Derek Lalonde came to Detroit from Tampa with a sage piece of advice regarding Steve Yzerman and a comprensive understanding of what makes a team successful.
Lalonde is about to coach against his former team for the first time, standing behind the visitors bench in charge of the Detroit Red Wings when they visit the Lightning this week. Lalonde’s four years as an assistant under Jon Cooper in Tampa Bay factored into Lalonde’s appeal when Yzerman decided to bring in a new head coach, and has factored into the growth the Wings have shown through the first couple months of the season.
“Newsy has brought a lot of things from Tampa,” Wings captain Dylan Larkin said. “When he was there, they won Stanley Cups and were a really good team. He’s brought a lot of things and implemented them to our team.
“When we went into training camp, we watched clips of what we were going to be doing, how we were going to be playing, and it was a lot of what we’ve seen Tampa do. I think it’s easier to get behind because it has had success and it’s proven.”
Lalonde has guided the Wings to play a style that focuses on reducing risk, part of a strategy to improve team defense. While there have been some blips — which Lalonde has handled with the same equanimity as he shows after victories — the Wings are playing with a foundational structure that is helping them emerge from the rebuild.
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Learning to win
Lalonde, 50, has been a head coach in the USHL, ECHL (with the Toledo Walleye, a farm team for the Wings) and the AHL. He was named an assistant with the Lightning in 2018, shortly before Yzerman stepped back as GM in what turned out to be his last season with the organization before returning to Detroit in April 2019.
“There’s decent weather down there, so that was an easy sell,” Lalonde said.
Of course the real appeal was in going to a team that was considered a Stanley Cup contender, but, like the Wings in the mid-1990s, hadn’t been able to lift the Cup.
“Very few times in your career do you go to a situation where you can be part of something special, getting a team over the hump,” Lalonde said. “Winning, and winning at all, are a lot different and we went through it the hard way in Tampa. We broke an NHL record for wins in a season and we weren’t playing the right way. It helped me get a better feel for what winning looks like. Obviously we’re in a different spot here than where we were in Tampa, but a lot of it is the same — you can see us trying to establish some winning habits within our game.”
One of the questions Yzerman asked Lalonde before hiring him was whether Lalonde believes a coach’s message eventually gets stale. It was an interesting question from Yzerman, who played under five different head coaches his first 10 years in the league, followed by nine under Scotty Bowman.
Lalonde answered no, not when done correctly.
“It’s up to the individual coach, it’s up to his staff, to keep things fresh,” Lalonde said.
He keeps his video sessions short and meaningful and practices lively, usually ending them with a fun activity like placing both nets in the same zone for a game of three-on-three.
“There has been a couple times where he has had to let us know we are not doing things the right way, but for the most part, he has been pretty positive,” goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic said. “And when I say positive, he’s not sugarcoating things. He’ll let you know if you messed up, but it’s OK, we’ll learn from it and get better for it.”
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Managing up
Being head coach in the NHL is an immense task, and navigating his first job as such has been smoother for Lalonde because of his years working with Cooper.
“I wanted to work for him because of how he managed,” Lalonde said. “How he manages his players, his staff, how he manages up with the leadership, the general manager and even the owner. I probably didn’t appreciate how much I was taking from Coop until I actually was here, becoming a head coach on a day-to-day basis. I will be forever appreciative of Jon and the time I spent with him.”
Lalonde knew Yzerman from their shared time in Tampa, but it was more of a peripheral relationship. Now Lalonde deals with Yzerman — who often watches practices — on a daily and direct basis.
“I love working for Steve,” Lalonde said. “He’s extremely, extremely demanding and that comes from passion. There’s no one here that wants to get this going more than him. I love that. I wouldn’t want it any other way.
“Coop told me, in taking this, Steve is going to be demanding, but that is the most important relationship. It’s been great so far.”
The change
Jeff Blashill had just received a two-year extension from former GM Ken Holland when Yzerman arrived. Yzerman kept Blashill through the misery that was the 2019-20 season (the Wings had won only 17 games when the pandemic shuttered the season March 12), and extended his contract in 2021. Blashill was named head coach in 2015, as the Wings entered a decline, and for most of his seven seasons he had a patch-work roster.
“No matter what kind of team we had, we were always a close group and we always played hard, and I think that’s a credit to (Blashill),” Larkin said. “There were a lot of days, a lot of years, that it was very difficult coming to the rink. He always found a way to make sure the attitude of the group was good and that we were going to go into the next game prepared. Looking back, it’s something that I couldn’t imagine how hard it was — it was hard to go through it, and to continuously do it, I applaud him for it.”
Lalonde was part of significant changes Yzerman made last summer, also bringing in players to strengthen the team at every position. So many new faces at once can be challenging, but Lalonde has kept things calm throughout the excitement of a five-game point streak to start the season and a few bruising losses.
“The buck stops with me and I probably have to hold guys a lot more accountable than what I did in Tampa,” Lalonde said. “You build a little bit different relationship. So it’s a little bit different but I still stick to who I am.
“We are trying to judge ourselves on process over outcome. I think living in the moment is key, especially for this group. We are trying to build something.”
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.
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A Perfect Holiday Gift
What: “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft“
Author: Helene St. James, who has covered the Red Wings at the Detroit Free Press since 1996. Foreword by Jimmy Devellano, Wings senior vice president and former general manager.
Publisher: Triumph Books.
Pages: 350+.
Price: $19.95.
Availability: Leading bookstores and online from booksellers, including Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Get it signed! For a personalized copy contact St. James at hstjames@freepress.com.
About the book: In “On the Clock: Detroit Red Wings,” Helene St. James explores the fascinating, rollercoaster history of the Red Wings at the draft, including franchise legends like Steve Yzerman, Sergei Fedorov, and Pavel Datsyuk. Readers will go behind the scenes with top decision-makers as they evaluate, deliberate, and ultimately make the picks they hope will tip the fate of their franchise toward success. From seemingly surefire first-rounders to surprising late selections, this is a must-read for Red Wings faithful and hockey fans eager for a glimpse at how teams are built.