The Detroit Red Wings want to write this story: “We should be in the postseason.”
Moritz Seider remarked, “It feels real, but it also feels special.” “Being in this position is something we earned. All we need to do is grind, putting our anxiety and excitement aside. For us, every game is a playoff game, and ideally we can gain momentum and be set for the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Playing tough games is now much more enjoyable, and maybe you can join us for this awesome experience.”
The Wings (36-29-6) fell to the Nashville Predators 1-0 to start a five-game road trip, but it was a performance that will almost certainly result in points; the close outcome against a fierce rival in the Western Conference should boost confidence going into a trip where victory is essential to bringing playoff hockey to Detroit.
Dylan Larkin was the only homegrown Red Wing (selected and developed by Detroit) on the 2016 postseason-contending team. When he initially started, the Wings played at Joe Louis Arena. Now that he’s a nine-year veteran, he wears the captain’s “C” on his sweater, and the team is still waiting to play in the playoffs at Little Caesars Arena.
Upon his return following an eight-game layoff that saw the Wings go 2–6, Larkin talked about how difficult it was to see his team waste the margin of error they had created in January and February, when they were sitting in the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
“It was extremely challenging, but I think we’re all in this together,” he commented. Every season is lengthy, filled with events and other happenings. We demonstrated that we are a distinctive group. I never doubt the players’ love for each other, the team, or myself when we’re in that room, and I had faith that we would overcome this and make things better.
“Writing a narrative as a group and performing it for one another has been our main objective for the entire year. I’m quite pleased with how this team performed for the entire season. Every guy in the room would accept it if you asked if we would be in this situation. It simply confirms our sense of entitlement to the postseason.”
Participate in the postseason.Just four years ago, when the Wings were the poorest team in the NHL, that was an unheard of statement. Despite never selecting higher than fourth overall (and that was only once, in 2020, after the Wings finished with the worst record in the league) or acquiring a marquee free agent from a market that hardly ever sees top talent available, Steve Yzerman deserves to be acknowledged as the best executive in the league at some point for the way he has turned the franchise around in just five years.
Yzerman’s choice to leave the team empty-handed at the March 8 trade deadline was the clearest indication yet that this group “belongs in the playoffs.” This team can progress, and it shouldn’t cost resources like draft picks or prospects. That was a referendum on the present and the future.
On Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Detroit, Michigan, at Little Caesars Arena, defenseman Simon Edvinsson (77) of the Detroit Red Wings saves a shot by right wing Hudson Fasching (20) during the opening period. David Perron remarked, “After all is said and done, we focus on what we can do. We love to see support from Steve, and we love everything he is doing.”
The Wings’ four-game losing streak following the deadline—two of which came against the draft lottery-bound Arizona Coyotes—was a terrible, perplexing sight. Then there was the opening period on March 19 against the Columbus Blue Jackets, who were also headed to the lottery. It was such an anomaly that head coach Derek Lalonde openly questioned whether the squad had given up.
With only 11 games remaining (seven of them away), those kinds of setbacks are unavoidable. The Wings need to play aggressive, defense-first hockey if they are to guarantee their spot in the postseason. Losses occur, but the Wings won’t get the satisfying conclusion they want if they don’t at least try, which wasn’t the case during their seven-game losing streak.
Because of the daily turmoil, Larkin described this time of year as “an emotional roller coaster.” The standings are close, with the Washington Capitals and New York Islanders vying for the wild card, and a loss could mean missing out on the postseason picture.
“We’re at the time of the year where you’re playing every other day,” Larkin replied. “It is difficult. We’ll see what comes of facing hardship, but the manner in which we’ve emerged from it doesn’t seem horrible.”
At Nashville, Tennessee’s Bridgestone Arena on Saturday, March 23, 2024, goalie Alex Lyon (34) of the Detroit Red Wings stops a shot from Nashville Predators left wing Filip Forsberg (9) during the first period.©Christopher Hanewinckel, USA TODAY Sports
The Wings have grown to the point where they are almost guaranteed a postseason berth. All that’s left to do is pen a conclusion in which they introduce LCA to postseason hockey.