How historical was the Detroit Red Wings' comeback over the St. Louis Blues on Saturday night? They accomplished something that occurred, on average, once every 20 years. As Dave Hogg of NHL.com put it, "It was the fifth four-goal comeback win in Red Wings history. Their only other such comeback victory in the past 40 years was a 5-4 overtime victory at the Pittsburgh Penguins on Dec. 28, 2022."
That's a 20-year average, and the first time the Wings accomplished this feat in nearly three years. The big win proved a lot, too, showing fans this Red Wings team isn't capable of giving in even when they have the entire deck stacked against them.
How many of you were about to turn the game off in favor of college football, or flip to another hockey game? There was a lot going on in the NHL on Saturday night, but the Red Wings, at least, made sure they were going to hold everyone's interest.
What was even more impressive about the Detroit Red Wings win on Saturday?
If you want any validation on how deep and high-octane this Red Wings team can be, check out the final game statistics and you'll notice something interesting. Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond were shut out in points, and so was Marco Kasper, three players who often snag multiple points when their team scores six goals.
Instead, it was Andrew Copp, J.T. Compher, and Jonatan Berggren enjoying multiple-point nights. If someone predicted that would happen before a game that saw the Red Wings trailing by four goals, they wouldn't have heard the end of it. But it implies this team isn't as top-heavy as we may have thought.
As for the blue line, Simon Edvinsson stepped up with two goals. One was an empty-netter, but who cares? Come season's end, nobody's going to remember that Edvinsson shot the puck into an empty net to record his second goal of this historical comeback.
Signs of greatness are brewing in Hockeytown
There have been times this season when the Red Wings looked like they could use help from a kid named Gavin McKenna. That's the vibe they sent in losses to the Montreal Canadiens, New York Islanders, and, for nearly half the game, the St. Louis Blues.
Then, there's the vibe that they're going to break one of the league's longest playoff droughts, something their 5-1 start showed, and in comeback wins like this one. No, the Wings aren't a great hockey team yet, but great teams find ways to snag comeback wins or at least make things interesting for themselves when they go down by four goals.
With these mixed signals, Detroit has been a good, solid unit through the first nine games. If they manage to get it together when they're having a rough outing like they did on Saturday, they will be more than that.