If you tuned into the Detroit Red Wings' narrow win against the New York Rangers, your eyes were treated to a rare color-on-color matchup. It held an old-school look, and one that should have fans clamoring for more of these as time moves on.
Think of all the awesome color-on-color matchups the Wings could have with teams in their own division, wearing white ONLY when the colors clash too much. The Red Wings, Maple Leafs, Sabres, Lightning, Senators, and Bruins would all mesh well.
Ditto for games against many teams in the Metropolitan Division, like the Penguins, Blue Jackets, Islanders, Hurricanes, and of course, the Rangers. Now that we're well into the age of color TV and there's enough contrast between the Wings' red sweaters and all of the above, you would get some visually-striking matchups similar to what you saw on Sunday.
Dylan Larkin closing in on a rare milestone
While Patrick Kane relentlessly pursues his 500th goal, Dylan Larkin got one step closer to scoring his 600th point. And one more assist or goal will put him over the edge, and bam, he will join a rare club. Throughout the Red Wings' 100-year history, only 10 players have done this, so it's an ultra-rare club Larkin's about to join.
Larkin continues to hold strong, pacing the Red Wings with 23 points in 19 games, and is one of three players in the Winged Wheel going at a point-per-game pace right now. Alex DeBrincat and Lucas Raymond, with 21 and 20 points, respectively, are the other two.
Larkin also leads the team in goals with 11 and plus-minus, where he's boasting a plus-7 rating. If he keeps up this pace, Larkin will end up with between 99 and 100 points and between 47 and 48 goals. Look for Larkin to snag that 600th point sometime this week.
Red Wings enter new week with an opportunity
So far, this has been one wild season for the Red Wings and the Atlantic Division. The Boston Bruins, supposedly the weakest wonders, are leading it, while the injury-riddled Montreal Canadiens are struggling. Meanwhile, the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Florida Panthers still can't find their footing.
We're also at the quarter-season mark, so if there's a time to start pulling away from the pack, it's come. That means no more heartbreaking losses against teams you're supposed to beat if you're the Red Wings. It also means, against halfway decent teams like the Rangers, you grind out those wins.
With Thanksgiving just 10 days away, we have reached that pivotal moment of the season where the majority of teams in a playoff position will end up punching their ticket through to the postseason. No guarantees, but the signs are pointing in the Red Wings' favor. They just need to recognize the opportunity and take advantage.