Wings Have Deceiving BAD Record

[NickA 39]

Sure we all know that something just isnt clicking this year---- but has anyone really looked at our record and realized that we have LOST to just about every "Cup contending" team this year? Even the games we have WON against decent teams, they area all 1 goal games. We have LOST to Anaheim, San Jose, Pittsburgh, and Montreal. We beat NYR by a slim margin. The Wings cant expect to win the Cup again if they cant compete with the high level teams. I know the season is only 1/4 old, but its starting to be a trend and not a fluke.

[lets go pavel 2]

Sure we all know that something just isnt clicking this year---- but has anyone really looked at our record and realized that we have LOST to just about every "Cup contending" team this year? Even the games we have WON against decent teams, they area all 1 goal games. We have LOST to Anaheim, San Jose, Pittsburgh, and Montreal. We beat NYR by a slim margin. The Wings cant expect to win the Cup again if they cant compete with the high level teams. I know the season is only 1/4 old, but its starting to be a trend and not a fluke.

If you look at our record against the top 7 teams in each conference we are 5-2-4, with 2 of the wins coming in OT or SO ... not great, not horrible, but I think it's fairly obvious we're not at the top of our game right now. If we're still playing this way and getting those results in April I'll start worrying ...

[hillbillywingsfan 792]

wings also have bad fans that have came out of the woodwork this year.

[SDavis35 140]

Seriously? I wouldn't worry, we have been winning games, and i'd rather they be one-goal games. When the playoffs come that's all you get, if we are used to the pressure, then we don't feel the pressure when playoffs come. The rest of the league has figured out a way to score against us, mostly cause we haven't been playing the same way as last year, but Babs will find a new way to dominate the league, and we'll be fine come playoff time.

Don't expect back to back cup wins, it's extremely tough in the new NHL.

[NickA 39]

wings also have bad fans that have came out of the woodwork this year.

That may be true, but unfortunately, has NOTHING to do with the Wings record. The long time fans like myself know when they see the Wings playing great and when they dont seem so great. Ive been a season ticket holder for 3 years, and Ive been going down to the Joe to watch the Wings regularly since 1986. Im not saying that they are terrible or that its all over ....just pointing out the obvious fact.

[NickA 39]

Seriously? I wouldn't worry, we have been winning games, and i'd rather they be one-goal games. When the playoffs come that's all you get, if we are used to the pressure, then we don't feel the pressure when playoffs come. The rest of the league has figured out a way to score against us, mostly cause we haven't been playing the same way as last year, but Babs will find a new way to dominate the league, and we'll be fine come playoff time.

Don't expect back to back cup wins, it's extremely tough in the new NHL.

Hey now, Im not saying that I am worried. Im still confident that they will turn things around, its so early in the season yet. Of course I expect them to have back to back Cup wins.....and everyone else should too. They have the most talented team in the NHL. I wonder what Babs would say or how the Wings dressing room would react if you told them not to expect back to back cup wins, because its extremely tough?!

[Shaman 713]

Im not worried, as soon as they get cleary and Homer back i think things will settle down and they will show everyone why they are the team to beat.

[up2here 41]

I often wonder if other teams fans panic as much as Wings fans do. Seriously people youre worse than my mother! Feel free to use this once again and remember that I posted it on here about 25 times last season.

Edited November 28, 2008 by UP2HERE

[hamip1998 3]

Sure we all know that something just isnt clicking this year---- but has anyone really looked at our record and realized that we have LOST to just about every "Cup contending" team this year? Even the games we have WON against decent teams, they area all 1 goal games. We have LOST to Anaheim, San Jose, Pittsburgh, and Montreal. We beat NYR by a slim margin. The Wings cant expect to win the Cup again if they cant compete with the high level teams. I know the season is only 1/4 old, but its starting to be a trend and not a fluke.

NickA has a point. It doesn't make him a "bad fan". It's his opinion and he has a right to pose the question. In fact, I was thinking the very same thing this morning about this team.

Last year, with the exception of February when they were decimated with injuries, you could watch this team and easily say that they were the class of the league. Granted, they had hiccups here and there but for the most part they were a machine.

Changes from last year:

Hasek retired. More pressure on Ozzie this year. He is in the spotlight as the #1 netminder and has not been at the level he was last year. To be fair though, team defense has been mediocre at best.

Out with McLellan, in with McCrimmon (sp?). We don't really know what impact this has had really.

Dallas Drake retired. He brought a veteran presence and tons of grit. Plus, not having ever won the cup was a good motivational tool for both him and his teammates.

