3 Mistakes The Red Wings Made This Season
Photo credit: Detroit Free Press
TheDetroit Red Wings' awful season is over, and without a playoff spot, GM Steve Yzerman shares some blame along with Todd McLellan, and Vladimir Tarasenko, who was sold as a key addition to the team.
The Detroit Red Wings are 6th in the Atlantic Division, and have a record of 39-35-8. They'll be making a trip to the golf course instead of the playoff this season.
There are many reasons why the Red Wings failed to perform up to expectations from fans and pundits. But three reasons alone are a good start, and we'll start counting them down now.
"Improvements"
GM Steve Yzerman attempted to improve the lineup by adding goalie Petr Mrazek and forward Craig Smith, along with depth forward Vladimir Tarasenko.
None of these players has been a major factor in the team's success this year, as there has been a lack of it.
Smith, in his short tenure with the Red Wings, has scored only two points in 18 games, with 10:27 TOI a night. His linemates weren't helpful as Tyler Motte and Austin Watson weren't great at generating offense.
While Petr Mrazek would only play five games for the Wings before succumbing to an injury, with a 2.49 GAA and .902 save percentage. Without Mrazek's help, the goaltending wasn't that reliable, dependent on Alex Lyon and Cam Talbot.
Vladimir Tarasenko
Tarasenko's signing was too late and way past his prime. If this were the Tarasenko who had won a Cup with the Blues, it might've been a better option, but now he's only posted 32 points this season with the Red Wings.
He's shown to be a mismatch in Todd McLellan's system, with an 8.3 shooting percentage, taking only 1.7 shots a night.
Tarasenko is inconsistent if he fails to play above 30 games in a season. For example, he scored 19 points in 38 games with his rookie season as a St. Louis Blue, 10 points in 2019-2020, and 14 in 2020-2021, 24 games played.
Todd McLellan Hired Too Late
Todd McLellan's arrival in Detroit didn't happen soon enough. If he had fired Lalonde sooner, it could've improved the Red Wings' chances this year.
For example, Lalonde led the team to 30 points with a 13-37-4 record in 34 games, a record not even good enough to crack above 27th in the league.
While McLellan's arrival signaled a major shift in production, in 47 games under McLellan, they'd attain 55 points, with a record of 26-18-3.
There were only 13 teams with a record post-Christmas break, and they'd go on to make the playoffs this year.
The Red Wings should've hired McLellan sooner, foregone signing veteran talent who didn't move the needle like Tarasenko and Smith.
Previously on Red Wings Insider
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 18 | 196 ANSWERS 3 Mistakes The Red Wings Made This Season Do you think GM Steve Yzerman of the Detroit Red Wings didn't do a great job during the trade deadline? | ||
| Yes | 142 | 72.4 % |
| No | 54 | 27.6 % |
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