Exclusive Interview With Red Wings' Alex DeBrincat
DeBrincat and the Red Wings endured a slow start to their season. He opens up about that, better play under Todd McLellan, fatherhood and much more.
Alex DeBrincat is living the perfect hockey life, so to speak. After going undrafted in the OHL Draft, he was discovered by the Erie Otters only to rattle off three consecutive 50-goal seasons.
Even that wasn’t good enough for DeBrincat to be drafted in the first round of his draft year. Eventually, the Chicago Blackhawks took him 39th overall in the 2016 NHL Draft.
DeBrincat quickly made a name for himself. After winning an OHL Championship with the Erie Otters and winning the Red Tilson Trophy as the Most Outstanding Player, he went to the Blackhawks and immediately went to work.
DeBrincat scored 69 goals in his first two seasons with the Blackhawks including 41 in 2018-19. As was expected, his goal scoring ability more than made up for his smaller stature.
While DeBrincat continued to produce, the Blackhawks were going in the wrong direction. That eventually led them down the path of pursuing a rebuild, something DeBrincat really didn’t want to be a part of.
It led to a very interesting trade. The Blackhawks dealt DeBrincat to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for three picks including the seventh overall pick that became Kevin Korchinski.
DeBrincat scored 27 goals and 66 points while playing all 82 games for the Senators in 2022-23. But in need of a new contract and where the Senators where at among other things, yet another trade was to come.
This trade for DeBrincat helped him get to his perfect hockey life; playing the sport he dreamed of as a kid for the team he grew up watching.
Arrival in Detroit
DeBrincat was traded from the Senators to his hometown Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Dominik Kubalik, Donovan Sebrango and two draft picks including a 2024 conditional first rounder. After the trade was completed, DeBrincat signed a four-year deal.
The Red Wings brought DeBrincat home. The Farmington Hills native who attended high school at Harrison saw his life go full circle. His favorite player growing up was Pavel Datsyuk. Now he got the chance to wear the winged wheel.
DeBrincat’s Detroit tenure is off to a good start in terms of his production. However, the Red Wings are still trying to figure things out as a team.
DeBrincat has played in every Red Wings’ game since his acquisition. He has 44 goals and 99 points in 121 games. He is on pace for his best season in goals since the 2021-22 season when he had 41 for the Blackhawks before his departure.
The Red Wings’ slow start to the 2024-25 season ultimately cost coach Derek Lalonde his job. Todd McLellan was hired to try to get them back on the right track. With the Eastern Conference standings bunched up, the Red Wings still have hope for this season. But they will need to get on a run soon to make that happen.
DeBrincat stopped by and spoke exclusively to the Hockey Writers. We touched on a variety of subjects including the slow start to the season, McLellan’s early impact and much more.
DeBrincat Q&A
THW: Looking back now as a team, why do you feel like that there was a slower start than what you were looking for?
DeBrincat: “That’s tough to say. I think there’s a lot of things that go into that. We weren’t scoring as much as last year. I think guys get frustrated and things just seem to trickle down and not go your way. I think it was a good reset for us after the Christmas break to take that break and get a new coach. I think there’s some stuff that you can just forget about in the first half and start over. I think it’s been good for us mentally to get that break and get that energy back in the room.”
THW: Coach McLellan has been in for a few games now. What have your early impressions of him been so far?
DeBrincat: “He’s been great. He’s brought the energy up in the room and practices have been good. We’ve been a lot more crisp and fast. I think it’s been good for us. We’re still learning on the fly with a new coach and stuff like that. But it’s been good. I think the energy has been good. Our starts to games have been good. We hope to carry on with it.”
THW: Is McLellan bringing a new system to your team?
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