Red Wings' current season start mirrors former Stanley Cup-winning formula that'll excite fans

The Detroit Red Wings' nine-year playoff drought is the second longest in the whole National Hockey League, with only the Buffalo Sabres ahead, as they haven't been able to reach the playoffs since 2011.

But the way the team has been playing this year so far, fans can hope to see some playoff action.

Todd McLellan has managed to lead the team to eight wins in October, something that hasn't happened in 18 years and has only happened five times in franchise history.

On three of those occasions, the Wings won the Stanley Cup.

They went 10-2-2 in 1997, 11-2-0 in 2001, and 10-2-1 in 2007; they were the team's ninth, tenth, and eleventh Stanley Cups.

The Wings also had an 11-1 record in October 2005, and although they won the Presidents' Trophy, they didn't win the Cup that year.

As you can see, even if we're too early in the season to start thinking about playoffs or a Stanley Cup, it's safe to say fans can be encouraged by the Wings' performance, which mirrors those of past Stanley Cup-winning editions.

But perhaps the most important thing to note is how the team battles hard every night, how they manage to win despite not playing their best game; two qualities needed to aspire to the playoffs and eventually go all the way.

Alex DeBrincat's comments after last night's 4-3 shootout win against the Los Angeles Kings reflect exactly that:

The Wings will look to keep building momentum tonight as they face the Ducks in Anaheim for John Gibson's first game against his former team since being traded to Detroit in the last offseason.