Even blowout wins are coming with an asterisk these days for the Detroit Red Wings. Yeah, a few players and the team made history in what was another game of firsts. And at the end of the evening, the Wings snagged the much-needed W and have kept their playoff hopes alive for at least another few games.
But wow, when you look at one major metric, you’ll find that the Red Wings, in many ways, still lost. And yeah, a win is a win, but so is a win and in the back of your mind, you know a lot of dysfunction surrounding this team remains.
So, what exactly happened and why am I treading water with extreme caution despite what was a W in last night’s game? Well, the Wings finished the contest with just 14 shots on goal, and that should send red flags up all over Hockeytown.
Red Wings scored five times in just 14 shots on net in win
To be fair, this game saw just 32 shots on goal total, with Utah snagging 18 of them. But wow, 14 shots, and five between the first two periods, tells me that something is still very, very wrong here. Five goals are great, but 14 shots is something you see a few teams get in one period.
Something else to consider, though, is what head coach Todd McLellan stated postgame. When asked, McLellan said, “I thought it was ugly from both sides. The conditions were pretty rough, slushy, snowy, puck bouncing all over the place. There were times in the game where I thought that hurt us and times in the game when it helped us. They couldn't connect on some plays as well. But we found a way to stick with an ugly night.”
Yeah, that could’ve been the cause, but good teams still overcome these less-than-ideal conditions and play decent hockey. The Red Wings didn’t do that, or else we’d have seen far more shots on goal players connecting during sequences as they grew more accustomed to the playing surface. That didn’t happen, and it’s telling from what remains a struggling Detroit Red Wings team.
Hard to say whether the Red Wings gained momentum here…
Had the Red Wings won this game 5-1 with 28 shots on goal, I’d be saying ‘Yes, they built much-needed momentum for the upcoming schedule.’ Had they even logged 21 shots on goal because of how bad the conditions were, I still would’ve said this one’s a major momentum booster.
But right now, it’s tough to admit that the Red Wings did much to improve their current predicament, except to add another five goals to their overall total. The win looked like a convincing one on the scoreboard, but a bland hockey game despite what we saw on the ice doesn’t make me any more optimistic.
Now, if the Wings play the Colorado Avalanche with some tenacity when they have the puck, connect on sequences, and score five goals with 30 shots to show for it, I’d be thrilled. But right now, it wouldn’t surprise me if the Avs sent the Wings packing after 40 minutes, considering what we saw last night.