This should be one of the most intriguing seasons, and most difficult to predict, in a long time for the Detroit Red Wings and their faithful followers. The NHL division realignment over the off season has moved two teams into the Eastern Conference, including the Detroit Red Wings and the Columbus Blue Jackets. Winnipeg, having recently relocated from Atlanta, is now in the Western Conference, as the NHL aligned teams more geographically. The playoff format has also changed as now the top three teams in each of the 4 divisions are guaranteed playoff spots, while the two teams with the next best records in the conference get the wild card spots. Changes are also being made on the ice, as the NHL is adopting a new hybrid icing rule to make play safer. The linesman will now blow the play dead if the defenseman is clearly ahead of the forward in a race for the puck when he crosses the faceoff dot. If the race is close, play continues. The Olympics will stop play for a few weeks in February and we will see how the layoff for some and the added workload for others, effects the second half of the season. The Detroit Red Wings will host the Toronto Maple Leafs at Michigan Stadium for the now traditional New Year’s Day Winter Classic this season. Let's take a closer look at this years team:
Realignment:
The Red Wings are now in the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They join Boston, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Buffalo, Tampa Bay, and Florida
Key Additons: Weiss, Alfredsson
Stephen Weiss should step in as the center on the second line and bring a little more offense and more size in that role, from '08-'12 he averaged 21 goals, 36 assists and 57 points on a bad Florida Panthers club. Daniel Alfredsson has had a long and productive NHL career, spending his entire 17 year career in Ottawa before this season and has been one of the best players in the NHL, but most casual sports fans don't know who he is. He is at the twilight of his career to be sure, but he can still offer experience and goal scoring ability on a second line and power play, also bringing a sense of desperation to make a run at the Stanley Cup which should be infectious throughout the locker room. Both players were on Eastern Conference clubs last year as well, so they will be leaned upon to help the Wings make the transition this season.
Key Departures: Coliccavio, Filpula, Brunner
The loss of Filpula and Brunner have been offset by adding Weiss and Alfredson but it was disappointing to see Brunner sign essentially the same contract with New Jersey that the Wings offered him earlier this off season. Coliccavio would have been fighting for the 6th defenseman spot.
Top six forwards: Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Abdelkader, Franzen, Weiss, Alfredsson.
This group has been upgraded with the additions of Weiss and Alfredsson and is the strength of the club. This is the deepest set of forwards the Wings have had since they last hoisted the cup. The Red Wings struggled to score goals last years, averaging just 2.54 goals per game, their lowest total in nearly 35 years. The power play struggled to a league average mark of just 18.4%. If the Wings are going to compete with Chicago, Pittsburgh, Boston and the other cup favorites, this group has to score goals. In a recent player ranking survey on ESPN.com, Pavel Datsyuk and Henrick Zetterberg were ranked, respectively, as the 4th and 10th best forwards in the NHL.
Third and fourth lines: Cleary, Andersson, Tatar, Samuelsson, Emmerton, Miller.
The Red Wings have made the playoffs 22 consecutive seasons and during that incredible run since 1991, they have been at there best when they have had production from young up and coming players and secondary role players on their third and fourth lines. The third and fourth lines don't get all the headlines but often times they make the little plays that can change or win a game or series. Young guys like Andersson, Tatar, and Emmerton will benefit from playing with a guy like Dan Cleary. Watching his effort and understanding the success he has had as a player that gives 100% at all times will be a good example for the young kids to follow. The Wings are deep up front and if the likes of Helm, Eaves, Tootoo and Bertuzzi get healthy this group can get even deeper. Also worth noting that Gustav Nyquist will most likely join the group at some point this season as roster spots open up.
Defenseman: Ericsson, Kronwall, Smith, Dekeyser, Kindl, Quincey.
Not that this group is poor by any means, but there are no sure fire all-stars on the blue line either. Last season was the first year of hockey without Nick Lidstrom, one of the two best defenseman of all time, and by the numbers the defense did a nice job, Detroit only allowed 2.29 goals per game last year. The Red Wings missed that offensive presence at the blue line, though as they don't have a Nick Lidstrom, Paul Coffey, or Brian Rafalski type of threat back there anymore. This groups offensive output will be the biggest weakness for the Red Wings this season and if GM Ken Holland is looking to upgrade an area throughout the season it would be finding a scoring threat from the blue line. With that being said, this is a group of solid NHL defensive talent that most teams would be happy to have. The penalty kill was slightly above average at 81% last year and should be an area the Wings focus on improving.
Goalies: Howard, Gustavsson, Mrazek.
Jimmy Howard has been very consistent in goal for the Red Wings since taking over full time three seasons ago. He proved he can play against the best as Detroit took the eventual cup champions Blackhawks to 7 games, riding Howard the entire series. He finished last season top ten in wins, goals against average and save percentage, even as the Wings struggled through the regular season, Howard may have just been there best player. Howard was ranked as the 6th best goalie in the NHL, according to ESPN. Gustavsson will start the season on the injured list so Mrazek will back up Howard for the time being.
Prediction: There will be plenty of ups and downs for the Red Wings this season as they adjust to life in the Eastern Conference. They may get off to a slower start then expected but this team is built for the playoffs. I think the Red Wings season may play out somewhat like last year did, a slow start and a strong finish. I think they finish a somewhat disappointing 3rd place in the Atlantic Division but they will make noise come the postseason before losing in the Eastern Conference finals to Pittsburgh in 7 games.
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