Perhaps in a sign that the NHL’s summertime free agency period and post-draft trades haven’t been exactly scintillating, the Hockey News’s Adam Proteau affords the Red Wings the 11th-best “Summer Splash” ranking of the NHL’s 32 teams.
Proteau makes sure to state that the middle-of-the-pack “summer splash” teams have not necessarily improved, nor have they necessarily gotten worse, and, after analyzing the Red Wings’ additions and subtractions, he issues the following “Bottom Line“:
The Bottom Line
Let’s be clear – the Red Wings are where they are in our summer splash rankings primarily because of the Gibson move. Goaltending had been an issue in Detroit for a long time, and Yzerman finally found the big fish in net that he and Wings fans have been aching for.
However, when you look at the big picture in the Atlantic, the Red Wings are still going to face a hellacious battle just to land a wild card playoff berth, let alone contend for a top-three spot in the division. Yzerman didn’t do much to address his team’s defense corps, and at forward, Yzerman is still banking on a group of young players rising and justifying Yzerman’s belief in them.
The Wings are still in the mid-tier of our summer splash ranks because, even with Gibson in town, they’re not quite a top-10 team in terms of summer improvements. Yes, they’re technically better, and that’s why they’re not 15th or 20th in these ratings. But looking at Detroit as a powerhouse in the Eastern Conference is a major-league stretch.
By season’s end, it would surprise no one if the Red Wings were on the outside of the playoff picture looking in for the 10th consecutive season. Gibson will have to steal a lot of games just to keep them fighting for a playoff spot, and of course, that’s not guaranteed. And if the Wings falter yet again, Yzerman’s job security will be in jeopardy.
Continued; Gibson, Cam Talbot and Sebastian Cossa will all earn time in the Wings’ crease…
But there’s no doubt that “everybody’s got to give a little bit more” if the Red Wings don’t make any further improvements over the remainder of the summer or start of fall.
“Improvement from within” will mean better consistency from both veterans and young players alike, pushes from the Wings’ prospects to “steal jobs” from veterans, and perhaps some in-season trades for a top-six forward with a scorer’s touch and/or a top-four defenseman with some two-way capabilities.
But you also know my bottom line: the Red Wings’ success or failure during its “Centennial Season” will not determine the course of Steve Yzerman’s managerial career. As long as Mrs. Ilitch is still running the show alongside Christopher Ilitch, Steve Yzerman is the executive vice-president and general manager for as long as he wishes to be the EVP and GM.
The pressure Yzerman faces from the paying public and anxious fan base alike is real, to be certain, and the media mish-mash of trash talk about the Red Wings’ struggles is heard from time to time, but the Red Wings’ former Captain has an unflappable belief in himself and the management team around him, and because he’s got job security for life, he doesn’t have to give a flying flerb what anybody else says about the job he’s doing or not doing.
Does he have to do better this season? YES. The fans are paying for as much (from what I understand, the season ticket prices have increased, too), and the atmosphere around the Centennial Season will not be pretty if the Wings lay a collective egg.
But if they remain playoff-relevant for more of the regular season, with coach McLellan eliminating the February-March-and-April swoon, fans will buy into promise and potential.
The difference this season is that the Wings have some work to do to catch up to the Senators and Canadiens, and that appears to be more and more likely to rest in the hockey stick-holding hands of the team’s current personnel.
