Proposal: How to pull Detroit out of this skid

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

The last 10 games haven't been great, fellas. Detroit has won 4 of 10 with 1 OTL and 1 SOL. However, I still believe this new Wings team can pull themselves out of this tailspin and stay in the hunt for a wildcard spot.

Here's a quick look at what's gone wrong:

Not keeping our "first line" together enough:
Kubalik - Larkin - Perron has been performing admirably together. Kubalik is the speedy winger that can play at the same pace as Larkin and Perron the savvy vet who is great at protecting the puck down low to keep possession. Splitting them up the last few games has not yielded great results. Since Larkin and Kubalik were split 5 games ago they've combined for 1 goal and 4 points between them. It should be a no-brainer to keep them together.

Injuries compounding:
Bertuzzi being out forces Suter up the lineup, and that's been realbad.
Vrana being out AND Soderblom being out forced Fester to play Berggren, but the Wings are definitely missing a pure goalscorer in the lineup and both Vrana and Soderblom fit that bill.
Since Maatta being out with illness Hronek has had 0 points and gone -2 in the last 3 games.
Worse, we saw the Hagg-Lindstrom pairing rear it's ugly head again due to injuries.

Lack of scoring from depth over the last 10 games:
Joey Veleno: 2 points and -2
Adam Erne: 3 points and +4
Michael Rasmussen: 2 points and is -8!!
Pius Suter: 0 points, -4
Oskar Sundqvist: 4 points, +3

Sophomore slumps:
Lucas Raymond: 1 goal and 4 points in his last 10 with a -1 rating
Moritz Sieder: 1 goal, 3 points with a -6.

Poor backup goaltending:
To put it lightly, Ned has not been Ned. He has had 2 quality starts this year with a save percentage above 0.900. Everything else has been disgusting.


If you were the GM/Coach in this exercise, what do you consider doing to fix this?

Click to read more...

 

[WingsToPick4th]

The last 10 games haven't been great, fellas. Detroit has won 4 of 10 with 1 OTL and 1 SOL. However, I still believe this new Wings team can pull themselves out of this tailspin and stay in the hunt for a wildcard spot.

Here's a quick look at what's gone wrong:

Not keeping our "first line" together enough:
Kubalik - Larkin - Perron has been performing admirably together. Kubalik is the speedy winger that can play at the same pace as Larkin and Perron the savvy vet who is great at protecting the puck down low to keep possession. Splitting them up the last few games has not yielded great results. Since Larkin and Kubalik were split 5 games ago they've combined for 1 goal and 4 points between them. It should be a no-brainer to keep them together.

Injuries compounding:
Bertuzzi being out forces Suter up the lineup, and that's been realbad.
Vrana being out AND Soderblom being out forced Fester to play Berggren, but the Wings are definitely missing a pure goalscorer in the lineup and both Vrana and Soderblom fit that bill.
Since Maatta being out with illness Hronek has had 0 points and gone -2 in the last 3 games.
Worse, we saw the Hagg-Lindstrom pairing rear it's ugly head again due to injuries.

Lack of scoring from depth over the last 10 games:
Joey Veleno: 2 points and -2
Adam Erne: 3 points and +4
Michael Rasmussen: 2 points and is -8!!
Pius Suter: 0 points, -4
Oskar Sundqvist: 4 points, +3

Sophomore slumps:
Lucas Raymond: 1 goal and 4 points in his last 10 with a -1 rating
Moritz Sieder: 1 goal, 3 points with a -6.

Poor backup goaltending:
To put it lightly, Ned has not been Ned. He has had 2 quality starts this year with a save percentage above 0.900. Everything else has been disgusting.


If you were the GM/Coach in this exercise, what do you consider doing to fix this?

Add larkin to the injury list
we are missing Bert, Vrana, Larkin, Fabbri thats 4 top 6 forwards. Not much we can do, any trades we make now would be myopic long term.

 

[Lil Sebastian Cossa]

Throw in the towel and find the tallest tower of LCA.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

I'll start with some line shakeups in the assumption we're missing Larkin for a hot second.

