Lucas Raymond will get a bit of rest rather than a wild weekend in Vegas.
Despite the best efforts of his teammates, who voted daily and exulted fans to do the same on social media, Raymond was not among the four Last Man In winners announced Tuesday, the day after voting ended. Nazem Kadri (Colorado Avalanche), Steven Stamkos (Tampa Bay Lightning), Troy Terry (Anaheim Ducks) and Jake Guentzel (Pittsburgh Penguins) were named to the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Game.
Dylan Larkin was selected as the Wings’ representative when the rosters were announced Jan. 13. The All-Star Game is Feb. 5 in Las Vegas.
Raymond, 19, leads the rookie scoring race with 32 points in 40 games.
“He’s certainly played well enough to be in the consideration with other good players in the league,” coach Jeff Blashill said Tuesday. “He’s put himself in the conversation and that’s good for him.”
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New York Rangers forward Mika Zibanejad won the fan vote in the Metropolitan Division, but he’s unable to attend for personal reasons, so instead Guentzel will go on the strength of finishing second in voting.
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Larkin said he voted for Raymond daily, the last time was Monday while having breakfast in Buffalo. But there are worse fates for a rookie than to get a few days off in the middle of a season featuring more games than he has played before in his career. Raymond has been a huge part of why the Wings (18-17-5) are trending much better than in previous seasons, and having him fresh and ready for a second-half push ultimately is good for the team.
And even if he endures growing pains, there’s little doubt he’ll be an All-Star at some point.
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“In life, everybody gets overexcited about things too many times, whether that’s good or bad,” Blashill said. “There’s been lots players that a lot of praise has been heaped on, even guys who have won the rookie of the year, that maybe their careers haven’t taken off with the same level. So I’m cautious of judgment of anybody.
“It’s a relentless league and you have to continue to prove it day in and day out and year in and year out. Lucas is very smart, he’s very competitive, and he’s got a good maturity to him with a really good skill set. That’s a really good package. He’s got a really good package to be a good player — in my opinion, a winning player. The organization is in a better spot to win long-term with Lucas Raymond on our team. But I also would say it’s really important to be patient and see what exactly that means and where he fits in the landscape of the NHL.”
Raymond, drafted at No. 4 in 2020 by Steve Yzerman (drafted fourth overall in 1983), was named NHL Rookie of the Month for November after pouring five goals and seven assists into 14 games.
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