Playoffs?

Since I end up chatting online or over the phone with so many of you about Wings news and hockey events I thought I would start up a blog for whenever I feel a Wings rant coming on. So with nearly 20 games remaining in the NHL schedule The Red Wings currently reside in the 9th seed of The Western Conference. That is shocking to write as a Wings fan of 25 years. We have been spoiled rotten in Detroit, with 18 straight playoff appearances, 4 Stanley Cups and 6 Conference Championships. Since the Red Machine hired Scotty Bowman as head coach and began it's dominant play in 1994 The Wings have provided playoff excitement and legendary lineups featuring the likes of Yzerman, Lidstrom, Fedorov, Konstantinov, Shanahan, Lirianov, Osgood, Hasek, Hull, Chelios, Rafalski, Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Franzen, and on and on and on...

The term dynasty gets used for teams that win 3 titles in a row or 4 in the span of 7 seasons like The Oil in the 80's. When hockey fans look back on the last 15 seasons in the NHL you cannot ignore The Wings, and their dominance of The Western Conference. With a little more scoring punch in Game 7 vs. The Pens last year it would've been 5 cups in 12 seasons. Instead, we settle for 4 cups in 12 seasons, one every 3 seasons. Six out of 14 seasons in The Finals is a remarkable achievement when you consider the other great teams that have come and gone in The Western Conference. There have been some memorable lows such as the first round losses to San Jose in 94, LA in 01, Anaheim in 03, and Edmonton in 06. Every time we endure an underachieving Wings team fans & management strain to come to terms with why such a high powered team could fold so easily. Typically, we as fans completely overlook the quality of competition in The NHL and assume The Wings are The Harlem Globetrotters on Ice.

I submit that in 20 years these early exits will be memorable only because this Wings team has been so dominant and impressive of an organization, and that many of the championship teams of the last 20 years won't even pass for sports trivia. Will many fans sing the praises of that Dave Andreychuk led Lightning squad of 2004, outside of Tampa Bay? That was a great team, but where have they been since? The Wings came back from their playoff woes post 02 Cup and made 3 stellar runs in 07, 08, 09. That's the mark of a truly great organization. I would extend the same logic to the new heir to the throne, The Pittsburgh Penguins. Credit where it's due. They stuck it out for 7 games with The Cup champs and took the prize. As a team they learned how to skate and defend with the best from the 08 Wings and are now the team to beat. I respect their ability to adapt and not go down to The Wings two years in a row. Two trips to The Cup Finals and right now they look more poised for a strong run than The Wings. Still, they will not scratch the surface of the accomplishments of The Wings until they win 3 more cups in the next 11 years. Many fans think with Fleury, Crosby & Malkin they are set up for that. Good luck is all I have to say. They will face the same salary cap issues as The Wings soon enough and may be looking at some heart breaking 1st round exits as well. The cap world exists to ensure the same teams don't go to The Finals every year, making the last 2 years for The Wings & Pens even more impressive.

So what about this year? Wings vs. Pens Round III? Vegas odds are not too good on that right now. Of course, The Pens were battling their way our of 10th seed at this point last year and The Wings would be a very undesirable first opponent for any playoff team, given the playoff mileage on our roster. The weeks after The Olympic Break will provide a new kind of excitement for Wings fans, desperation. We have not seen a mad dash to make the playoffs since the early 90's so now we will share the hope & panic of Tigers fans (hopefully with better results.) It has been conceded by Ken Holland & Wings management (even before last years Cup run) that this would be a transitional year for the team. It made the Game 7 defeat even more agonizing knowing they would lose so many guns this year. Up against The Salary Cap and an unprecedented season for injuries, The Wings can only hope to gather their full crew in time to surprise some hockey fans this April. With or without a strong run this year I have no doubt The Winged Wheel will quickly reassemble because they have the right GM, Coach and staff in place, along with great leadership on the ice. My future posts and pending discussions will be less why The Wings have been great and geared more towards current events, roster moves, and other NHL topics. I'm just getting warmed up.