Kubalik - Veleno - Perron (Veleno can skate with Kubalik and has looked very solid defensively this year.)
Berggren - Rasmussen - Raymond (Raymond and Ras both need a playmaker. And last night this line had the best offensive shift in the 3rd period)
Erne - Copp - Sunny (Has actually had OK-ish results lately)
Soderblom - Andreasson - Czarnik

Waive Pius f***ing Suter, watch him go through waivers and put him in GR. he's bad. 0 points and -4 in his last 11 games. Can't play at NHL pace.

Make a trade for a bottom pair RD. Mark Pysyk isn't going to play this year. Lindstrom is at best a mediocre #7.
Montreal might be interested in moving Savard for a prospect.
Vancouver will probably move Schenn but that one will cost, as much as I'd love to have him on the team. Maybe they're more keen to move Tyler Myers since he's more expensive?
Calgary hasn't been playing Tanev much. What's going on with him?
Winnipeg has Nate Schmidt playing bottom pair. Is he still OK?

Make a trade for a bottom 6 or middle 6 RW.
I don't know if Vrana is going to be able to come back this year. And we have no idea what Fabbri is going to return from his 3rd (or is it 4th?) ACL injury.
I still want Blake Coleman on this team, and if Calgary is in the gutter and want to clear cap then maybe a Fabbri (LTIRetire?)+ for Coleman bolsters the 2nd or 3rd line with a great PKer and a guy who can play up the lineup when needed.
Nils Hoglander seems to be in Boudreau's doghouse. The kid is seriously talented.

Throw in the towel and find the tallest tower of LCA.

I expect better from you.

 

[Henkka]

- Would go to get Vrana back from the rehab.
- Add vet RD
- Put Hellberg on net
- Ned to GR
- Would fasten Fabbri return.
- Pray that Larkin injury is just a minor.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Add larkin to the injury list
we are missing Bert, Vrana, Larkin, Fabbri thats 4 top 6 forwards. Not much we can do, any trades we make now would be myopic long term.

We don't have to trade a 1st round pick or Simon Edvinsson to pull out of the tailspin, but it's clear that the team's depth has taken a hit. Getting a bottom pair D and a bottom or middle 6 forward can help that, and from 2018 to 2021 drafts Detroit has picked the equivalent of 7 years of draft picks. We have prospects to move. There's such a logjam in Grand Rapids that Viro and Sebrango are in the ECHL.

 

[Ricelund]

This is a good time to remind everyone that some folks were against the Perron/Kubalik/Copp signings because they "blocked the kids".

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

This is a good time to remind everyone that some folks were against the Perron/Kubalik/Copp signings because it "blocked the kids".

The people that said this were the same ones saying to throw in the towel and tank the rest of the year after a 1-0 loss. Those people haven't seen what good hockey looks like in a Wings uniform for almost a decade and can't recognize it anymore.

Now post what you would do or I'll find a way to pipe @Bench doing Pearl Jam karaoke through your computer speakers!

 

[Lil Sebastian Cossa]

I'll start with some line shakeups in the assumption we're missing Larkin for a hot second.

Kubalik - Veleno - Perron (Veleno can skate with Kubalik and has looked very solid defensively this year.)
Berggren - Rasmussen - Raymond (Raymond and Ras both need a playmaker. And last night this line had the best offensive shift in the 3rd period)
Erne - Copp - Sunny (Has actually had OK-ish results lately)
Soderblom - Andreasson - Czarnik

Waive Pius f***ing Suter, watch him go through waivers and put him in GR. he's bad. 0 points and -4 in his last 11 games. Can't play at NHL pace.

Make a trade for a bottom pair RD. Mark Pysyk isn't going to play this year. Lindstrom is at best a mediocre #7.
Montreal might be interested in moving Savard for a prospect.
Vancouver will probably move Schenn but that one will cost, as much as I'd love to have him on the team. Maybe they're more keen to move Tyler Myers since he's more expensive?
Calgary hasn't been playing Tanev much. What's going on with him?
Winnipeg has Nate Schmidt playing bottom pair. Is he still OK?

Make a trade for a bottom 6 or middle 6 RW.
I don't know if Vrana is going to be able to come back this year. And we have no idea what Fabbri is going to return from his 3rd (or is it 4th?) ACL injury.
I still want Blake Coleman on this team, and if Calgary is in the gutter and want to clear cap then maybe a Fabbri (LTIRetire?)+ for Coleman bolsters the 2nd or 3rd line with a great PKer and a guy who can play up the lineup when needed.
Nils Hoglander seems to be in Boudreau's doghouse. The kid is seriously talented.



