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Detroit and Pittsburgh are on opposite sides of the street, so to speak. New ownership in Pitt wants a post season team and have faith that the stars have enough rubber on the tires to make it work. Only 3 games in, it’s very difficult to go to the stats column. Usually at 10 games you have a better snapshot. Both teams are 2-1-0. Pitt is ranked 11th on the power play and PK at 25% and 90% respectively. Detroit is ranked first on the power play at 40% and 14th on the PK at 83%. As fantastic as that is for the power play, again it’s after 3 games in.
I do think that if Pitt hadn’t changed ownership (for the majority %) there would be more of a push at a rebuild and the top players would make decisions on if they would stay or go. It doesn’t seem like that long ago, but there is some consensus Detroit should have started a rebuild in earnest after 13/14. Some fans go back as far as 10/11. Regardless of the preferred start, the team is clearly in the thick of it now. Roster turnover season after season since Yzerman’s arrival has offered a big shift in modus operandi from the previous regime.
All things aside, there is pride. The Penguins have it in spades and it’s going to be a difficult decision when top players “hang them up…. The rivalry isn’t what was created in 2008 and 2009. It’s a rebuild vs. a reload. I don’t expect the type of “scrappy… affair Tampa brought to the table, but a highly competitive Penguins team looking to get a foothold early in the season.
The Penguins playoff streak coming to an end was a bitter pill on a team with a lot of pride. Detroit has the luxury of a completely different status. While it sounds bad, the fact that “expectations… at the various desks and studios is for the Red Wings to fall short it is fueling some of the players. Compher and Sprong are still a fun watch, as are Seider and Walman. The top line can have bursts of speed and Veleno is having solid moments. The ability to enjoy the good and be honest about what needs to be addressed better vs. the immense pressure of expectation can make even a tough loss easier to watch.
When the puck drops, the pride of the “former… best player in the world will be met with the indignant resistance of a team that wants to defy low expectation. This could be a lot of fun to watch.