Did the Detroit Red Wings improve at all in Week 7?

Nov. 23, 2024
Game 20
Bruins @ Red Wings
2-1 Bruins Win
SOG 29-20 Bruins

Starting Goaltenders: Cam Talbot vs Jeremy Swayman

This was the first meeting between the Bruins and the Red Wings. Last season, they split the series, going 2-2, and both are struggling this season. So we're in for another battle of the Super Mid.

The first period started out with the Red Wings coming out hot n' ready. That is as long as you ignore the grad A+++ chance David Pastranak would get less than 30 seconds into the game. They buried the Bruins in their own zone for most of the first three minutes of the game. This would continue for a while, with the Red Wings not really allowing the Bruins to get much of anything sustained going. Unfortunately, at 11:27 of the period, a lucky bounce off of Seider from the point would give the Bruins the early 1-0 lead. Justin Brazeau would be credited with the goal. After this goal, both teams just seemed to forget how to play hockey, as there were ten total giveaways after bringing the period total to 12. Thankfully, with 58 seconds left in the period, Lucas Raymond (4) would score after Mo Seider proved to us all that he is still, in fact, Mo Seider by weaving between 2 Bruins in an almost "Datsyukian" way, getting the puck up to Larkin (6) who torched a Bruins defender and got the puck to Tarasenko (6), who also weaved through 2 Bruins defenders and got it to Raymond in the slot who made no mistake tieing the game at 1-1. This score would be carried into the 2nd period.

The second period was a mess, to say the least. Neither team sustained pressure, and both teams kept turning the puck over and over and over. There were 12 giveaways in this period, which means the total number of giveaways in this game is already at 24. For reference, the Islanders game had 31 giveaways between both teams. But other than that, nothing of major substance happened in this period, and we'd enter the third period still tied 1-1.

The third period was the same as the second. Giveaway after giveaway by both teams. To make matters worse, Jeremy Swayman remembered that he was actually a good goalie and kept the Red Wings out of the net. Cam Talbot did mostly the same thing until a VERY iffy icing call and a failed clearing attempt by Tarasenko led to The "King Rat" himself Brad Marchand would bury the go-ahead goal at 11:27 to make it 2-1. The Red Wings would try to mount a comeback, eventually pulling Talbot with just over two minutes left. Unfortunately, a Mo Seider Crossbar and a puck going off the middle of the shaft of DeBrincat's stick would spell the end of the game for the Red Wings with a 2-1 loss.

This was a good but sloppy game. With 18 total giveaways in the third period, the game total would reach 42. That's 11 more than the Islanders game. But the overall play of the team gave me more of a feeling of last season's team. The attempted comeback at the end, that last-second heroics, and the overall effort level have been far better than the last few weeks. Unfortunately, they still end the week at .500 making little progress in the overall standings. Fortunately, the rest of the East is still super tight. In fact, the Red Wings are still only four points out of a wildcard spot, and in an 82-game season, that can be made up or made greater than it is now.

In week eight, they will face the New York Islanders, Calgary Flames, and New Jersey Devils. This is a week in which they should, at minimum, go 1-1-1, but 2-1 is very much within the realm of possibility.