DETROIT >> Todd McLellan knew about Lucas Raymond, heard all the positives associated with the Red Wings’ young forward, but McLellan had to plead some ignorance.

Having been a head coach for three teams in the Western Conference (San Jose, Edmonton, Los Angeles), McLellan only saw the Wings live two games per season and saw highlights, much like any fan.

But since McLellan was named Wings head coach on Dec. 26, and now getting to see Raymond through eight games and daily practices, McLellan is understanding how good a player Raymond is, and can be in the future.

“From afar we hear about this Raymond kid and see him in the highlights, but do we focus on his development and what he’s done real well to improve and all that stuff? Not really,” McLellan said. “Now that I’m here, you see the tenacity he plays  with. He’s got an abrasiveness to him that I wasn’t aware of.

“He’s got all the skills.”

At that point, McLellan reached back to his past life as an assistant coach with the Wings from 2005-08 and came up with a player that Raymond has similarities with. Now, McLellan was quick to point out Raymond isn’t that player, but simply has similar characteristics.

Yes, Henrik Zetterberg, a Wings’ legend from back in that era and possible Hall of Famer some day.

“For me, he’s got some of, and I’m going to use his name and he’s not that player, but he has a little bit of Zetterberg in him,” McLellan said. “That determination and little bit of abrasiveness, the fire kind of.

“So, throw in all the other skills and that’s what I see in Lucas.”

Raymond signed an eightyear contract worth $64.6 million ($8.075 annual average value) in September and is living up to the expectations in the first season of the new deal. Raymond’s 46 points and 29 assists are both team-leading statistics, and his 17 goals trail only Alex De- Brincat (19) and Dylan Larkin (18).

Raymond is gradually taking on increasing responsibilities on and off the ice. Larkin said the other day how the power play now runs through Raymond.

“I notice a lot of the power play, it does run through Lucas and Patrick (Kane), but Lucas gets a lot of touches there and he makes really good plays with it,” Larkin, the Wings’ captain, said. “You look at all the big guys in the league that put up points consistently, they get the puck on the power play and they make it count when they have it. And I see (Raymond) doing that really all over the ice.

“He wants it on his stick. He’s built confidence and when he’s got it, he i s looking to make the other team pay.”

Old friends

There were still many familiar faces around the San Jose broadcasting crew for McLellan, who began his head-coaching career with the Sharks, to exchanges laughter and say hello after the morning skate.

McLellan had a 311-163-66 record from 2008-15 in San Jose, with six playoff appearances in those seven seasons, and reaching two Western Conference Finals (2010-11).

McLellan looks back at those San Jose years fondly and learned quite a bit in his first head-coaching job.

“In reflecting you think you’re ready, and you’re ready to leave Detroit (where Mc- Lellan was an assistant under Mike Babcock) and go to San Jose and you carry yourself like you are, but you still have a lot to learn,” McLellan said. “I had real good people around me, people in management and underneath me and great players that helped me learn.

“But the game has changed a lot since then too, so you have to evolve with it. But real good years there, really good years there.”

Ice chips

Goaltender Alex Lyon (upper-body) skated Tuesday and is essentially in the dayto-day category. Lyon last played Jan. 7 against Ottawa, where he only played one period before being replaced by Cam Talbot.

Defenseman Jeff Petry (undisclosed injury) still isn’t skating and McLellan isn’t sure about a timeline for a possible return. McLellan doesn’t believe Petry will be traveling on the upcoming four-game Wings’ road trip.… There is an adjustment period when a new head coach takes over, but it’s particularly challenging when a change occurs in-season as it did with the Wings.

But defenseman Justin Holl feels for most NHL players it “gets pretty normal pretty quick.

“That first day is obviously very strange. The second day is a little bit more normal and then honestly, from there, you’re just like ‘this is what it is.’ Our profession is an ever-changing sort of deal. There’s a very fluid situation all the time, whether it be personnel or coaches. So, we’re kind of used to it.” … With no scheduled practice Monday, Mc- Lellan took to the ice Tuesday for the morning skate and the Wings were a little more active than a typical game-day skate.