Add Hossa. Inserting another superstar forward to a team that already has a couple of superstar forwards can only be a good thing, right? His play is nothing short of impressive. I always knew he was a great player, but I never realized that this guy worked as hard on the ice as he does. The only problem is that the arguably most dangerous line in hockey is now split across two lines (ZDH).

Has Lids really lost a step, or is he playing with a defensive partner that has been somewhat irresponsible in his own end this year? Could the visor really be affecting his vision?

What I see as the issues:

Most analysts stated that after last season when we added Hossa that "the best got better". On paper, yes. The chemistry of this team has altered somewhat and the team seems to have lost some of it's drive and hunger. I think as a group they felt robbed after the Anaheim series the year before. They had something to prove last year. What do they have to prove this year?

We haven't had the same good luck with injuries this year as we did last year, though it could be a lot worse. Not having a guy like Cleary (the man plays with a total disregard for his own health and safety), the veteran presence of Cheli, and other various peices in and out of the lineup has hurt the chemistry of this team. I think that it's obvious that they don't have this dialed in yet as far as the lines are concerned.

Regardless of what Babcock said at the start of training camp, some of the older legs on this team look a bit tired. Having to play those extra six games, plus participating in all of the off season festivities, didn't give the older players like Draper or Lids as much time to bounce back from a long season.

A huge factor is that a lot of other teams in the NHL are trying to "out-Wing" the Red Wings and doing a pretty good job of it. When you are #1, everyone is gunning for you. These coaches aren't dumb and they figured out if you don't let the wings play a puck posession game you can derail the system. The wings have been forced to play chip and chase so much more this year than last year, and that isn't necessarily their forte. When I was watching the Montreal game, when one of the Canadiens would carry the puck into their offensive zone, you would usually only see our two defensemen. Many times when one of the Wings would carry the puck into the offensive zone there were at least two skaters back helping on defense. It's hard to get quality scoring chances when the other team is defending like that. Gotta give credit to the Canadiens, though. They deserved the win.

I don't think anyone is "panicking" here. It is a little frustrating as a fan to see a team that played so well during the course of the season last year struggle like they have. The record IS deceiving. The season is still young and there is plenty of time to get the ship righted.

Edited November 28, 2008 by hamip1998

[Guest DetroitBoy313]

We lost to Anaheim on a goal that personally I don't think that should have counted.We got SJ the next day and get beat 4-2 and we played the night before and lost to a good team with a great home record.Pittsburgh game was a absolute disaster on our part letting Pittsburgh to come back in the game with our effortless defense.The Montreal game we just flat out got outplayed in my opinion.But you are RIGHT,there shouldn't be excuses but for whatever reason we haven't clicked as a team yet.But I'm not worried about it.

[hillbillywingsfan 792]

NickA has a point. It doesn't make him a "bad fan". It's his opinion and he has a right to pose the question. In fact, I was thinking the very same thing this morning about this team.

Last year, with the exception of February when they were decimated with injuries, you could watch this team and easily say that they were the class of the league. Granted, they had hiccups here and there but for the most part they were a machine.

Changes from last year:

Hasek retired. More pressure on Ozzie this year. He is in the spotlight as the #1 netminder and has not been at the level he was last year. To be fair though, team defense has been mediocre at best.

Out with McLellan, in with McCrimmon (sp?). We don't really know what impact this has had really.

Dallas Drake retired. He brought a veteran presence and tons of grit. Plus, not having ever won the cup was a good motivational tool for both him and his teammates.

Add Hossa. Inserting another superstar forward to a team that already has a couple of superstar forwards can only be a good thing, right? His play is nothing short of impressive. I always knew he was a great player, but I never realized that this guy worked as hard on the ice as he does. The only problem is that the arguably most dangerous line in hockey is now split across two lines (ZDH).

Has Lids really lost a step, or is he playing with a defensive partner that has been somewhat irresponsible in his own end this year? Could the visor really be affecting his vision?

What I see as the issues:

Most analysts stated that after last season when we added Hossa that "the best got better". On paper, yes. The chemistry of this team has altered somewhat and the team seems to have lost some of it's drive and hunger. I think as a group they felt robbed after the Anaheim series the year before. They had something to prove last year. What do they have to prove this year?

We haven't had the same good luck with injuries this year as we did last year, though it could be a lot worse. Not having a guy like Cleary (the man plays with a total disregard for his own health and safety), the veteran presence of Cheli, and other various peices in and out of the lineup has hurt the chemistry of this team. I think that it's obvious that they don't have this dialed in yet as far as the lines are concerned.

