What Would Red Wings Look Like in Full Season Under McLellan?

There appears to be two schools of thought among the fan base as the Detroit Red Wings faithful assess another season without playoff hockey.

The bridge jumpers want to blow it all up. Fire GM Steve Yzerman. Buy out Justin Holl, JT Compher, Andrew Copp and Ben Chiarot. Trade anyone else not named Seider, Raymond, Edvinsson, or Kasper.

On the other hand, the realists see what was truly going on with the team after Todd McLellan was hired to replace Derek Lalonde as coach. From Dec. 26 onward, the Red Wings went 26-18-4. That was good for 56 points, which was eighth-best in the Eastern Conference.

Let’s be real here, the Red Wings played at a 72 point pace under Lalonde and a 96 point pace under McLellan. Thats a bottom 4 finish vs a nearly top 10 finish. Even if we slightly add in the offseason and Todd has all summer to plan and get a real training camp… we are fine…

— Ryan (@RC_Tendy) April 17, 2025

That’s right. Under McLellan’s guidance, Detroit would’ve been a playoff team. The Wings even displayed a positive goal differential – 150/148.

But wait – the news gets even better when you project the Red Wings’ numbers under McLellan over an 82-game season.

In that scenario, Detroit comes out with 96 points. That’s going to put a team in the postseason almost every season.

Red Wings Excited For Full Season Under McLellan

It’s why even amidst the disappointment of the season coming to a conclusion on Thursday, Detroit players were seeing cause for future optimism.

“I think his details of the game,” forward Alex DeBrincat listed as to what he likes about McLellan’s coaching style. “Each game he makes us prepared for the team (they’re facing) and really gives us everything that we need to succeed.

“And his message is always strong and I think it’s been great since he’s been here. I think we’ve improved as a team. Obviously some lulls here and there, but overall I think we became a better team, a more complete team.

“It’s exciting for next year.”

Todd McLellan recaps what went wrong in last night’s OT loss. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/nzRTGatFWj

— FanDuel Sports Network Detroit (@FanDuelSN_DET) April 18, 2025

Captain Dylan Larkin thinks that giving the club a full training camp to embrace McLellan’s systems will only serve to keep the team heading in the right direction.

“I think Todd is really detailed and was very impressed by him,” Larkin said. “I thought he’s a really good coach. Having him having a training camp with him, he knows what it takes to win in this league.

“I’m sure everyone’s meetings here in the next couple days will be very important. And you take that information, you go home, and you come back with a good attitude and a training camp with Todd, and we can hit the ground running next year as a group.”