Tomas Tatar 1-15-15

The Red Wings' Tomas Tatar scored one of his team-leading 21 goals against the Blues' Brian Elliott.

(The Associated Press)

DETROIT - Tomas Tatar's skill and determination, coupled with his intense desire to maximize his abilities, is taking him on a journey to become an elite player in the NHL, Detroit Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said.

Each day it seems the 5-foot-10, 185-pound forward is taking another step toward stardom.

A little more than halfway through the season, only seven players have scored more goals than Tatar, who's tallied a career-high 21 in 46 games. He is well on pace to become the Red Wings' first 30-goal scorer since 2008-09, when fellow Slovak Marian Hossa notched 40 and Johan Franzen scored 34.

"He's so tenacious, and obviously he's extremely skilled," Riley Sheahan, Tatar's occasional linemate, said. "You put those two things together with an incredible work ethic, it makes a pretty impressive player."

Said teammates Stephen Weiss: "He's a very dangerous scorer. He's got a real good shot and a lot of energy. He's a fun guy to be around, a fun guy to be around in practice. He practices hard and he works at it. Turned into quite the star."

Tatar will take a four-game goal-scoring streak and five-game points streak into Tuesday's game against the Minnesota Wild at Joe Louis Arena (7:30, Fox Sports Detroit), the last for the Red Wings prior to the All-Star break.

Tatar's surge earned him the NHL's second star of the week honors on Monday. After a slow start (one point in his first nine games), Tatar has 33 points, including 20 goals, in his past 37 games. He hasn't gone more than two games without a point since late October.

"Tats had a slow start point-wise, but it was just a matter of time," teammate Gustav Nyquist said. "When you're creating as many chances as Tats does he's going to score eventually.

"He's going to be a good player for a long time. He loves scoring goals and he's going to keep producing offense for us."

Tatar said of reaching the 20-goal plateau: "I'm not really thinking about it right now, but obviously I'm happy I did it and hopefully I'll keep scoring and help the team pick up wins."

Last season he scored 19 goals in 73 games, after being a healthy scratch in eight of the first nine games.

"I felt way more confident heading into this season than I did before," Tatar said. "The reason was I kind of established myself here and I knew if I played the same that won't change. Last year I didn't know what to expect and I started the year in the stands and it was kind of hard for me. But I went through it and I think it made me even (better). Now I'm ready to stay here."

Tatar is the kind of good, young player who would attract much interest if shopped for a right-handed shooting defenseman, the team's biggest need. Some have speculated he could be part of a package to land Tyler Myers of the Buffalo Sabres. But even before Tatar's recent surge, one member of the front office called that notion "laughable," saying "we'd look awfully dumb if we did that."

Babcock sees a lot of untapped potential in the 24-year-old winger.

"As long as he keeps working on his details and is committed to doing it all the time he's going to get there," Babcock said. "That's the biggest challenge for a young player. What allowed you to be good last year isn't good enough this year and the years to come. You got to keep getting better if you want to be the best. That's what guys like (Pavel) Datsyuk and (Henrik) Zetterberg have done. So for our young players, they have great examples."

Sheahan believes Tatar's upbeat personality also contributes to his success.

"He's always in a cheerful mood," Sheahan said. "He's always joking around. He's a good guy to be around. He's a lot of fun."

Tatar has many reasons to be happy.

"It's a reason to be smiling, to be part of this team," Tatar said. "My dream (has) come true to play in the NHL, so every day when I walk in here I have a big smile.

"I hate bad mood, so I always try to make people laugh and try to bring the energy and put a smile on everyone's face."

Even Babcock's demanding ways haven't put Tatar in a sour frame of mind. Babcock said he's harder on Tatar than any other player, in an effort to maximize his ability. One area Tatar needs to improve on is limiting turnovers.

"He is really hard on me, but I think he means this in a good way," Tatar said. "He's just trying to help me out since I got here. I appreciate it, but sometimes it's really hard. That's just the way he coaches me. I guess he doesn't know any other way to work with me, so I appreciate it."

Weiss said "the sky's the limit" with Tatar and Nyquist.

"Really smart, young players and have been able to develop in Grand Rapids and win a championship there (in 2013)," Weiss said. "Their confidence was sky high last year when they came in and they seem to be carrying it on again this year.

"I think once you start doing things like that you get a little bit more of a target on your back and they'll be dealing with extra attention from teams and defensemen, but they'll be fine."

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