MLive’s Ansar Khan reexamines some of the comments made by Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman during yesterday’s press conference, including his expectations for the team as a whole:
“I want to see progress in our team as a whole, progress in all the areas we’ve always talked about and progress individually from our younger players,” Yzerman said. “As long as we’re moving in the right direction, I think it’s positive. Obviously, making the playoffs would be another positive step, so I’ll worry about that as the season goes along. We’ll see how much progress we’re making.”
Barring a surprise or injuries, the Red Wings’ 23-man roster appears set, once defenseman Moritz Seider is signed. The competition during the four-day camp at Centre I.C.E. Arena and eight-game preseason that starts Sept. 25 at Chicago is mainly for ice time and roles on special teams, as well as lineup spots on defense and the goaltending pecking order.
The Red Wings, despite ranking 24th in goals against per game, missed the playoffs on a tiebreaker with Washington. The mandate for coach Derek Lalonde, entering his third season, is to lower the goals against.
“I think we need to be a better defensive hockey club,” Yzerman said. “Your special teams have to be good. Our special teams both improved last season and we scored more goals. We gave up too many to make the playoffs. You can get by maybe not having the best power play, but you better be solid in all the other areas. You can get by not having maybe the best penalty killing unit, but you better be solid in other areas. But the key is, I think ultimately for long term success, is to be a good defensive hockey team.”
Continued (paywall)
