MLive’s Ansar Khan suggests that the Detroit Red Wings should be ranked 6th in the Atlantic Division going into the upcoming season, behind both the Ottawa Senators and Montreal Canadiens, and ahead of only the Buffalo Sabres and Boston Bruins:
6. Detroit
GM Steve Yzerman had ample cap space and still does ($12 million), but the free-agent market was thin, and he wasn’t able to swing a significant trade. The Red Wings return with mostly the same roster, adding depth forwards James van Riemsdyk and Mason Appleton and third-pair defensemen Travis Hamonic and Jacob Bernard-Docker. They fell five points short of the final playoff spot and hope an upgrade in goal to John Gibson and a full season under coach Todd McLellan, along with internal growth, can be the difference in ending the 100-year-old franchise’s longest playoff drought.
Continued (paywall); the Red Wings’ performance this upcoming season will have to surprise a lot of people, including the team’s own beat writers.
