Red Wings forward's time in Detroit appears to be deteriorating
Photo credit: Brian Bradshaw Sevald-Imagn Images
The time of a Detroit Red Wings forward with the organization appears to be coming to an end, as his role and value within the team continue to diminish.
The Detroit Red Wings have lost their last two games, with a notable 7-2 loss against the New York Islanders last night.
Prior to that game, Todd McLellan's team also lost 4-2 against the Buffalo Sabres.
These two teams aren't the strongest opponents that the Wings have faced so far this season, but disorganized play and lack of execution sank Detroit, per captain Dylan Larkin:
"Just from the start, a lack of execution. A lack of showing up here, with it being on a back-to-back. We made it very easy on them, and they capitalized. Then we just chased it and let it get more and more out of hand. To a man, it wasn't good enough tonight. We didn't execute a back-to-back here, sticking to our strategy and making it easy, playing a simple game."
Many players didn't look good in the two losses, and now it appears that a forward's job in Detroit could be in jeopardy.
Red Wings' Michael Rasmussen Must Bounce Back
The Red Wings' ninth overall pick in 2017, Michael Rasmussen, has struggled in the last two games.
Against New York, he had a minus-3 +/-, for a total of minus-4 in the back-to-back games.
He made costly mistakes, including a lazy tripping penalty in the third period when the game was tied, with the game-winning goal being scored on the same power play.
So far, in seven games this year, the forward has tallied two (empty-net) points, including one goal in the game against the Florida Panthers.
Additionally, reports highlighted that Rasmussen hasn't been using his size to his advantage on the ice. The 6-foot-6, 222-pound center has an average of 6.6 hits per 60 minutes, nearly half of Michael Brandsegg-Nygaard's 13.5.
Rasmussen does help the Wings defensively, with an impressive average of 5.18 shots blocked per game.
Teams need role players, but he'll need to do more to remain in Steve Yzerman's plans.
Unless he gains some rhythm and steps up, it won't be surprising to see Rasmussen's name in trade rumors, with two seasons left after the current one on his $3,200,000 AAV contract.
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