Detroit Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde ejected for outburst against Penguins
Detroit Red Wings fans would be forgiven for thinking the Tigers were back in town when coach Derek Lalonde was tossed from Tuesday’s game at home against Pittsburgh.
Penguins forward Jeff Carter shoveled a loose puck into the Wings’ goal after teammate Jason Zucker got his stick caught in Detroit goalie Alex Nedeljkovic’s pads, knocking him off balance in his crease.
Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde was furious after losing a coaches challenge for goalie interference and got tossed from the game 😅 pic.twitter.com/vEp7RqXzhD
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) March 29, 2023Lalonde challenged the goal; when officials ruled that Nedeljkovic was not interfered with on the play, erasing a 3-0 Red Wings lead, the coach went ballistic.
The former Lightning assistant seemed to swear at the referees for several moments before being ejected midway through the second period.
If Lalonde intended to fire his team up through his dismissal as baseball managers so often do, it worked. The teams drew even again at 4-4 before a pair of goals from hat-trick-scorer David Perron and a Dylan Larkin empty-netter carried the day for the Red Wings.
Former Panthers and Sharks coach Bob Boughner took over the Red Wings bench after Lalonde was booted. Boughner moves to 148-147-45 as an NHL head coach.
The 7-4 Detroit victory brings the team back to .500 after a 1-5 slump dropped them below the mark for the first time this season.
The Penguins, meanwhile, are on a cold streak of their own. Mike Sullivan’s men are 4-6 over their last 10 and are keeping an equally lackluster Panthers outfit in the race for the Eastern Conference’s last playoff berth.
The Red Wings will hope that rookie NHL head coach Lalonde lasts the entire contest when they host the Metropolitan Division-leading Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday.