Todd McLellan making a difference as Red Wings head coach, faces Kings for first time since firing. Brad Galli has more.

McLellan has put his stamp on the Red Wings a month into his tenure. They’re playing faster. They’re scoring more. They’re outshooting opponents most nights because of better puck possession and a newfound shot mentality.

One word that Todd McLellan has returned to more than a few times in his now month-long tenure Detroit is "directness," expressing a desire for his Red Wings to play a "direct" game. On the surface it sounds simple, but I caught up with Christian Fischer about how that directness actually shows up and why it's been so beneficial.

Detroit — Sunday marked the one-month anniversary of Todd McLellan taking over as head coach of the Red Wings. McLellan replaced Derek Lalonde on Dec. 26, with the Wings in seventh place in the Atlantic Division and eight points out of an Eastern Conference playoff spot.

McLellan and his right-hand man, former Kings and Ducks assistant Trent Yawney, have put their imprint on the winged wheel in short order. “Our structure in all three zones (has improved), I feel like we’re just supporting the puck better,” Talbot told The Detroit News.

The Detroit Red Wings believe in themselves again, says new head coach Todd McLellan. That has made all the difference in the world.

But it's on the defensive end that, possibly, bad habits from early in the season are beginning to resurface. McLellan, who took over Dec. 26 and the Wings immediately went 7-2-0 afterward, wants to stomp out those habits before they hurt the Wings again.

Thirty days into Todd McLellan’s tenure as the Detroit Red Wings head coach, the biggest change in the team can’t be measured by statistics. You can see it. You can feel it. But it can’t be easily quantified.