Red Wings head coach issues harsh reality check to Detroit following deflating loss against the Capitals
Photo credit: NHL.com
Detroit Red Wings' head coach issues harsh reality check following a brutal defeat against the Washington Capitals.
The Detroit Red Wings took on the Washington Capitals this past Tuesday, March 18, and suffered a brutal defeat when they fell short by a whopping 4-1 loss.
After the team's defeat, Detroit's head coach, Todd McLellan, was not afraid to deliver a firm message to the locker room, as their eight-year playoff drought will continue if the franchise is not serious about ending it.
«That has to get fixed» McLellan said, via The Detroit News. «That's the only way we're going to improve as a hockey club, rebound from things that don't go our way and to have that happen is disappointing. That implosion didn't make any sense to me.» He continued.
«This one, so they scored the second (goal), what are we going to do? It was a sneaky shot, fortunate, we're still OK. So give your teammates a chance to use the six minutes to pull the goaltender and we're going to overtime at 2-2 or losing 3-1. We look up with three minutes left and it's 4-1. That can't happen.«
«This one, so they scored the second (goal), what are we going to do? It was a sneaky shot, fortunate, we're still OK. So give your teammates a chance to use the six minutes to pull the goaltender and we're going to overtime at 2-2 or losing 3-1. We look up with three minutes left and it's 4-1. That can't happen.«
McLellan's frustration was nothing less than visible, and for good reasoning, the team was in dire need to get in the grove and take the win, and it was seemingly on the rise for the first 40 minutes, as the Red Wings managed to keep up with the Capitals' pace, but Washington ultimately destroyed Detroit in the last period, when they scored three goals in third.
Prior to arriving to the Capital One Arena, Detroit had heavy expectations on another win, as they blew away fans when achieving a 3-0 win against one of the biggest competitive team's in the NHL as of now, the Vegas Golden Knights.
However, it didn't go as plan, and McLellan expressed that:
«We were way better this game than we were days ago,» McLellan added. «You still have to check for your chances, you can't open it up and pout and get lazy. Perhaps we did that and maybe that's the lesson we're learning.»
As the playoff race continues to near, every game counts, and we should hope this is a lesson learned and that this incredible team can find their way into the playoffs for the first time in 9 years.
| POLL | ||
MARS 19 | 226 ANSWERS Red Wings head coach issues harsh reality check to Detroit following deflating loss against the Capitals Do you think the Detroit Red Wings will make a playoff spot? | ||
| Yes | 13 | 5.8 % |
| I hope but it's not looking too hot | 110 | 48.7 % |
| No | 103 | 45.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
