up J.T. Compher, who tallied his first pre-season goal.
Jonatan Berggren, who was inked to a one-year extension during the offseason, helped set up Lucas Raymond’s second period goal that extended Detroit’s lead to 3-0 by outmuscling Sam Rinzel for a loose puck and feeding a pass to Raymond at the goal mouth.
Goaltender Cam Talbot, who is entering his second season with the Red Wings and will be paired with newcomer John Gibson as a tandem, stopped all but one of the 28 shots that the Blackhawks fired his way.
The Red Wings’ win over the Blackhawks was their second win over former head coach Jeff Blashill, who was lured away from his job as an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning to take over the head coaching responsibilities in Chicago this offseason. The Red Wings also beat the Blackhawks by a 3-2 final score on Sept. 23 in Detroit.
The pre-season is winding down for the Red Wings, who have only a pair of games remaining – both of them against the Toronto Maple Leafs, before they begin the regular season by hosting the Montreal Canadiens at Little Caesars Arena on Oct. 9.
Never miss a story by adding us to your Google News favorites!
Follow Michael Whitaker On X
Read the full article here