I expect better from you.

Oh I’m not saying tank the season.

My apologies, I’m just not having a great day. You’ll get better later on today, now, at lunch time, I just shouldn’t have replied.

 

[Lil Sebastian Cossa]

For the real thing I’d do? It’s actually not far from what I said, but without the dramatics. I’d find a nice cozy chair and just plan for the TDL and next offseason as the GM. I bought the groceries and all the jars shattered when I walked in the door. It’s not an appropriate reaction to drop everything and run back to the store. So there is no silver bullet Yzerman move that fixes it right now. Check the waiver wire and check for low-grade moves to tide you over, sure. But no need to overreact. Maybe you get more aggressive calling up kids in the short run.

As coach, you’re just forced to be creative with the players you do have and ask for young guys with talent from GR. Honestly though, I think the appropriate response from Lalonde is the same as Yzerman. You knew what you had coming into the year and kinda like the Lions, you just gotta ride the injury wave. You’re still playing competitive hockey. I hate to be like this but if you lose after playing hard because you’re severely debilitated by injuries? That’s not the worst thing in the world. Focus on what guys are playing well and ride out the wave of shit.

E: more succinct way, put it on the players. Lalonde try to put the guys in the best way, but there isn’t some magic plan that does it. So, sorry David, Ben, Andrew… we’re leaning heavy into you guys who have been around the league to circle the wagons with the young guys. And Larkin, even if he’s out, I’m looking towards him to be a leader for the guys in preparation.

 

[Snuggs]

You really think a trade for a 3rd line player will make the Red Wings a playoff team after this recent sample-size plus injuries?

They'll be out of the playoff hunt by the time these guys come back from injury. Idk, I'm ready to fast-forward till the offseason. They've pretty much proven to me they're not good enough for a playoff appearance. An Raymond looks lost.

I very much wanted them to make a playoff push and to make a move while they sustained a good run. They needed to, to be a playoff team, they were over-achieving with guys injured.

Now we see how fragile they are when a defenseman goes down. Walman/Osterle/Lindstrom all suck. There were reasons crappy veterans were signed to compete with them, kind of.

We're competing with the Capitals and Panthers right now for the last spot. Panthers are going to get Barkov back, and Capitals have Tom Wilson and Nicklas Backstrom coming back from injury so. No, there isn't a path anymore to the playoffs. The shot/window to even compete was right now, the start of this month. These highlighted games that MHB made predictions for. They were important for a huge reason. It never meant Red Wings would even make the playoffs, but they had to remain competitive. The opportunity was in front of the Red Wings for playoffs with better teams having injuries/struggles/problems. Now we got problems, and we aren't as good or have as much talented depth which is why we needed to make a move, bad, for a top six player and they also definitely aren't as ahead in the standings like we used to be.

Don't look now but Buffalo, Montreal, and Ottawa are all primed to pass the Red Wings in points.

 

[norrisnick]

Our issues up front are what they are. Minor line tweaks or whatever but barring a major acquisition and/or players coming back we are kind of stuck there.

We need to improve the backend and transitions.

Call up Ed.

Split up Chia and Mo

Get rid of catastrophes.

Ed - Mo
Maatta - Hronek (whoever til Olli gets back)
Chia - whoever is least trash. Walman whoever.

The transitions on the top pairing are inexcusable. Tell Ed to be safe. Clean passes or carry it out. Don't go nuts activating and let Mo do that. And Mo should be able to take charge of Ed. I don't think Chia listens.

Chia can be all agro on the third against lower tier competition.

 

[Pavels Dog]

It would be nice to make the playoffs but just enjoy the ride. There’s no need to panic if the team goes through some struggles.

 

[Snuggs]

It would be nice to make the playoffs but just enjoy the ride. There’s no need to panic if the team goes through some struggles.

Hey; some of us get scared on the way down a roller coaster hill but still think it was fun at the end when it all works out. But if me or anyone else flies off the tracks I'm not having a good time anymore!