Regardless of what Babcock said at the start of training camp, some of the older legs on this team look a bit tired. Having to play those extra six games, plus participating in all of the off season festivities, didn't give the older players like Draper or Lids as much time to bounce back from a long season.

A huge factor is that a lot of other teams in the NHL are trying to "out-Wing" the Red Wings and doing a pretty good job of it. When you are #1, everyone is gunning for you. These coaches aren't dumb and they figured out if you don't let the wings play a puck posession game you can derail the system. The wings have been forced to play chip and chase so much more this year than last year, and that isn't necessarily their forte. When I was watching the Montreal game, when one of the Canadiens would carry the puck into their offensive zone, you would usually only see our two defensemen. Many times when one of the Wings would carry the puck into the offensive zone there were at least two skaters back helping on defense. It's hard to get quality scoring chances when the other team is defending like that. Gotta give credit to the Canadiens, though. They deserved the win.

I don't think anyone is "panicking" here. It is a little frustrating as a fan to see a team that played so well during the course of the season last year struggle like they have. The record IS deceiving. The season is still young and there is plenty of time to get the ship righted.

yeah and i don't remember saying nick was a bad fan...i said we have bad fans coming out of the woodwork....i didn't say NICK you are a bad fan.

maybe im wrong...let me check again.

Edited November 28, 2008 by hillbillywingsfan

[GMRwings1983 8,794]

That's a good point that I didn't consider until now, because last year we struggled against the s***ty teams in our division, and dominated the top teams. Now it's vice-versa.

[Z Winged Dangler 2,082]

The Wings are losing because they've been careless and are giving the puck away more than i've ever seen them do. And as stated, they've been doing a dump and chase way too much as opposed to their puck possession game that makes them dominant. Oh, and Darren Helm shouldn't be in the minors...nice stanley cup ring on the Griffins roster.

[RusDRW 155]

The play-offs are officiated diffrently. What is more, at the moment, we do not know how... So practically nothing can be said about our performance in the play-offs.

[hamip1998 3]

yeah and i don't remember saying nick was a bad fan...i said we have bad fans coming out of the woodwork....i didn't say NICK you are a bad fan.

maybe im wrong...let me check again.

No, you didn't SAY he was a bad fan, but posting that comment seemed like it was implied that he was by making the statement that he did.

Take it easy, friend. No hard feelings, ok?

[Stu in Israel 0]

Don't expect back to back cup wins, it's extremely tough in the new NHL.

What does the "new NHL" or the salary-capped NHL have to do with it? In the "old" NHL one would have to assume that due to less teams, the talent-level was higher, so how did the Canadiens win 5 straight?! Between 1975-1983 the Canadiens won the Cup 4 straight times followed by the Islanders with 4 straight times. Enough with these stories of Cup hangover and "salary cap" reasons. A good team is a good team, and that means "hunger," motivation, desire! No team can win all their games, but take a look at the Wings' losses this year and you'll see that tiredness or that particular night's lack of desire were the reason(s). Lidstrom even indicated this in one of his recent interviews.

[KrazyGangsta 79]

That has nothing to do with having bad record. We only have 3 regulations lose's which is the least in the nhl. Now let's remember 82 games and there's no one that has or ever will win those 82 games in the season. We have more pts then last year at this point.

This team knows very well they can beat any team in the nhl any day of the week. They are the cup champions. They know they the best and they also know they can take all of it this year again.

Now that might be over confidence and we might pay the price for that, but I see it more like a camouflage thing. Wings aren't pushing as much as last year because they know they will be in the playoffs they all ready we're tired so what I think there doing is just keeping it cool, relaxed so they don't tired themselves and ware themselves out too early. They are keeping there energy for the last stretch which is the playoffs.

The wings are more experienced / more talented team in the nhl. They know what they are doing.

We have a great coach that knows what his doing and know very well what needs to be done when the time comes.

Everyone probably thinks the wings are losing they suck this and that, there not the same team bla bla bla bla ... Last time I checked they said the same thing last year but we won the cup.

Remember San Jose won like almost there last 20 games and coming in the playoffs ... they we're gone.

Forget the season people even if we lose against the best teams in the nhl the whole season and we in the playoffs and win all of it, season won't mean nothing.

The best teams will be over confident and we will take it anyways thats not my point.

This team knows they are good, they know they can win any game but there just taking it easy so they can relax not get tired it's a long season. If this team pushes every night in and out ... come playoffs there doomed. There just resting now after a previous long season. When February comes you will see the true power of this team.

[KrazyGangsta 79]

* I also wanted to mention by signing Hossa people's expectation when roof tops. They probably think just cause we got hossa we're going to win 82 games.

