There’s nothing more frustrating to a fan base when their team plays as though they’re lacking talent all over the ice. The Red Wings have not just talent but game-changers in players like Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond, and you can even count Alex DeBrincat and Moritz Seider in that mix.
They also might just have a good bench boss and players who have been superstars at one point or another, like Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko. Kane, in particular, has been a major disappointment after he showed us last season that he could still perform at least somewhat at a superstar pace.
Tarasenko has had his ups and downs, and he, too, could be better than he’s played. Of the two, I’m more focused on Kane here, who has just 14 points and five goals in 30 contests.
Why Kane? One reason is that we know he can still end up somewhere near point-per-game productivity as far as the number of games left in the season goes. If the players I mentioned earlier continue to play a good game, and if Kane can transform his play to resemble what it was last season, the Red Wings could get hot.
Patrick Kane can still be a dangerous player for the Red Wings
Patrick Kane got off to a late start last season, but when he found his groove, he was a force to be reckoned with despite playing in his age-35 campaign. Kane saw action in 50 games, scored 20 goals, and finished the year with 47 points, which wasn’t bad, considering what he was coming back from.
And he proved to be an excellent supplement for what was a red-hot team in Hockeytown that proved few opponents could stop them. Now, for the same thing to occur this season, the Wings current points producers need to keep their productivity somewhat near the stratosphere for this to work, but a Patrick Kane that can get hot at the right time would create much-needed mismatches.
Earlier in the season, the Red Wings looked okay without the puck, but they’ve since fallen to 24th in goals allowed with 116. That said, a productive Kane would help in that regard should the Wings continue struggling in the crease since he would help the Wings force opponents to keep up with them.
No, winning games by scoring four times in each matchup isn’t an ideal way to resurrect what’s been a lost season. But Kane has played good hockey for this team in the past when the defense and goaltending haven’t been quite up to par, and he’s helped the Wings win consistently.