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As the Detroit Red Wings celebrate their centennial campaign, few figures can say theyâ€ve both played for the franchise and spent decades behind the microphone.

The beloved Mickey Redmond, the first 50-goal scorer in Red Wings history, fits that bill, as he’s been a longtime mainstay on Red Wings television broadcasts since 1986.

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Soon after Redmondâ€s playing days ended in 1976, a new face with ties to another Original Six franchise, the Montreal Canadiens, joined the Red Wings. And like Redmond, he’s become synonymous with Detroit hockey broadcasts.

Forward Paul Woods, who was originally selected by Montreal in the third round (51st overall) of the 1975 NHL Draft, never appeared in a game for the Canadiens and instead won two Calder Cup championships with their American Hockey League affiliate, the Nova Scotia Voyageurs.

However, it wasn’t long before he would be exposed in the 1977 NHL Waiver Draft and then subsequently scooped up by the Red Wings, where he would spend his entire NHL playing career before eventually transitioning into the field of broadcasting.

Woods admitted that he was frustrated that his career didn’t seem to be gaining much traction with the Canadiens, but that when he received the news of getting a chance with the Red Wings, he initially believed it to be a prank pulled by one of his teammates.

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“I was in Montreal and it was my third training camp there,” he said. “I was frustrated that I got sent down, and then a phone call came to me on a pay phone, just showing how much times have changed since then. It was someone from the Red Wings organization, and they asked, ‘If we took you today in the Waiver Draft, will you come?’

“I thought it was a prank, but I said, ‘Yeah sure, I’ll come.’ I thought it was one of my teammates that were just fooling around, trying to get me going.”

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However, he soon received the confirmation that sent him into full on elation – so much that he needed to pull his car over.

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“It came on the radio that I got picked by Detroit in the Waiver Draft,” he said. “I stopped the car and got out, and just started dancing around the car, I was that excited.”

Woods spent seven full seasons with the Red Wings and became the youngest captain in franchise history at the time, a mark later surpassed by 21-year-old Steve Yzerman in 1986, a role he would hold for 19 seasons.

Woods is one of 37 players in the Red Wings†century-long history to wear the captainâ€s “C,†a distinction heâ€s proud of, though he emphasizes that team success depends on everyone.

“It takes the entire team,” he said. “I guess captains are a sign of respect. The coaches decide that, it’s just who they picked to do it. I was involved in a lot of things, but it’s something to be proud of for sure.”

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Upon Woods’ entrance into the NHL in 1977, the Red Wings’ time at historic Olympia Stadium, which they had called home since 1927, was winding down.

As the surrounding neighborhood declined and crime increased, the Red Wings planned to build a new arena in the suburb of Pontiac before a counteroffer from the City of Detroit led to the hasty construction of Joe Louis Arena on the riverfront.

“It was a great building, it wasn’t that big, and it went straight up almost,” Woods said of Olympia Stadium. “The crowd was always right on top of you, it was a very intense building. The ice was outstanding, it was great.”

When the Red Wings moved from Olympia Stadium in December 1979, their new home wasnâ€t yet fully completed. Although it would go on to host countless nostalgic moments for new generations of fans, it took time for the arena to develop the signature charm that players and supporters eventually came to love.

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Woods admitted he wasnâ€t fully on board with the move to Joe Louis Arena at the time, but he eventually grew to appreciate it like so many others.

“Back in those days, I didn’t understand much about economics,” he said. “Not that I’m some great scholar of it now, but the point was for me, I didn’t think it made sense to be leaving such a great place to go to Joe Louis, which wasn’t even completely finished that that point.”

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“It didn’t seem like a good move at the time, but then it did turn out to be good because Joe Louis got its own identity,” he said. “And with the championships and the teams we had, it became a great place to play in, too.

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But I did love Olympia and the history of it. With (Gordie) Howe, (Alex) Delvecchio, Ted Lindsay, Bill Gadsby, all the different great players who played there, it meant something to me.”

Woods played one final season with the AHLâ€s Adirondack Red Wings in 1984–85 before transitioning into broadcasting, an career move that he never saw coming.

“I’d be the last person who would probably have ever gotten involved in that, but when I was done playing, they gave me a call and asked if I’d be interested in trying it. My plan was to do it for one year, just to say that I did it.

But then I started to understand it a a little bit better over time, and there was way more to it than I thought.”

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Like any good student of the game, there is plenty of preparation that goes into the work behind the scenes for any given broadcast.

