For as bad as the Detroit Red Wings have looked to start the season. They have suddenly found a groove, and rebuilds will give us moments like these. Still, beware.
It is not like the suddenly fairly hot Detroit Red Wings are going to the playoffs. They are not. But they are clearly not tanking, not yet anyway. The “lose for Hughes” has been quieted down a bit. The “Larkin does it again” has been ringing out. Dylan Larkin has absolutely taken the Wings on his shoulders and has sparked this team.
Andreas Athanasiou has turned the corner, and his quality of play has picked up significantly. This was something that needed to happen for Detroit going forward. Yet, I would caution this, rebuilding young teams will do this. There will be lows and highs. It will continue as high as the Wings are right now there will be lower lows again throughout the season.
I am not trying to be a Debbie Downer but rebuilds are unkind at times, and you have to endure the process. It is encouraging that prospect Filip Zandia has picked up his play in Grand Rapids, but there is still no timetable for his Motown arrival.
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The hope is this; While Larkin, Mantha, Athanasiou, Cholowski and other young players continue to grow into their roles and Zadina becomes ready he will have a stabilized team to join and become a member of a young, dynamic group of core players already established.
This will show not only player development but also organization development, not trading young assets and not rushing them along. Allowing everyone a chance to grown is best for the entire franchise. It has been more enjoyable watching the Red Wings play of late. They look like they are starting to apply what they have learned. They also seem more comfortable together.
It is nice that the compounding issues have at least been slowed down by better play. Moving forward the Winged Wheels need to continue to compete and grow. They need to look for ways to continue to win close games and improve their five on five play.
With salary cap money freeing up after the season, the Red Wings do not need a top 5 draft pick to improve. They can fix problem areas in free agency while taken the good old best player available wherever they end up in the draft order.
Enjoy the winning while it lasts and keep an eye on the future. Those are unwritten rules in a fan’s guide of a franchise they continually cheer for in the midst of a wholesale rebuild.