The Detroit Red Wings saw forward Joe Veleno come into the 2023-24 season, getting himself off to a hot start. The former first-rounder has started to cool off a bit, seeing his offense trail off slightly from where he was in the early parts of the season.
While the Detroit Red Wings have plenty of depth to go around, Veleno was proving to be a nice depth center in the bottom-six forwards. After finding a groove early on, the Red Wings forward has seen some more stagnant performances as of late.
If you look back even further, Veleno has just two points in his last five games and four points over his last 15 games. His role seemingly decreased after he looked like he deserved time in the top six early this season.
But it may have been a byproduct of the Red Wings’ exceptional start to the 2023-24 season. The cool-off may have been inevitable, but hopefully, Veleno can continue to get things going in the right direction.
Detroit Red Wings forward Joe Veleno has cooled off slightly from where he was.
Veleno is 23 years old and starting to come into his own. It’s year four in the NHL. Well, this is his third full season in the NHL after playing in just five games after making his debut in 2020-21. Veleno has played in 23 games, with six goals and three assists for nine total points.
The offense has trailed off from where it was, and Veleno is now averaging 14:55 minutes a game. It’s a step up from where he has been in past years, but Veleno may see a decrease in ice time if things do not start to improve for the veteran forward.
It’s not that Veleno has been doing anything wrong, either. His caliber of play has not raised any alarm bells to me, but his luck of ending up on the scoresheet has been the detriment to Veleno continuing to get the job done for the Red Wings.
For Detroit, it will be a battle of mixing and matching their forwards. The addition of Patrick Kane to the organization is going to cause some changes up front. Detroit will have to find ways to get forward into good spots, and with Kane coming in, someone from the top six will get “demoted.”
This could allow Veleno to get some new linemates and possibly allow him to tap back into the scoring touch and show more flashes of the Veleno from the beginning of the 2023-24 season.