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If you’ve watched the NHL network at all, you know that the movie “Miracle… is getting a lot of play right now, and players telling their stories about Herb Brooks. The past week or so has been that movie in reverse for Detroit. The “upset… victory in Boston followed by 3 rounds of college kids playing the Soviet Army (or equivalent). It wouldn’t do to bag skate the team, the kids are killing themselves. Maybe bag skate the staff? Let Larkin be Herb Brooks and Bertuzzi can blow the whistle. It’s all backward anyway...
The good news, we are 3/4 of the way done with “this…. Staring at the television like a Cubs fan for 100 years before they broke through. Or, like a Lions fan. However, even in the worst Lion’s season you only have to watch them lose 16 times. One more loss and Detroit will have TRIPLED that number. Three straight seasons of the Lion’s worst record all wrapped up in one lead balloon to the bottom of the league. Detroit now holds a 15 point cushion on Los Angelos (who has two games in hand). But don’t worry. The next 21 games look like this: MTL, NYI, CAL, NJD, MN, OTT, COL, CHI, Tampa Bay 3 times, Carolina, Washington twice, Florida, AZ, VGK, Boston, Philly, STL and Toronto.
The dogs in this final stretch are New Jersey (who beat us), Ottawa (who routinely beats us), Minnesota. The rest of the teams are fighting for or holding a playoff spot at this point. The team could fail to crack 20 wins, quite easily at this point. That’s not a guarantee, just a very real possibility.
At least the barn door is open and trading is in full effect. New Jersey just got a hefty price for Blake Coleman (a first AND a Foote). Pitt shipped out their first for Zucker. Teams that are waiting on Kreider may be shocked if NYR re signs him. The prices have been set and the desperation moves should be coming soon. Unfortunately, Detroit won’t garner a first rounder in any deal at this point.
It’s almost over. The bumpy ride that guarantees a 4th overall pick. And, depending on what moves the team makes, next year could be slightly better. A 30 win season perhaps? It’s impossible to tell.
All this is to say, it’s not lost on me or anyone writing about this team that things are brutal. Rock bottom hurts a lot more when you actually hit it. It was much more of a free fall than even a rapid descent. I assume Wile E. Coyote’s biography will be on the recommended reading list this summer. Aptly titled, “so you’re a hole in a canyon floor, now what?… Is there an Acme rocket and roller skate setup available? Much more fun to crash into a faux train tunnel painted on the rocks. At least it’s fast and you feel like you’re getting somewhere.
At this point, almost any change organizationally will be a breath of fresh air. Bring up Seider for a few. Svechnikov is on a bit of a hot streak right now, bring him up too. Something, anything, to change the energy and flow of what is currently happening. We’ll see if that happens soon enough.