Seriously though, I just think with injuries, etc, we're not in a good position anymore.

 

[cvaicunas]

The last 10 games haven't been great, fellas. Detroit has won 4 of 10 with 1 OTL and 1 SOL. However, I still believe this new Wings team can pull themselves out of this tailspin and stay in the hunt for a wildcard spot.

Here's a quick look at what's gone wrong:

Not keeping our "first line" together enough:
Kubalik - Larkin - Perron has been performing admirably together. Kubalik is the speedy winger that can play at the same pace as Larkin and Perron the savvy vet who is great at protecting the puck down low to keep possession. Splitting them up the last few games has not yielded great results. Since Larkin and Kubalik were split 5 games ago they've combined for 1 goal and 4 points between them. It should be a no-brainer to keep them together.

Injuries compounding:
Bertuzzi being out forces Suter up the lineup, and that's been realbad.
Vrana being out AND Soderblom being out forced Fester to play Berggren, but the Wings are definitely missing a pure goalscorer in the lineup and both Vrana and Soderblom fit that bill.
Since Maatta being out with illness Hronek has had 0 points and gone -2 in the last 3 games.
Worse, we saw the Hagg-Lindstrom pairing rear it's ugly head again due to injuries.

Lack of scoring from depth over the last 10 games:
Joey Veleno: 2 points and -2
Adam Erne: 3 points and +4
Michael Rasmussen: 2 points and is -8!!
Pius Suter: 0 points, -4
Oskar Sundqvist: 4 points, +3

Sophomore slumps:
Lucas Raymond: 1 goal and 4 points in his last 10 with a -1 rating
Moritz Sieder: 1 goal, 3 points with a -6.

Poor backup goaltending:
To put it lightly, Ned has not been Ned. He has had 2 quality starts this year with a save percentage above 0.900. Everything else has been disgusting.


If you were the GM/Coach in this exercise, what do you consider doing to fix this?

Soderblom is not a pure scorer. He looked completely lost half his time up. Fester may have been 'forced' to play Berggren, but as of right now, Berggren is the superior player. Most thought Berggren would have been the first rookie forward last year... Injuries happened, and then it became Raymond. But Berggren has made his point, he belongs, and deserves to stay. Soderblom played on a grind line, and provided sparse offensive chances, with tragic defensive play.

 

[RedWingzz]

The PP has been an embarrassment for a while. It's no secret that most successful teams in this league have good special teams. Our PP has been brutal, yet there have been no changes by the coach which is puzzling.

I would completely switch the units around to see if you can get more out of the PP. It starts with Sundqvist, the guy has never been a PP player, but now all of sudden he's a first unit guy? He works hard out there and can grind it out, but he doesn't have enough skills/smarts to be a top PP guy, let alone on any PP unit.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Soderblom is not a pure scorer. He looked completely lost half his time up. Fester may have been 'forced' to play Berggren, but as of right now, Berggren is the superior player. Most thought Berggren would have been the first rookie forward last year... Injuries happened, and then it became Raymond. But Berggren has made his point, he belongs, and deserves to stay. Soderblom played on a grind line, and provided sparse offensive chances, with tragic defensive play.

Soderblom needs a playmaker. Being with Erne abd Ras did him no favors.

 

[Snuggs]

The PP has been an embarrassment for a while. It's no secret that most successful teams in this league have good special teams. Our PP has been brutal, yet there have been no changes by the coach which is puzzling.

I would completely switch the units around to see if you can get more out of the PP. It starts with Sundqvist, the guy has never been a PP player, but now all of sudden he's a first unit guy? He works hard out there and can grind it out, but he doesn't have enough skills/smarts to be a top PP guy, let alone on any PP unit.

Yeah it's weird, he's basically on pace to break every single offensive statistic he's ever put up so far in his NHL career.

Idk if that's "bad" but it's disappointing no one else on the team seems to be pushing him out.

 

[Frk It]

Waive Pius f***ing Suter, watch him go through waivers and put him in GR. he's bad. 0 points and -4 in his last 11 games. Can't play at NHL pace.

