While many Detroit Red Wings players have plans to travel south during the extended break that begins Thursday, their head coach has other plans.

"I will be chasing two boys around minor hockey and my daughter around with soccer," Lalonde said Tuesday. "I’ll do the true minor-hockey dad — I’ll get on the ice a couple times, I’ll hang out at the hotel lobby, have beers and complain about the coach. That’s the way you do it in minor hockey."

Lalonde laughed as he said it; of course he is, ultimately, "looking forward to spending some time with the kids," he said.

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But it is easy to be in good humor given the Wings (26-18-5) have won 10 of their last 14 games.

"Minor hockey parents are crazy," Lalonde sid. "That’s just the reality of it. But we have some fun with it.

"That’s the go-to, right? You flirt with pretty mamas in the lobby, and you complain about the coach. That’s been minor hockey for a hundred years. Hot chocolate. There’s always the group of dads that do the parking lot beers — I’ve never been that dad, but it’s always available."

Daniel Sprong, Patrick Kane and Lucas Raymond said they're part of a group of teammates headed to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, while Olli Määttä is headed to Florida.

Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her @helenestjames.

Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from  Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings' Derek Lalonde will enjoy break as minor hockey dad