“For me, it’s like preparing like back in my school days,” Woods explained. “Just like preparing for a test – if you don’t do it, you’ve got that bad feeling when you get there. So I like to keep myself prepared, going over the information of the previous night in the NHL, what’s happening and what’s going on, and just looking at the different teams  and try to come up with a few interesting points.

Woods holds the distinction of being the current longest-serving radio color commentator in Detroit sports history. He initially worked alongside longtime Red Wings commentator Bruce Martyn until his retirement in 1995.

From that point on, Woods has been shoulder to shoulder with Ken Kal, a partnership that has lasted over 30 years.

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“Just like the Bruce Martyn, they have great calls and it’s exciting,” Woods said of working with Kal. “You get dragged into the action when you have that excitement, and you’re enjoying just litending to it as you’re waiting for your moment to say something that’s noteworthy.”

“He’s a great broadcaster, and so was Bruce. I’ve been very fortunate to have (worked with) two guys like that.”

Woods has been behind the microphone as color commentator for four Red Wings Stanley Cup victories, along with another two appearances in the Stanley Cup Final in 1995 and 2009 that would fall short.

The collective euphoria of the 1997 Stanley Cup win, the first by the Red Wings in 42 years, was shared not only throughout the city but at all levels of the Red Wings organization.

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“It’s not an easy thing to do, there are so many teams in the NHL that have never won the Cup,” Woods said of the 1997 win. “It was a great, great moment and something you never forget…it took us a long time to get to that point when we were winning the Stanley Cup with so many lean years before we got there.”

“It means a little bit more too, I think, when you’re an Original Six team.”

Like the players traditionally do, Woods got his own day with the Stanley Cup, a special privilege that was arranged by the team.

“The Red Wings worked it out so that even the broadcasters could have it for a day,” Woods said. “I was coaching my son’s team, I had the Stanley Cup in the dressing room there; it affects so many people in different ways.”

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While his NHL career lasted just over 500 games, Woods has now worked over 3,000 Red Wings games as a commentator, and says coming to the rink never gets old.

“I’ve enjoyed every minute of it,” he said. “Had someone told me when I was a kid that as I got older in life that they’d be paying me to watch hockey and talk about it, I’d take that deal all day long.”

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Thursday evening’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena was nothing short of a roller coaster for the Detroit Red Wings, who gained a point in the standings but missed out on the second as part of their 6-5 shootout loss.

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The Blue Jackets, who twice had a lead evaporate, tied the game late in the third period with goaltender Elvis Merzlikins on the bench for an extra attacker, and then picked up the win thanks to goals in the shootout from Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko.

Special teams were the name of the game for both clubs, who each scored multiple power-play goals.

With the setback, the Red Wings are now 14-11-3 in their centennial campaign, but are now tied for the second overall spot in the Atlantic Division with 32 points. They also won’t like the fact that they’ve now allowed at least four goals against in five of their last six games.

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The Blue Jackets struck first after a shot from defenseman Ivan Provorov beat Cam Talbot from distance, but the Red Wings knotted the score early in the second period thanks to a power-play tally from Dylan Larkin.

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Marchenko restored the Columbus lead with a power-play goal of his own, followed by an even-strength tally from Johnson. But after Dmitri Voronkov was whistled for a four-minute double minor after his high sticking infraction on Andrew Copp drew blood, Detroit twice converted courtesy of Lucas Raymond and James van Riemsdyk, tying the game.

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A power-play goal from former Michigan Wolverines forward Adam Fantilli put Columbus ahead late in the second period, only to see the Red Wings roar back in the final frame thanks to goals in quick succession from Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat. For Kane, it was the 496th goal of his career.

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Fantilli scored his second of the night to tie the game late in the third period after his shot deflected off defenseman Albert Johansson, setting up overtime.

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While the Blue Jackets got shootout goals from both Johnson and Marchenko following a scoreless five-minute overtime session, Merzlikins stopped van Riemsdyk and Raymond, securing the extra point.

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This was Detroit’s first game of a six-game road trip which continues on Saturday night against the Seattle Kraken from Climate Pledge Arena.

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The Columbus Blue Jacketsare at home take on the Detroit Red Wings at Nationwide Arena.

Detroit comes into Columbus having gone 4-4-2 in their last 10 games and are losers of 4 of their last 5. They did win their last game against the Bruins on Tuesday, however.

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The Red Wings beat the Jackets back on November 22nd when Columbus blew a 3-1 third-period lead. They then lost the game 1:50 into the overtime period.

The Blue Jackets last game was a win on Monday night in New Jersey. It was a spirited game that saw four fights and 74 combined penalty minutes. The Jackets went down 2-0 in the first three minutes of the game but battled back by scoring three times in the third period to upend the Devils. It was a game that everybody wanted to see – A game that saw them battle back and keep a third period lead for the win.

