The Chicago Tribune’s Phil Thompson posted an article which discusses comparisons and contrasts between the rebuilding Red Wings and the rebuilding Blackhawks. It’s at least interesting pregame reading:
Last season Detroit finished 12 games out of wild-card contention; the Hawks, 36. Both franchises consider themselves in the midst of a rebuild, although at different points in the spectrum.
The Hawks are early enough in their makeover that fans can fill their heads with the illusions that optimism and high draft picks bring.
The Wings once harbored similar hopes, but they haven’t cracked the playoffs since 2017. General manager Steve Yzerman’s rebuild keeps rebuilding.
In a poetic twist, one player symbolizes where the Hawks and Wings are on their respective roads to contention: Alex DeBrincat.
For the Hawks, trading DeBrincat, who wasn’t scheduled to play Tuesday, to Ottawa in July 2022 cemented the notion the teardown wasn’t just talk (or temporary).
For the Wings, trading to acquire DeBrincat from Ottawa on July 9 (for a package that includes Dominik Kubalik and a 2024 conditional first-round draft pick), is an acknowledgment they need to go big to get over the hump.
“We did trade a first-round pick, which I am loathe to trade first-round picks, particularly at the start of the season because you don’t know what pick you’re trading, but we did that to acquire Alex DeBrincat, who’s a young player, so he fits into the timeline of our team,” Yzerman said, according to mlive.com. “But we’re still in a phase of acquiring talent and letting them develop.”
Continued; there is of course one big difference between Detroit and Chicago, and his name is Connor Bedard.
