The Athletic’s Ian Mendes, Max Bultman, Arpon Basu and Matthew Fairburn answered questions regarding the four respective teams they cover–the Ottawa Senators, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres–for an article discussing the four teams’ playoff aspirations this morning.
Bultman believes that the Red Wings still have some significant questions to answer in terms of the team’s “weaknesses” going into the 2023-2024 season:
Bultman: There are still a few, but I’ll try to keep it brief. First and foremost, the Red Wings lack top-end players, and that limits their ability to score. DeBrincat was added to help change that, but he alone won’t make them a playoff-caliber offense. They need multiple players to step up. Beyond that, Detroit’s defense improved last season but needs to continue to improve, and the big question mark there will be on the second defense pairing. Jeff Petry has been a top-four defenseman for a long time in this league, and could still be one in Detroit, but will turn 36 in December. And beyond that, all of Ben Chiarot, Justin Holl, Shayne Gostisbehere and Olli Määttä are solid NHLers, but at least one of them will need to step up and give steady second pair minutes every night. And finally, Ville Husso could really use a bounce-back season in goal. He was good for long stretches last season, but fatigue got him as the year went on, and he finished with a save percentage below .900. Detroit needs to know it can count on him to be at least a league-average starter this season.
Continued (paywall);
- To me, there’s no doubt that the Red Wings could still use another “natural goal-scorer” on the wing, because the team still needs more “pop” offensively. I’d imagine that we’ll see at least a pro try-out coming to training camp to address that particular need;
- I’m not gonna bet against Petry. I know that he’s older than dirt by NHL standards, but he’s a strong skater with a good, hard shot;
- Yes, there’s no doubt that Petry will need a solid defensive partner, whether that’s Maatta or someone else;
- And if Husso can work on his positioning and flail himself from goalpost to goalpost a little less, he’ll be okay.
There’s no doubt that the Red Wings face a bushel full of questions going into the 2023-2024 season, and almost everything will have to go right for the team to make a playoff spot, luck in the injury department included. But now is not the time to douse fans’ tenuous optimism going into the fall, so I’m not about to do so.
