The recent Detroit Red Wings struggles have raised multiple concerns as they’ve slid out of the postseason race.
It’s been a rough go of it for the Detroit Red Wings of late following last night’s 4-3 loss to the Anaheim Ducks at Little Caesars Arena. With the setback, Detroit has now lost six of their last seven games and fell outside of the postseason race. And while over half of the season remains, their recent slide has raised several concerns.
Derek Lalonde described the Red Wings as “fragile”
The Red Wings have faced a concerning trend of consistently falling behind their opponents early in games. As a result, they often find themselves having to mount comebacks to get back into contention. This pattern of trailing early has become a notable issue for the team.
Head coach Derek Lalonde pulled no punches following last night’s game, describing his team’s mentality as “fragile”.
“Again, a little bit of a fragile team,” he said. “We give up those two goals early, it took us a while to claw back into it.”
Andrew Copp hasn’t scored in 18 games
Forward Andrew Copp‘s output hasn’t matched the expectations since he signed a substantial deal last offseason. With just five goals and 10 assists, he’s currently on track to hit around 40 points for the season. This falls short of the anticipated offensive contribution expected from a player with his salary and role on the team.
Goaltending woes continued while more injuries piled up
Ville Husso, who showcased strong performances in his previous two outings, conceded two goals during the 1st period of last night’s game before sustaining an injury that necessitated his removal from the action.
With both Husso and Alex Lyon sidelined, the starting role now rests on veteran James Reimer. The question remains whether he’ll be capable of shouldering the workload until his two teammates are ready to return to action. Reimer’s experience may prove crucial during this period of absence for the other goaltenders.
Valuable points in the standings have been lost
Detroit’s recent decline has resulted in them being positioned outside the playoff race, a situation that contrasts with their anticipation for this stretch of games. Despite initially marking these games on the calendar, the team now faces the challenge of being on the outside looking in when it comes to playoff contention.
“We’ve got to push,” Derek Lalonde said. “We had this stretch of games circled for a while. We knew this was going to be a really tough grind. Everybody has one or two of these in their schedule; it happened to be now for us. Probably a little bit more because of our European trip, (and) obviously, probably bad timing with where our lineup’s been, but we haven’t handled it well. And obviously, we’ve let points slip away.”
The good news is that only four points separate them from the Toronto Maple Leafs, who occupy the 2nd overall spot in the Atlantic Division.
TL;DR (too long didn’t read)
- The Detroit Red Wings’ struggles continue, with a 4-3 loss against the Anaheim Ducks marking their sixth defeat in the last seven games.
- Coach Derek Lalonde characterized the team’s current mentality as “fragile” after the recent loss, pointing to a delicate state of mind within the team.
- Andrew Copp’s contributions have fallen short of expectations, adding to the team’s challenges, while the goaltending situation remains less than ideal, contributing to the overall concerns.
Bottom Line: Detroit must rebound and show more urgency
The Red Wings kicked off the season on a promising note, igniting hopes among fans that their prolonged playoff absence might conclude come spring 2024. Despite this, with 51 games left in the schedule, there’s ample time for Detroit to reverse their fortunes and re-enter the playoff contention.
However, they must halt the slide and cease losing valuable points in the standings. Accumulating points now will prove pivotal when the schedule intensifies, emphasizing the significance of each game in their playoff pursuit.
