# 2018–19 Detroit Red Wings season

The 2018–19 Detroit Red Wings season was the 93rd season for the National Hockey League (NHL) franchise that was established on September 25, 1926. It was also the Red Wings' second season at Little Caesars Arena. The team was eliminated from playoff contention on March 12, 2019, and missed the playoffs for the third year in a row.

## Off-season

On June 22, the Red Wings hired Dan Bylsma as an assistant coach.

## Standings

Atlantic Division :
| Pos | Team v t e | GP | W | L | OTL | ROW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | p – Tampa Bay Lightning | 82 | 62 | 16 | 4 | 56 | 325 | 222 | +103 | 128 |
| 2 | x – Boston Bruins | 82 | 49 | 24 | 9 | 47 | 259 | 215 | +44 | 107 |
| 3 | x – Toronto Maple Leafs | 82 | 46 | 28 | 8 | 46 | 286 | 251 | +35 | 100 |
| 4 | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 44 | 30 | 8 | 41 | 249 | 236 | +13 | 96 |
| 5 | Florida Panthers | 82 | 36 | 32 | 14 | 33 | 267 | 280 | −13 | 86 |
| 6 | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 33 | 39 | 10 | 28 | 226 | 271 | −45 | 76 |
| 7 | Detroit Red Wings | 82 | 32 | 40 | 10 | 29 | 227 | 277 | −50 | 74 |
| 8 | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 29 | 47 | 6 | 29 | 242 | 302 | −60 | 64 |
Eastern Conference Wild Card :
| Pos | Div | Team v t e | GP | W | L | OTL | ROW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | ME | x – Carolina Hurricanes | 82 | 46 | 29 | 7 | 44 | 245 | 223 | +22 | 99 |
| 2 | ME | x – Columbus Blue Jackets | 82 | 47 | 31 | 4 | 45 | 258 | 232 | +26 | 98 |
| 3 | AT | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 44 | 30 | 8 | 41 | 249 | 236 | +13 | 96 |
| 4 | AT | Florida Panthers | 82 | 36 | 32 | 14 | 33 | 267 | 280 | −13 | 86 |
| 5 | ME | Philadelphia Flyers | 82 | 37 | 37 | 8 | 34 | 244 | 281 | −37 | 82 |
| 6 | ME | New York Rangers | 82 | 32 | 36 | 14 | 26 | 227 | 272 | −45 | 78 |
| 7 | AT | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 33 | 39 | 10 | 28 | 226 | 271 | −45 | 76 |
| 8 | AT | Detroit Red Wings | 82 | 32 | 40 | 10 | 29 | 227 | 277 | −50 | 74 |
| 9 | ME | New Jersey Devils | 82 | 31 | 41 | 10 | 28 | 222 | 275 | −53 | 72 |
| 10 | AT | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 29 | 47 | 6 | 29 | 242 | 302 | −60 | 64 |

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

2018–19 game log: 32–40–10 (Home: 17–19–5; Road: 15–21–5) :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Overtime/shootout loss (1 point) :

