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Red Wings Unable to Get Any Traction

Detroit stuck on a treadmill of mediocrity

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2 months ago

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A team stuck on a treadmill, the Detroit Red Wings aren't getting enough traction to make a move in the standings.

Traction is something that can prove elusive this time of year, whether you’re driving the interstate, or you’re the Detroit Red Wings.

“Traction is a word,” Detroit coach Derek Lalonde said.

Actually, lack of traction is a reality for the Red Wings.

They aren’t an elite team. Far from it. Nor are they a dreadful team. They seldom get blown out.

They’re just there, so to speak. Win a couple, lose a couple. Treading water in the standings.

Not far enough out of it to give up ghost. Yet not anywhere near consistent enough to give off an aura like they’re going to get it done and end the club’s lengthy absence from the playoffs.

In fact, the more you watch this team in action – or is that this team’s inaction – the more you are convinced that this isn’t a squad that’s suddenly going to figure it out, put it all together and go on a run.

“I mean, we’re sitting here with an opportunity today,” Lalonde said. And when you do the math, he’s not wrong.

Detroit is sitting a scant three points out of a playoff position in the NHL’s Eastern Conference standings. On paper, that’s hardly insurmountable.

And yet, can you in all honesty say that you’re confident that this team will be able to find a way to get it done?

No, you can’t.

Like that old Paul Simon hit, this season feels like it’s slip slidin’ away.

Deep down, even the coach seems to know it.

Red Wings Playing Just Well Enough To Lose

“Take the last handful of games,” Lalonde said. “Just can’t get traction. Opportunity in all three losses of late.

“The Bruins game was there for the taking, obviously. The other night (against New Jersey) was there for the taking. (Vancouver) was certainly there for the taking.”

But the Red Wings didn’t take any of them. One regulation loss and two overtime losses. Two points out a possible six.

This is a team on a treadmill, and there’s plenty of reasons why this is so.

In Moritz Seider and Simon Edvinsson, Detroit has a stalwart first defense pairing. And then they have a litany of 5-6-7 defenders.

Captain Dylan Larkin is a No. 1 center. He’s supported by a gaggle of 3-4 centers.

The Red Wings don’t have a second line they can count on for productivity.

They aren’t equipped with a capable second defense pairing. Ben Chiarot and Jeff Petry, the usual 3-4 pairing, are a combined minus-18.

There’s no balance in the Detroit offense. Larkin (12), Alex DeBrincat (10) and Lucas Raymond (nine) are good for 21 of the club’s 65 goals. That’s 32.3% of the team’s output.

Just as Raymond is heating up (eight goals in 10 games), Larkin is drying up (one goal in seven games). And while DeBrincat does get goals, let’s be honest in assessment here. How many times does he score when he can be a difference maker, when the team absolutely needs a big goal?

Penalty Kill Giving Up Goal A Game

Then there’s Detroit’s pathetic penalty kill. An NHL-worst 65.8%. So far through 25 games, the Red Wings are surrendering 25 power-play goals. One per game. It’s as if they are beginning every game with a one-goal deficit.

For a team that’s scored two goals or less in 13 of 25 games, that’s not a recipe for long-term success.

“We’ve had some good performances,” Lalonde was suggesting. “So yeah, gotta stay on it and keep trying to round out our game, because you can see flashes of it, obviously.”

Flashes don’t get the job done. It won’t carry the day.

What we’ve seen from the Red Wings for the first 25 games is likely to be a sign of coming attractions. Win a couple. Lose a couple. And most nights, play just well enough to lose.

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