This past Detroit Red Wings season ended in familiar fashion as the club once again faltered down the March/April stretch and missed out on the NHL postseason for the 10th year in a row. This most recent collapse is the most frustrating for Detroit fans as the team held a playoff spot for every month of the season until the one that mattered in the end.
This pattern has been a repeating cycle in Detroit as the squad continues to remain stuck in the murky middle of the NHL standings, neither near the top as a contender nor the bottom in a position to receive top draft prospects.
Patience is wearing off in Detroit as restlessness is settling in amongst a fanbase that has been starved of Stanley Cup playoff hockey for a decade. This goes for former players too as Red Wings legend Darren McCarty sounded off on the current state of the club.
Darren McCarty Slams the Red Wings
Speaking on Woodward Sports, McCarty had this to say about the Detroit culture: “We’re (Red Wings) the softest team in the league, is there another softer team? No. To me, that has to be addressed first. What I heard, and I didn’t hear what it was going to be, but I heard from Steve Yzerman (season-ending news conference) something’s going to happen.”
As McCarty notes, one of the main critiques of the construction of this Red Wings roster by general manager Steve Yzerman amongst Detroit faithful is the lack of toughness in the lineup. Even if this team were to clear that hurdle and make the playoffs, there is the question of how far this group would be able to go without that physical game in their arsenal at the moment.
Facing adversity has been an issue for this franchise throughout Yzerman’s tenure. The team has had no issue starting season’s on time and getting off to hot starts. The talent and scoring is there to win games. But, as the year develops Detroit has crumbled at the end every season. When the games mean more, the pressure gets to this squad.
Steve Yzerman Needs to Address Lineup Flaws
Red Wings ownership has provided Yzerman with a long leash to right the ship in Detroit so far. Yzerman took over the GM helm in 2019 with a long term plan to enter a rebuild and gradually rise back to the top of the league.
That process has taken longer than expected. After this latest season, that is now seven straight seasons that Detroit has missed the playoffs during Yzerman’s tenure. The franchise has not seen postseason hockey since 2016.
Therefore, the pressure is on for Yzerman to fix this team and turn this mess around sooner rather than later. He needs to be aggressive over the offseason in addressing the holes in this formation and add more grit to the fold. Detroit cannot afford yet another year of no playoff hockey in 2027 or drastic changes throughout the organizational structure will likely need to take place.
Red Wings Legend Calls Out “Soft” Detroit Team