If there was ever a time to snap a six-game losing streak, it had to come against a team that’d been struggling, itself. But, unlike the Red Wings, the Sabres have been out of the running, in a manner of speaking, since their 13-game losing streak back in November and December.
Yeah, it spelled yet another year of misery for Sabres fans, and for the Wings, November also wasn’t kind to them. Nor has this six-game losing streak, and if the Wings couldn’t beat the Sabres, it was going to be hard to get back on track.
But, after a five-point game from the great Patrick Kane and a brawl that broke out toward the end of the contest, the Red Wings broke through and are back in the win column. Still, it was one good game against a bad hockey team, so the Wings need plenty more of that if they plan on making the playoffs.
Red Wings could stand to take some sage “advice” from a Sabres player
In his postgame comments, Sabres center Tage Thompson inadvertently offered some advice for the Red Wings as they move forward in their quest to earn a playoff berth. Tage, who scores a goal roughly every 28 seconds (exaggerated, by the way) gives every team he plays against headaches.
So, a player of his caliber should be taken seriously when one can pick up some much-needed, unintentional advice for an opponent. Few can play the game offensively better than Tage, even if, as a member of the Sabres, he rarely gets recognition.
Anyway, in Dave Hogg’s postgame piece at NHL.com, Tage said, “That’s a very dangerous group, and they don’t need a whole lot to put the puck in the back of the net. We had a couple defensive breakdowns that gave them clean looks and they capitalized.”
If there’s something the Red Wings haven’t been consistent at this season, it’s been taking advantage of opposing teams breaking down defensively. And if the Wings fixed that portion of their game and played offensively the same way they had vs. the Sabres, you’ll see them score five, six, even seven times far more often than you already have, finally forging that much-needed identity.
Red Wings must take Tage Thompson’s comments to heart in their upcoming games
For starters, the Red Wings are just 18th in goals scored with 186, and while this is better than what they’ve done in the past, it’s still not something you like to see from a team that’s supposed to be in the playoff hunt. How do we know Detroit’s been abysmal in this category? Well, just take a look at some of their numbers.
At 5-on-5, the Wings have logged just a 7.3 shooting percentage, along with a Corsi For Percentage of 48.9, a Scoring Chances For Percentage of 48.2, and a High-Danger Chances For Percentage of 45.8. None of the above are good numbers, and they show just how meager the Wings have been when they have the puck all season.
By diagnosing and identifying defensive breakdowns, you’ll see a more high-octane Red Wings team throughout the most important part of the regular season. Right now, they aren’t there, but they showed fans a glimmer of hope last night. Let’s hope they take Tage’s comments as advice for their upcoming playoff quest and end this drought in April.