Fabbri Contributions: A Tale of the Unexpected (+)

Detroit Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde said if you inspect the Detroit Red Wings’ group of forwards “it’s hard to find a Selke candidate.”

“Which is fine,” Lalonde said. “That’s our DNA and we’re winning. Last year, we were just begging for goals.”

This season, the Red Wings rank second in the NHL in scoring with a 3.89 goals-per-game average. That’s close to a goal per game more than they were producing last season when they were 24th in the league. There are plenty of reasons for that, starting with added depth picked up through trades and free agency. Teams aren’t usually able to find a 40-goal scorer in the trade market, but GM Steve Yzerman did when he acquired Michigan native Alex DeBrincat from the Ottawa Senators.