The Jackets currently sit 8th in the Metro, 13th in the East, and 19th in the NHL.

Blue Jackets Stats

• Power Play – 16.4% – 23rd in the NHL

• Penalty Kill – 74.2% – 28th in the NHL

• Goals For – 75 – 24th in the NHL

• Goals Against – 84 – 20th in the NHL

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Red Wings Stats

• Power Play – 21.6% – 11th in the NHL

• Penalty Kill – 79.5% – 23rd in the NHL

• Goals For – 80 – 14th in the NHL

• Goals Against – 92 – 28th in the NHL

Series History vs. The Red Wings

• Columbus is 48-52-1-15 all-time, and 27-24-1-7 at home vs. Detroit.

• The CBJ are 2-1-2 in the last 5 against the Red Wings.

• The Jackets are 29-13-5 in the last 47 games.

Who To Watch For The Red Wings

• Patrick Kane has 88 points in 65 career games against Columbus.

• Dylan Larkin leads the Red Wings with 14 goals and 30 points.

• Lucas Raymond leads the team with 20 assists.

• Goalie Cam Talbot is 9-4-1 with a .888 SV%. His last start was on November 29th.

• John Gibson is 5-7-1 with a SV % of .868. His last start was on December 2nd against the Boston Bruins.

CBJ Player Notes vs. Red Wings

• Zach Werenski has 22 points in 26 career games against Detroit.

• Charlie Coyle has 14 points in 31 games.

• Sean Monahan has 17 points in 22 games vs. the Red Wings.

Injuries

• Erik Gudbranson – Upper Body – Missed 18 Games – IR – No timeline for a return

• Boone Jenner – Upper Body – Missed 10 Games – IR – Could return this week

• Mathieu Olivier – Upper Body – Missed 3 Games – IR- No timeline for a return

• Kirill Marchenko – Lower Body – Missed 4 Games – Day to day

TOTAL MAN GAMES LOST: 47

How to Watch & Listen: Tonight’s game will be on ESPN+ & HULU. John Buccigross will be on the play-by-play. The radio broadcast will be on 97.1 The Fan, with Bob McElligott behind the mic doing the play-by-play.

Stay updated with the most interesting Blue Jackets stories, analysis, breaking news, and more!

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Former Ottawa Senator Mark Kastelic reminded fans on Saturday night why heâ€s a player most NHL players don’t look forward to tangling with. Now with the Boston Bruins, Kastelic got into a brawl on Saturday night with Detroit Red Wings star defenseman Moritz Seider, and the results were predictable.

This was only Seider’s second NHL fight, and it represented a huge jump in skill and weight class compared to his first career scrap. According to HockeyFights.com, that one was against Nashville Predators’ star forward Filip Forsberg two years ago.

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The incident came in the final seconds of the first period. Kastelic collided hard with Seider in the Detroit corner. The two began with some squawking and shoving, but them things quickly escalated from there.

Moritz Seider vs Mark Kastelic Nov 29, 2025

Moritz Seider vs Mark Kastelic Nov 29, 2025 Moritz Seider vs Mark Kastelic from the Detroit Red Wings at Boston Bruins game on Nov 29, 2025. via

It was a little surprising to see the Wings’ prized defenseman being allowed to freely square off against one of the leagueâ€s tougher hombres with zero intervention from teammates.

Kastelic, a veteran of 38 pro fights, stands 6â€4†and 234 pounds. Seider, while physically imposing at 6â€2†and 210 pounds, is the smaller man and certainly not known for dropping the gloves. The mismatch was apparent almost immediately. Kastelic landed several powerful right-hand haymakers, leaving Seider on the defensive and ultimately overwhelmed.

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Seider is a summer training partner and close friend of Senators’ star Tim Stützle. Kastelic was drafted by the Senators 125th overall in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. He spent four seasons in the Sens’ organization, two of them in Ottawa. He was dealt two summers ago as part of the deal that saw Linus Ullmark traded by Boston to Ottawa.

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While the Detroit Red Wings were able to salvage a point in the standings during Saturday evening’s 3-2 shootout setback against the Boston Bruins, it was the fourth straight game in which they were unable to pick up a win.

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During their losing skid, the Red Wings have allowed a total of 19 goals, including a worrying six goals against on Nov. 26 against the NHL-worst Nashville Predators, who hadn’t scored more than five goals in a single game all season long.

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It continues a concerning trend for the Red Wings which has seen them dip to a -13 goal differential, which is ranked 28th overall in the NHL. For a team that wants to be better defensively, that kind of statistic needs fixing.