## Player statistics
### Skaters

Regular season :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Dylan Larkin | 76 | 32 | 41 | 73 | −6 | 75 |
| Andreas Athanasiou | 76 | 30 | 24 | 54 | −9 | 38 |
| Gustav Nyquist$^‡$ | 62 | 16 | 33 | 49 | 0 | 8 |
| Anthony Mantha | 67 | 25 | 23 | 48 | −8 | 30 |
| Tyler Bertuzzi | 73 | 21 | 26 | 47 | 11 | 36 |
| Thomas Vanek | 64 | 16 | 20 | 36 | −12 | 26 |
| Frans Nielsen | 72 | 10 | 25 | 35 | −7 | 14 |
| Niklas Kronwall | 79 | 3 | 24 | 27 | −5 | 40 |
| Mike Green | 43 | 5 | 21 | 26 | −1 | 28 |
| Luke Glendening | 78 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 2 | 15 |
| Filip Hronek | 46 | 5 | 18 | 23 | −10 | 30 |
| Danny DeKeyser | 52 | 5 | 15 | 20 | 2 | 39 |
| Justin Abdelkader | 71 | 6 | 13 | 19 | −14 | 38 |
| Michael Rasmussen | 62 | 8 | 10 | 18 | −8 | 29 |
| Darren Helm | 61 | 7 | 10 | 17 | −11 | 20 |
| Dennis Cholowski | 52 | 7 | 9 | 16 | −20 | 16 |
| Nick Jensen$^‡$ | 60 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 1 | 17 |
| Jacob de la Rose | 60 | 3 | 6 | 9 | −13 | 16 |
| Christoffer Ehn | 60 | 3 | 6 | 9 | −5 | 6 |
| Trevor Daley | 44 | 2 | 6 | 8 | −3 | 12 |
| Taro Hirose | 10 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 2 |
| Martin Frk | 30 | 1 | 5 | 6 | −9 | 4 |
| Jonathan Ericsson | 52 | 3 | 2 | 5 | −10 | 35 |
| Madison Bowey | 17 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −4 | 8 |
| Filip Zadina | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −5 | 0 |
| Luke Witkowski | 34 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −5 | 23 |
| Matt Puempel | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −2 | 2 |
| Wade Megan | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −4 | 2 |
| Brian Lashoff | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Joe Hicketts | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −9 | 0 |
| Ryan Kuffner | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −4 | 0 |
| Dylan McIlrath | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Libor Sulak | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −4 | 6 |
| Jake Chelios | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Dominic Turgeon | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −3 | 0 |

### Goaltenders

Regular season :
| Player | GP | GS | TOI | W | L | OT | GA | GAA | SA | SV% | SO | G | A | PIM |
| Jimmy Howard | 55 | 52 | 3,053 | 23 | 22 | 5 | 156 | 3.07 | 1,709 | .909 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Jonathan Bernier | 35 | 30 | 1,860 | 9 | 18 | 5 | 98 | 3.16 | 1,025 | .904 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kaden Fulcher | 1 | 0 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4.44 | 11 | .818 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
$^†$Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Red Wings. Stats reflect time with the Red Wings only. $^‡$Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Red Wings only. Bold/italics denotes franchise record.

## Awards and honours
### Awards

Regular season :
| Player | Award | Awarded |
| Tyler Bertuzzi | NHL Second Star of the Week | April 1, 2019 |

### Milestones

Regular season :
| Player | Milestone | Reached |
| Dennis Cholowski | 1st career NHL game 1st career NHL goal 1st career NHL point | October 4, 2018 |
| Christoffer Ehn | 1st career NHL game | October 4, 2018 |
| Filip Hronek | 1st career NHL game | October 4, 2018 |
| Michael Rasmussen | 1st career NHL game | October 4, 2018 |
| Libor Sulak | 1st career NHL game | October 4, 2018 |
| Dennis Cholowski | 1st career NHL assist | October 7, 2018 |
| Danny DeKeyser | 100th career NHL point | October 8, 2018 |
| Michael Rasmussen | 1st career NHL point 1st career NHL assist | October 8, 2018 |
| Christoffer Ehn | 1st career NHL point 1st career NHL assist | October 11, 2018 |
| Filip Hronek | 1st career NHL point 1st career NHL assist | October 11, 2018 |
| Filip Hronek | 1st career NHL goal | October 13, 2018 |
| Michael Rasmussen | 1st career NHL goal | October 30, 2018 |
| Thomas Vanek | 400th career NHL assist | November 23, 2018 |
| Danny DeKeyser | 400th career NHL game | December 2, 2018 |
| Trevor Daley | 300th career NHL point | December 15, 2018 |
| Trevor Daley | 1,000th career NHL game | December 23, 2018 |
| Christoffer Ehn | 1st career NHL goal | December 23, 2018 |
| Andreas Athanasiou | 100th career NHL point | January 2, 2019 |
| Thomas Vanek | 1,000th career NHL game | January 4, 2019 |
| Tyler Bertuzzi | 1st career NHL hat-trick | January 12, 2019 |
| Jimmy Howard | 500th career NHL game | February 14, 2019 |
| Dylan Larkin | 300th career NHL game | February 16, 2019 |
| Dylan Larkin | 200th career NHL point | February 22, 2019 |
| Filip Zadina | 1st career NHL game | February 24, 2019 |
| Filip Zadina | 1st career NHL goal 1st career NHL point | March 5, 2019 |
| Filip Zadina | 1st career NHL assist | March 9, 2019 |
| Darren Helm | 100th career NHL goal | March 14, 2019 |
| Luke Glendening | 100th career NHL point | March 14, 2019 |
| Ryan Kuffner | 1st career NHL game | March 16, 2019 |
| Taro Hirose | 1st career NHL game 1st career NHL point 1st career NHL assist | March 19, 2019 |
| Jake Chelios | 1st career NHL game | March 29, 2019 |
| Taro Hirose | 1st career NHL goal | March 31, 2019 |
| Kaden Fulcher | 1st career NHL game | April 6, 2019 |

