HC Todd McLellan blasts Detroit Red Wings players after "self-inflicted" 4-2 loss to Carolina Hurricanes

The Detroit Red Wings suffered a disappointing 4-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night. Coach Todd McLellan didn't hold back in criticizing his players.

Alex DeBrincat's goal late in the first gave the Red Wings the lead. But the Hurricanes took over in the second, netting three unanswered goals. Taylor Hall tied it just 22 seconds into the period off a deflection before Jack Roslovic and Jalen Chatfield also scored.

"I thought the second was the period that really hurt us. The first, you have to weather the storm here. ... Scoring certainly helped us, but the second period was unacceptable. It wasn't just Carolina-inflicted; it was self-inflicted," McLellan said. (starts 4:40)

McLellan pinned the blame for Carolina's first goal on a costly turnover by the Red Wings.

"It started with the very first shift—a turnover—and they score. Now they got some momentum, some line changes, just some really dumb play on our behalf. So that was self-inflicted.

The Red Wings attempted a comeback in the third with a goal from Michael Rasmussen, but Eric Robinson sealed the win for Carolina with an empty-netter.

"If you don't play your full 60 against these top teams, you're likely going to come out on the losing end, and it's exactly what happened."McLellan added.

Frederik Andersen stopped 24 shots, while Petr Mrazek had 28 saves in the loss.

With the loss, Detroit has dropped seven of its last eight games. The Red Wings are now three points behind the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, with a 31-29-6 record.

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Todd McLellan's thoughts on facing the Hurricanes

Todd McLellan was asked what makes the Hurricanes such a tough opponent. McLellan responded by praising Carolina as a "good hockey club" that plays an intense game.

"Well, they're a good Hockey Club, they play with pace, they've got a veteran blue line that plays real well and they make it hard on you. It's the NHL, they're supposed to do that so, there's supposed to be 31 other teams that can do that as well and there is,” Todd McLellan said.

McLellan made it clear that his team needs to step up their compete level as they get set for battle against the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday night at Little Caesars Arena.