I think this team's biggest issue is after Larkin, they have no one who can attack the middle of the ice effectively. I would rather see Suter play center than Rasmussen, personally. Rasmussen doesn't have the skill to make shit happen in the middle of the ice. It's pretty obvious IMO. I would try playing Suter or Veleno over him as the 3C, and put Copp back at 2C. Put Rasmussen on the wing and let him win battles along the boards and try to do some things out wide.

This stretch is really driving home why they picked Kasper. I think Kasper does a lot of things very well that this team really could use right now. His puck protection and ability to attack down the middle can't come soon enough.

We literally sit on the power play and just pass along the outside for 2 minutes and sometimes make a pass to the bumper guy, but other than that... it's just stagnant and ass. We also specifically need more guys who are good at zone entries. At both ES and on the PP. I thought Veleno was going to excel at this as a prospect. But who knows when you are getting 12 minutes of IT.

 

[Snuggs]

Red Wings trade LW Tyler Bertuzzi, LHD Jake Walman and their 5th round pick.
Rangers trade LW Sammy Blais and their 1st round pick.


Red Wings trade a 4th round pick and F Filip Zadina.
Predators trade RHD Dante Fabbro who signs a 2 year extension worth 5.5 million.


Red Wings trade a 3rd round pick, Dominik Kubalik, and F Pius Suter.
Wild trade their 1st round pick.


* Larkin, Fabbri, Vrana, Maata*: injuried.


David Perron – Andrew Copp – Oskar Sundqvist
Jonatan Berggren – Michael Rasmussen – Lucas Raymond
Elmer Soderblom – Joe Veleno – Adam Erne
Sammy Blais – Austin Czarnik – Pontus Andreasson


Taro Hirose
Givani Smith


Simon Edvinsson – Moritz Seider
Jordan Oesterle – Filip Hronek
Ben Chiarot – Dante Fabbro


Steven Kampfer


Ville Husso
Magnus Hellberg

Alex Nedeljkovic * waived *

Sell, develop while you can, get ready for next year/offseason. If they're somehow in contention with the key players coming back from injury, then it's all gravy.

 

[Ricelund]

I'm not sure there's much that can be done other than shuffle the lines/pairings a bit and wait for guys to come back from injury.

 

[ThankGord]

Would've grabbed Tolvanen off waivers to fill in for the missing wingers. Maybe take a flyer on some younger NHL players that need a change of scenery for a mid/late pick (like Hoglander mentioned earlier here) while we wait for guys to heal. Griffins are going to struggle even more if we keep calling everyone up.

 

[Frk It]

Red Wings trade LW Tyler Bertuzzi, LHD Jake Walman and their 5th round pick.
Rangers trade LW Sammy Blais and their 1st round pick.


Red Wings trade a 4th round pick and F Filip Zadina.
Predators trade RHD Dante Fabbro who signs a 2 year extension worth 5.5 million.


Red Wings trade a 3rd round pick, Dominik Kubalik, and F Pius Suter.
Wild trade their 1st round pick.


* Larkin, Fabbri, Vrana, Maata*: injuried.


David Perron – Andrew Copp – Oskar Sundqvist
Jonatan Berggren – Michael Rasmussen – Lucas Raymond
Elmer Soderblom – Joe Veleno – Adam Erne
Sammy Blais – Austin Czarnik – Pontus Andreasson


Taro Hirose
Givani Smith


Simon Edvinsson – Moritz Seider
Jordan Oesterle – Filip Hronek
Ben Chiarot – Dante Fabbro


Steven Kampfer


Ville Husso
Magnus Hellberg

Alex Nedeljkovic * waived *

Sell, develop while you can, get ready for next year/offseason. If they're somehow in contention with the key players coming back from injury, then it's all gravy.

What is the point of trading Bertuzzi for a 4th liner?

 

[TheOtherOne]

First and last thing I do is trade our PP coach. Everything else is fine. Hold your breath until we're healthy again.

I mean I'm not gonna disagree with calling up Ed in the meantime tho.

 

[norrisnick]

First and last thing I do is trade our PP coach. Everything else is fine. Hold your breath until we're healthy again.

I mean I'm not gonna disagree with calling up Ed in the meantime tho.

He's been traded for two 2nds and a 26yo top-4 defenseman. Or a 1st and 2nd before.

I'm going to ignore the other trades later in his career....