Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen discusses the importance of the Red Wings’ four-game winning streak as restarting the team’s chase of a playoff spot:
Let’s make sure we’re clear: What the below .500 Red Wings have accomplished with their four-game winning streak doesn’t compare with the opportunity the Lions have today facing the Minnesota Vikings.
But the four wins under new coach Todd McLellan has set up a meaningful game against the Ottawa Senators at Little Caesars Arena on Tuesday that didn’t seem possible on Dec. 25.
Merry Christmas Red Wings fans. Detroit is now two points behind the Ottawa Senators for the final wildcard spot. Before Derek Lalonde was fired and McLellan took over, fans were starting to look at who the Red Wings could draft with a top five pick.
The Red Wings are far from an elite team — and this modest winning streak could be followed by a losing skid. But Detroit’s hockey team has at least been entertaining for the past 10 days. Anyone who watched Detroit’s over Winnipeg probably has some hope.
I’m going to be honest here, again: I don’t care whether the Red Wings make the playoff cut this season. At this point, the Wings would have to rattle off multiple winning streaks to perhaps earn nearly 2/3rds of the available points to wade into the muck that is the Eastern Conference standings and come out on top.
To me, this season is about Todd McLellan salvaging the Wings’ pride and ability to play meaningful, competitive hockey games. After the “new coach bump” wears off and the Wings begin to flatten out in terms of their play, I want to see them continue to work on mastering McLellan’s systems of play and re-master learning how to win on a consistent basis.
If that results in a battle for a playoff spot late in the regular season, that’s wonderful; if it doesn’t, that’s okay, too, because this season is now a learning process for each and every one of the Red Wings’ players.
Playoff relevance is a bonus right now. That kind of stuff will take care of itself if the Wings really buy in to McLellan’s lessons for the team.
