The Detroit Red Wings have just about everything you could ask for in a playoff contender. They have a pair of forwards with elite-caliber talents in Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond, plus veterans who can lead a locker room during crunch time.
Add in solid talents on the blue line like Erik Gustafsson and an elite-caliber defenseman in Moritz Seider, and the Wings finally look poised to join the “haves” in the Atlantic Division. They seem to have everything, including a general manager who’s done all he can to put the team in the right situation and a decent coach.
But still, goaltending remains the X-Factor that will either make the Red Wings a true team to be reckoned with or, if they will spend yet another spring watching the playoffs from home. It’s one reason I said Cam Talbot must bring his A-Game and why solid goaltending is on the ultimate checklist for 2024-25.
For me, it’s always come down to goaltending for this year’s version of the Wings, and if it makes their year, then great. But if we see a repeat of last season, and let’s be honest, better goaltending would have increased the odds for the playoffs, then the Red Wings need to address it in the offseason.
Bad goaltending will derail the Red Wings season no matter what
Okay, so maybe it’s premature to use the “no matter what” quip, but another year of poor play in the net would mean the Wings scorers must take things up another notch. That means Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko having flashbacks to the mid-2010s, Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond threatening at least 90 points each, and another breakout player or two from deeper in the lineup.
It means newcomers like Erik Gustafsson need to play in the same fashion they did last year, and by the way, he also knows a lot about what deep playoff runs require. But overall, Cam Talbot playing the way he did last year, and ditto for either Alex Lyon or Ville Husso having their own flashbacks, is what this team desperately needs for this season to run smoothly.
Of course, goaltending isn’t the only X-Factor, as teams like the Canadiens could surprise, and others, like the Sabres, have turned to an old friend to bust them out of their 13-year nightmare and will operate on motivation. Then, there are the Lightning and Bruins, who are also facing some make-or-break situations.
So, although goaltending is the ultimate X-Factor, with all other things being equal prediction-wise, there are external factors in play, too.