"Marco is playing very well," coach Derek Lalonde said Wednesday. "He’s assertive in his game. There’s times he’s playing with pace, he can drive, and I think that can help Patty. Start the day smarter.

PITTSBURGH -- Marco Kasper has played in every game with the Detroit Red Wings since he was recalled from the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins under emergency conditions on Oct. 18, and the 20-year-old forward wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

What’s perhaps most alarming about the 7-9-2 start to the season for the Detroit Red Wings is that unlike the teams beating them of late, they aren’t a rebuilding club opting to let a group of kids learn the hard way on the fly.

The affable Austrian plucked at No. 8 in the 2022 draft is, as coach Derek Lalonde put it Wednesday, "starting to cement himself in his role." That's been evident in that during the time the Wings have had 13 healthy forwards, meaning one has to sit, Kasper's name has not come up.