Jeremy Laura: Detroit’s penalty kill and inability to score costly against Senators

Cozens looked pretty good. Raymond looks exhausted.

Last year's implosing coincided with a Larkin injur, but Ramond flipped a switch and became a formidable scorer. This year's implosing coincided with 4N and Larkin AND Raymond collapsing. There's a paucity of secondary scoring. Dry spells happen in 82 games, but stacked teams have guys step into the breach. We're hurting.

I watched the game and I will say this: we actually looked good but Ullmark was lights-out. Passing was fsirly crisp, defense was fairly solid....seemed like the right things were being done but there was no puck luck. I will say that the 3d was pretty strong compared the the last 5 games or so.

I dunno. Painful to see. We're better than this.

2016-17 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 33 36 0 13 0 79 0.482 207 244 718 20027 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2017-18 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 30 39 0 12 1 73 0.445 217 255 726 19515 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2018-19 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 32 40 0 5 5 74 0.451 227 277 649 19121 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2019-20 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 71 17 49 0 3 2 39 0.275 145 267 599 18717 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2020-21 Detroit Red Wings NHL Central 56 19 27 0 7 3 48 0.429 127 171 408 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2021-22 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 32 40 0 8 2 74 0.451 230 312 733 16985 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2022-23 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 35 37 0 6 4 80 0.488 240 279 662 18819 Derek Lalonde Out of Playoffs
2023-24 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 41 32 0 8 1 91 0.555 278 274 716 18980 Derek Lalonde Out of Playoffs
2024-25 Detroit Red Wings NHL Out of Playoffs

EVEN THE DEAD THINGS ERA FROM 1967 TO 1983 NEVER WITNESSED A NINE CONSECUTIVE YEAR PLAYOFF DROUGHT.
YOU DON’T REALIZE JUST HOW UGLY THIS SITUATION AND TEAM IS, UNTIL YOU LOOK AT THE
“ DETROIT RED WINGS STATISTICS AND HISTORY PAGE “

IF DYLAN LARKIN EVER WRITES A BOOK, HE CAN CALL IT,
“ A REBUILD THAT LASTED A FULL CAREER “

As a Sens fan watching that game.....Ullmark stole it. The officiating was "evenly uneven"

I thought the wings players ran wonderful pick plays, right out of basketball last night especially on Sens leaving the zone without the puck. So people weren't where they should have been for out let passes. It's called interference. It's why the Wings could make the Sens cough it up over and over and kept cycling it back in the Ottawa zone. Especially in the 2nd. I thought the Sens wonderfully held, clutched and grabbed faster Detroit players all night. And then....penalties to both teams for neither of those things on what seemed like meaningless harmless interactions. Stutzle's diving has returned as well. Oh yes....he does it. He's faster so it looks like he's been impeded. At one point I was sure the ghost of Hamonic had returned and he was just wearing other defensemen's jerseys. The Wings forwards are SO fast.

Sens stole one. Not sure that's the nail in the coffin for detroit. Still a lot of hockey to be played.

A monumental effort on the part of the Wings last night! Just did not get the reward at the end because of a monumental effort by a Ullmark.
Last year's collapse was more of a lack of effort on that team. These Wings have nothing to be ashamed about if they put in this kind of effort!

2016-17 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 33 36 0 13 0 79 0.482 207 244 718 20027 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2017-18 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 30 39 0 12 1 73 0.445 217 255 726 19515 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2018-19 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 32 40 0 5 5 74 0.451 227 277 649 19121 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2019-20 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 71 17 49 0 3 2 39 0.275 145 267 599 18717 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2020-21 Detroit Red Wings NHL Central 56 19 27 0 7 3 48 0.429 127 171 408 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2021-22 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 32 40 0 8 2 74 0.451 230 312 733 16985 Jeff Blashill Out of Playoffs
2022-23 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 35 37 0 6 4 80 0.488 240 279 662 18819 Derek Lalonde Out of Playoffs
2023-24 Detroit Red Wings NHL Atlantic 82 41 32 0 8 1 91 0.555 278 274 716 18980 Derek Lalonde Out of Playoffs
2024-25 Detroit Red Wings NHL Out of Playoffs

EVEN THE DEAD THINGS ERA FROM 1967 TO 1983 NEVER WITNESSED A NINE CONSECUTIVE YEAR PLAYOFF DROUGHT.
YOU DON’T REALIZE JUST HOW UGLY THIS SITUATION AND TEAM IS, UNTIL YOU LOOK AT THE
“ DETROIT RED WINGS STATISTICS AND HISTORY PAGE “

IF DYLAN LARKIN EVER WRITES A BOOK, HE CAN CALL IT,
“ A REBUILD THAT LASTED A FULL CAREER “
- GeoffY

While I agree with you that this stretch of Red Wings history is more awful than most fans seem to grasp, consecutive seasons missing the playoffs isn't really an apples to apples comparison.

The NHL has fluctuated wildly in terms of percentage of teams that make the playoffs. Right now only half get in, tied for the lowest it's ever been. But in the past it's tended to average around two thirds, and been as high as 6 out of 7 (just before the start of the O6 era) and 16 out of 21 during the 80s.

Between 1971 and 1986 the "Dead Wings" made the playoffs three times out of 16 seasons -- each time despite a losing regular season record.

1978: 32-34-14, finished 9th in an 18-team league (12 playoff teams)
1984: 31-42-7, finished 15th in a 21-team league (16 playoff teams)
1985: 27-41-12, finished 15th in a 21-team league (16 playoff teams)

The 1968 Red Wings missed the playoffs despite a .513 record. The 1985 Red Wings made the playoffs despite a .413 record.

Again, I'm not disputing the current Red Wings are in a really bad place. There are lots of holes, not enough elite talent, and there is a very strong possibility the rebuild stalls out at middle-of-the-pack unless the next wave of prospects absolutely hit it out of the park.

I'm just saying playoffs made/missed are a bad historical standard for comparison. By "80s playoff cutline" standards the 2016, 2023, 2024, and 2025 Red Wings would have all been comfortably in, and the drought is "only" 5 seasons at worst. And under modern playoff cutline standards there's a decent chance the 1971-1986 Red Wings would have missed 16 in a row, only possibly sneaking in in 1978.

The final score of 2-1 was due Detroit's inept PK and running into a hot goal tender, which tends to happen during a losing streak.

The final score of 2-1 was due Detroit's inept PK and running into a hot goal tender, which tends to happen during a losing streak.
- Bigfrog

That’s pretty much in the title of the article….