Gustafsson Will Get His Chance to Help Power Play

Erik Gustafsson said he knew he “didn’t play a great game the first game.”

“To be benched after that is tough,” he said. “Nothing I can do about it but play better.”

Gustafsson, signed as an unrestricted free agent last summer, gets that chance tonight when he plays against his former team, the New York Rangers. The Swedish defenseman replaces rookie Albert Johansson who played steady, efficient defense in his first two NHL games.

Lalonde is coming back to Gustafsson, with the hope that he might be able to help a power play that is mired in a 1-for-11 slump. The Red Wings signed Gustafsson with the idea that he might be able to help offset the loss of Shayne Gostisbehere who left through free agency. Gostisbehere put up 29 points on the power play last season. Gustafsson isn’t as dynamic with the puck as Gostisbehere, but he has some skill distributing the point.

“Very happy to be back.” Gustafsson said. “Just got to go out there and show them what I can do.”

Five-on-Five Plays Must Improve

Lalonde has made it clear that Gustafsson, 32, needs to perform well defensively, 5-on-5, to stay in the top six.

It should help that he knows this opponent well. He was a 31-point producer for the Rangers last season.

“You got to be prepared right from the get-go,” Gustafsson said. “They come out hard. Very skilled team. You got to manage the puck, be hard in our own zone. If we can close them … I think we played well against them last game. Just got to close them a little quicker in our own zone and don’t give them opportunities to have odd-man rushes and fuel their team a little bit more when we lose the puck on our blue line or their blue line. Manage the puck and manage the game.”