After surrendering six goals against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday afternoon, many of which were the result of defensive miscues, head coach Todd McLellan acknowledged that while the team has shown they can play well, there’s a disconnect between the forwards and defensemen.

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“We don’t get 13 wins 25 games in without having a team that can play well enough,” McLellan said. “Are we playing well enough? No, we’re not. Why aren’t we? There’s a little bit of disconnect between forwards and (defensemen) right now.

“Then in a team game, you sometimes get punished as a team, score-wise, momentum-wise, win-loss wise, for individual mistakes,” he continued. “That happens. Team breakdowns are much more repairable than just an individual faux pas.”

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The losses against the Lightning and Predators were the reverse kind of performance the Red Wings showed in victories over the New York Rangers and Seattle Kraken, during both of which they were defensively responsible.

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McLellan laid out the facts plainly – until the Red Wings decide to improve their game management, these kinds of issues will continue to persist at an uncomfortable rate.

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Detroit Red Wings top defenseman Moritz Seider isn’t known as a fighter, as he had dropped the gloves only one time in his NHL career entering Saturday evening’s tilt against the Boston Bruins.

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But in the waning seconds of the opening 20 minutes of play, Seider got into a scrum with Boston’s Mark Kastelic that eventually turned into a full-fledged bout.

Both players traded multiple punches, and it was Kastelic who ultimately got the takedown with a vicious right hook.

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Seider and the Red Wings would ultimately fall by a 3-2 final score in the shootout to the Bruins, whom they will face once again on Tuesday evening at Little Caesars Arena.

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Afterward, Seider said part of the reason why he felt the need to drop the gloves was as a response to the physicality showed by the Bruins and to answer when the club gets, as he put it, “pushed around”.

“A very tough guy, but I think we just needed a little bit of a spark,” he said of his fight with Kastelic. “I think we sometimes get pushed around a little bit, and sometimes we just need to answer. It doesnâ€t matter the outcome, just got to show face and be ready for it.â€

There were some tense moments for Red Wings fans at the beginning of the second period, as Seider wasn’t on the bench. However, Seider would eventually return to the contest and ultimately finished with a team-high 28:18 of ice time.

Dylan Larkin, who extended his point streak with an assist on Lucas Raymond’s third period tally, gave Seider props for taking on Kastelic.

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“Thatâ€s important that we stuck together,” he said. “Great for Mo to stick up for himself. Thatâ€s a tough customer he took on. He did really well.â€

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“It was good for Mo,” head coach Todd McLellan said. “Good for our team to stand our ground. He did a real good job.â€

Like most NHL teams, the Red Wings no longer carry a traditional enforcer – a player who sees limited ice time, contributes little offensively, and is used primarily as an on-ice sheriff. The role of an enforcer has fallen by the wayside in NHL competition in recent years.

But there are multiple Red Wings who have more than one fighting major on their resume, including both Larkin and Alex DeBrincat along with J.T. Compher and Travis Hamonic.

Depth forward Austin Watson, who had one fighting major during his brief NHL stint with Detroit last season, amassed seven fighting majors with the Grand Rapids Griffins that same year and has added two more so far this season.

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There could be more fireworks on Tuesday evening when the Red Wings and Bruins reconvene at Little Caesars Arena for the conclusion of their short home-and-home series.

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The Detroit Red Wingshave now gone four consecutive games without a victory, as they fell by a 4-3 final score on Saturday evening to the Boston Bruins at TD Garden.

They did manage to salvage a point after Michael Rasmussen capitalized on a nifty pass from Patrick Kane late in regulation with goaltender Cam Talbot on the bench for an extra attacker.

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Head coach Todd McLellan said that he appreciated the fact that his team rebounded to secure a point.

“They have that in them,†McLellan said about the fight his players showed on Saturday. “I thought we got through the neutral zone a little bit better and established the forecheck in the second half of the game that we didnâ€t have earlier in the game. That gave us a little more confidence.â€

However, the Red Wings will lament the fact that they failed to capitalize on five power-play opportunities, including one in overtime.

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Dylan Larkin, who extended his personal point streak to four games with assists on both goals, appreciated the battle that his teammates showed in the final 20 minutes of play.

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“It was good to get a point, we would have liked to get two, especially with the 4-on-3 in overtime, but we battled,” Larkin said. “We stood up for each other, stood up for ourselves and I thought it was right there. It was a good battle game. A good game for us to maybe come together, show ourselves that we can play in different ways and when weâ€re not feeling well offensively, we can still play good defensively.â€

The Red Wings and Bruins will once again face each other on Tuesday evening, this time at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

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The good news for the Detroit Red Wings is that they picked up a point in the standings and stopped their three-game regulation losing skid on Saturday evening against the Boston Bruins.