### Records

* On April 2, Tyler Bertuzzi recorded two goals and one assist in a 4–1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. He became the first player in Red Wings franchise history to record four consecutive three-point games.

## Suspensions/fines

| Player | Explanation | Length | Salary | Date issued |
| Tyler Bertuzzi | Roughing and unsportsmanlike conduct against Colorado Avalanche forward Matt Calvert during NHL game No. 410 in Detroit on Sunday, December 2, 2018, at 12:45 of the third period. | 2 games | $15,053.76 | December 3, 2018 |

## Transactions

The Red Wings have been involved in the following transactions during the 2018–19 season.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| June 23, 2018 (2018-06-23) | To Columbus Blue JacketsMTL's 6th-round pick in 2018 | To Detroit Red Wings5th-round pick in 2019 |
| June 24, 2018 (2018-06-24) | To Arizona CoyotesRobbie Russo | To Detroit Red WingsConditional 7th-round pick in 2019 |
| February 22, 2019 (2019-02-22) | To Washington CapitalsNick Jensen BUF's 5th-round pick in 2019 | To Detroit Red WingsMadison Bowey 2nd-round pick in 2020 |
| February 25, 2019 (2019-02-25) | To San Jose SharksGustav Nyquist | To Detroit Red WingsConditional 2nd-round pick in 2019 Conditional 3rd-round pick in 2020 |

### Free agents

| Date | Player | Team | Contract term |
| July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01) | Jonathan Bernier | from Colorado Avalanche | 3-year |
| July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01) | Jake Chelios | from Carolina Hurricanes | 1-year |
| July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01) | Wade Megan | from St. Louis Blues | 1-year |
| July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01) | Xavier Ouellet | to Montreal Canadiens | 1-year |
| July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01) | Harri Sateri | from Florida Panthers | 1-year |
| July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01) | Chris Terry | from Montreal Canadiens | 2-year |
| July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01) | Thomas Vanek | from Columbus Blue Jackets | 1-year |
| July 2, 2018 (2018-07-02) | Jared Coreau | to Anaheim Ducks | 1-year |
| July 2, 2018 (2018-07-02) | Matt Lorito | to New York Islanders | 2-year |
| July 2, 2018 (2018-07-02) | Dan Renouf | to Carolina Hurricanes | 1-year |
| July 2, 2018 (2018-07-02) | Ben Street | to Anaheim Ducks | 1-year |
| July 17, 2018 (2018-07-17) | Tom McCollum | to Milwaukee Admirals (AHL) | 1-year |
| July 25, 2018 (2018-07-25) | Eric Tangradi | to New Jersey Devils | 1-year |
| July 30, 2018 (2018-07-30) | Zach Nastasiuk | to Charlotte Checkers (AHL) | 1-year |
| February 5, 2019 (2019-02-05) | Turner Elson | from Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL) | 2-year |
| March 12, 2019 (2019-03-12) | Taro Hirose | from Michigan State Spartans (Big Ten) | 2-year |
| March 12, 2019 (2019-03-12) | Ryan Kuffner | from Princeton Tigers (ECAC Hockey) | 2-year |
| April 15, 2019 (2019-04-15) | Filip Larsson | from Denver Pioneers (NCHC) | 3-year |
| May 23, 2019 (2019-05-23) | Jake Chelios | to Kunlun Red Star (KHL) | 2-year |
| May 27, 2019 (2019-05-27) | Harri Sateri | to Sibir Novosibirsk (KHL) | 1-year |
| May 28, 2019 (2019-05-28) | Oliwer Kaski | from Lahti Pelicans (Liiga) | 1-year |
| June 4, 2019 (2019-06-04) | Libor Sulak | to Severstal Cherepovets (KHL) | 1-year |

