The Free Press’s Andrew Birkle suggests that the Detroit sports scene is “having a moment,” and a good one at that, so he lists 29 reasons to support his suggestion, including several which mention the Detroit Red Wings:
The Winged Wheel: Timeless. Classic. Instantly recognizable. What more could you want from a logo of a team in your city? And now we’ve got a fresh new variation for the 100th season of the team to remind everyone.
Dylan Larkin is willing to speak up: Whether or not it was the right answer, Larkin has been clear that he and the Red Wings’ locker room felt general manager Steve Yzerman let the team down by not doing anything at the trade deadline. No matter what, at least Wings fans can know that he will speak his mind if he feels he needs to.
Quality front offices: Detroit has a base level of competency right now that is hard to argue with all four front offices. While Yzerman hasn’t broken the playoff drought, he has proven that he’s more than capable of nailing the NHL draft. It’s still early days for Trajan Langdon and the new Pistons front office, but going from 14 wins to 44 is not nothing. As for the Tigers and Lions, the results are already speaking for themselves. It’d be hard to find a time in the city’s history where the decision makers for all four teams are in better standing, even if the ice Yzerman is standing on grows ever thinner.
Promising prospects: Although the Wings took a step back last year and didn’t build on their 2023-24 campaign in which they narrowly missed the playoffs, they do have one of the most promising prospect pools in the game. According to The Athletic’s prospect pool rankings that came out in January, the Red Wings have the fifth-best farm system in the NHL.
Continued; as you know by now, I emphasize two points:
- I don’t believe that what Dylan Larkin said was scandalous, nor was Steve Yzerman’s response a sign of a rift between the two parties;
- And I do not believe that Yzerman is in any danger of being fired as long as Mrs. Ilitch and Chris Ilitch are around.