Now yes hossa is an upgrade but let's not forget hossa wasn't with us last year he was with the pens with crosby and malkin and they didn't win the cup.

I'm not sayin his not amazing. His a monster I love him but people should drop their expectations a bit. Everything is going pretty well for defending champions.

p.s. Isn't calgary, new york, new jersey, oilers contending teams. It's 20 games, maybe in 20 other games anaheim, san jose will go back down the list and other teams might go up ... too early to talk about stats like this.

[T.Low 1,011]

Sure we all know that something just isnt clicking this year---- but has anyone really looked at our record and realized that we have LOST to just about every "Cup contending" team this year? Even the games we have WON against decent teams, they area all 1 goal games. We have LOST to Anaheim, San Jose, Pittsburgh, and Montreal. We beat NYR by a slim margin. The Wings cant expect to win the Cup again if they cant compete with the high level teams. I know the season is only 1/4 old, but its starting to be a trend and not a fluke.

Good point.

You make an obvious and accurate statement: "The Wings can't expect to win The Cup again if they can't compete with the high level teams".

It is tougher to repeat as champion than it is to win the championship the to began with. As I said before, to be the best, you have to beat the best; but to stay the best, you have to beat everyone at thier best. Each of the teams you listed are measuring themselves against Detroit, trying to prove they are for real. Everyone wants to knock off the Champs, every single night. Those teams are up and coming talented teams reach a level of intensity against Detroit that they usally aren't able to muster against most other teams. See Vancouver also. Night in and night out, Detroit has to play aginst teams that are out of their minds becasue they get to play aginst the historic Stanley Cup Champs. Like how NFL teams usually play their best on Monday Night Football cause the whole league is watching. Thats what it like playing aginst The Red Wings.

In turn, the Wings need to raise their level of intensity to shut down these rabid teams.

And lets face it, we all knew how awesome Zetterberg and Datsyuk were, but not everyone else did. Z had a bit of a break out year last year, as did Franzen, and Cleary. Those guys are on other teams radar now.

That is precisely why the Wings experienced a series of early round playoff dismissals. I'm hoping that somewhere this season they face some true adversity to motivate them and get their blood pumping, raising their level of intensity. Hossa is likely here for only this year, and I'd hate to see this opportunity wasted.

Go Wings!

[I Red Wings I 40]

To me, it doesn't make a difference if they were to lose to a team like the Panthers or if they were to lose to the Sharks. I look at it as a loss is a loss and a win is a win. Last year, Detroit lost six straight in February and ten of eleven games. I believe anyone can argue that they may have been better off losing those games to "wake them up". So, basically my point is this, it's early, in November, and they're not going to play great game in and game out. If Detroit plays shaky in the playoffs, I'll expect to hear the gripes and complaints, on the other hand I'll sit there and say, "well that's HOCKEY". Sometimes I wonder if a lot of you guys would be here if they were at .429 or even .5, but hey, if you enjoy analyzing every possible stat, then so be it. I'm going to sit back and enjoy a hockey game. Cheers.

[OsGOD 3]

Guess its better than losing to all the s***ty teams... that was getting old fast.

what do we have now 3 losses...

[BeeRYCE 2]

I guarantee mid-season improvements from all the players. Osgood, Lidstrom, Rafalski, Cleary, Filppula, Lebda, etc. are some names that haven't been playing near full potential. If half of those players improve just a notch, we have a cup winning team. To think, Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Hossa, and Franzen can/will improve too.

We have a 14-3-4 record with all our best players not even playing to full potential, which is scary. Forget not being able to beat the Sharks, Ducks, Habs, and Pens right now... Improvement from some of our players would make us capable of beating the 80's Oilers with ease.

[T.Low 1,011]

I guarantee mid-season improvements from all the players. Osgood, Lidstrom, Rafalski, Cleary, Filppula, Lebda, etc. are some names that haven't been playing near full potential. If half of those players improve just a notch, we have a cup winning team. To think, Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Hossa, and Franzen can/will improve too.

We have a 14-3-4 record with all our best players not even playing to full potential, which is scary. Forget not being able to beat the Sharks, Ducks, Habs, and Pens right now... Improvement from some of our players would make us capable of beating the 80's Oilers with ease.

We could easily wind up playing the Canucks in round one. They've beaten us twice already, we haven't beaten them at all yet. Memories of first round dismissals. Just saying...

[ACDC 0]

I still believe that Lidstrom and Rafalski will start to play better pretty quick here, our record is certainly amazing given that we haven't looked good for pretty much the entire year.

[SouthernWingsFan 854]

I am afraid.

I am very afraid.