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The bad news is that it was their fourth straight game without a victory, as they were beaten by a 4-3 final score in a shootout at TD Garden.

Bruins forward Casey Mittelstadt scored the only goal in the shootout after neither team was able to find the back of the net during overtime, while Jeremy Swayman stopped attempts from Lucas Raymond, Patrick Kane, and Alex DeBrincat.

Connor Geekie scored both goals in regulation for the Bruins, who were playing without both top forward David Pastrnak and defenseman Charlie McAvoy.

Meanwhile, the Red Wings will lament that they were unsuccessful on all five power-play opportunities they had during the contest, including one in overtime.

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Geekie’s two goals put him into a first place tie with Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon for the NHL lead with 20. He tallied in the second period after a scoreless opening 20 minutes of play, deflecting a shot past Cam Talbot following a turnover by Ben Chiarot.

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Lucas Raymond scored a similar goal in the early goings of the third period, deflecting home a shot-pass from Dylan Larkin to knot the score at one. But following a Chiarot high-sticking penalty, Geekie restored the Boston lead with a one-timed shot from the face-off circle past the glove of Talbot.

The Red Wings drew even late in regulation with Talbot on the bench after a nifty feed from Kane to Michael Rasmussen, who had a tap-in for his second goal in as many games.

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Talbot stopped 17 of 19 shots, while Swayman countered with 24 saves. Both teams will meet again on Tuesday evening at Little Caesars Arena.

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Darren Raddysh had a goal and two assists for Tampa Bay, while Jake Guentzel supplied a goal and an assist. Gage Goncalves and Brandon Hagel also scored for the Lightning.

Nikita Kucherov extended his point streak to eight games with two assists. He has four goals and 11 assists during that span.

Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 33 shots to extend his personal winning streak to six games. Vasilevskiy has limited opponents to a combined seven goals during that stretch.

J.T. Compher and Michael Rasmussen led Detroit’s offense with a goal and an assist apiece. Dylan Larkin added his team-high 14th goal and John Gibson made 22 saves. The Red Wings have lost three straight.

Lightning forward Brayden Point missed his third consecutive game because of an undisclosed injury.

The game was tied at 1-1 after the first period. Compher opened the scoring with a shot from the right circle. Raddysh answered with a slapshot past Gibson during a Lightning power play.

The Lightning led 4-3 after two periods. Goncalves and Gourde took advantage of Detroit defensive errors in the first 3:01 of the period but Rasmussen quickly answered by tapping in a rebound. Gourde and Larkin traded goals in the last four minutes of the period.

Guentzel’s tip-in of a shot by Raddysh with 7:23 remaining and Hagel’s empty-netter with 2:47 left clinched the Lightning’s victory.

Lightning: Visit the New York Rangers on Saturday.

Red Wings: Visit the Boston Bruins on Saturday.

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When the Detroit Red Wings were defeated by a 5-1 final score on Oct. 9 against the Montreal Canadiens in their home opener, head coach Todd McLellan stated in no uncertain terms that the group as a whole would not take the next step until they were able to figure out how to avoid such letdowns.

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On Wednesday evening against the NHL-worst Nashville Predators, the Red Wings got another tough lesson in what McLellan was referring to.

The Predators, who also had the NHL’s worst goals-per-game average, scored a season-high six tallies as part of a 6-3 win at Little Caesars Arena.

McLellan’s frustration was evident in his postgame media availability as he had to once again re-hash the same thing he’s repeatedly talked about.

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“Until this team figures out that they have to value checking and defensive play, Iâ€ll keep telling you the same things,” McLellan said. “Lo and behold, here I am again. So back to the drawing board again.”

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Both Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider acknowledged that the Red Wings had a lack of focus in the third period, during which the Predators would twice score two goals in a span of less than 60 seconds.

When asked the potential reasons behind that lack of focus, McLellan didn’t have the answer.

“I have no idea why our group would feel or think that way,” McLellan said. “I have no idea.”

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As far as what he felt about the rest of their game, he pulled no punches.

“Didnâ€t like our game most of the night,†McLellan said. “I thought we were quite casual early in the game. Our passing was horrendous. There was nothing crisp about our game.â€

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The Red Wings missed an opportunity to gain a pair of valuable points in the standings on a night when teams they’re competing with in the Atlantic Division like the Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators all managed to win their respective games.

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