### Waivers

| Date | Player | Team | Ref |
| October 17, 2018 (2018-10-17) | Jacob de la Rose | from Montreal Canadiens | |

### Signings

| Date | Player | Contract term |
| June 25, 2018 (2018-06-25) | Tyler Bertuzzi | 2-year |
| June 25, 2018 (2018-06-25) | Martin Frk | 1-year |
| June 30, 2018 (2018-06-30) | Mike Green | 2-year |
| July 5, 2018 (2018-07-05) | Andreas Athanasiou | 2-year |
| July 7, 2018 (2018-07-07) | Filip Zadina | 3-year |
| July 11, 2018 (2018-07-11) | Anthony Mantha | 2-year |
| August 10, 2018 (2018-08-10) | Dylan Larkin | 5-year |
| September 9, 2018 (2018-09-09) | Matt Puempel | 2-year |
| March 13, 2019 (2019-03-13) | Brian Lashoff | 2-year |
| March 18, 2019 (2019-03-18) | Chase Pearson | 2-year |
| March 20, 2019 (2019-03-20) | Jimmy Howard | 1-year |
| April 15, 2019 (2019-04-15) | Filip Larsson | 3-year |
| May 1, 2019 (2019-05-01) | Joe Veleno | 3-year |
| May 9, 2019 (2019-05-09) | Dylan McIlrath | 2-year |

## Draft picks

Below are the Detroit Red Wings' selections at the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, which was held on June 22 and 23, 2018, at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
| Round | # | Player | Pos | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 6 | Filip Zadina | RW | Czech Republic | Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) |
| 1 | 30$^1$ | Joe Veleno | C | Canada | Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL) |
| 2 | 33$^2$ | Jonatan Berggren | RW | Sweden | Skellefteå AIK J20 (SuperElit) |
| 2 | 36 | Jared McIsaac | D | Canada | Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) |
| 3 | 67 | Alec Regula | D | United States | London Knights (OHL) |
| 3 | 81$^3$ | Seth Barton | D | Canada | Trail Smoke Eaters (BCHL) |
| 3 | 84$^4$ | Jesper Eliasson | G | Sweden | IF Troja/Ljungby J20 (SuperElit) |
| 4 | 98 | Ryan O'Reilly | RW | United States | Madison Capitols (USHL) |
| 6 | 160$^5$ | Victor Brattstrom | G | Sweden | Timra IK (Allsvenskan) |
| 7 | 191 | Otto Kivenmaki | C | Finland | Assat U20 (Nuorten SM-liiga) |
Notes:
* The Vegas Golden Knights' first-round pick went to the Detroit Red Wings as the result of a trade on February 26, 2018, that sent Tomas Tatar to Vegas in exchange for the Islanders' second-round pick in 2019, a third-round pick in 2021 and this pick.
* The Ottawa Senators' second-round pick went to the Detroit Red Wings as the result of a trade on February 28, 2017, that sent Brendan Smith to the New York Rangers in exchange for a third-round pick in 2017 and this pick.
* The Philadelphia Flyers' third-round pick went to the Detroit Red Wings as the result of a trade on February 19, 2018, that sent Petr Mrazek to Philadelphia in exchange for a conditional third-round pick in 2019 and this pick (being conditional at the time of the trade).
* The Pittsburgh Penguins' third-round pick went to the Detroit Red Wings as the result of a trade on October 21, 2017, that sent Riley Sheahan and a fifth-round pick in 2018 to Pittsburgh in exchange for Scott Wilson and this pick.
* The Montreal Canadiens' sixth-round pick went to the Columbus Blue Jackets as the result of a trade on June 23, 2018, that sent a fifth-round pick in 2019 to Detroit in exchange for this pick. The Red Wings acquired this pick as the result of a trade on February 28, 2017, that sent Steve Ott to Montreal.