Each spring 16 NHL teams play for Lord Stanley's Cup. At the end one team is left holding the cup while the other 15 teams can only think of what might have been.
This is about one of the 15 teams who wasn't so lucky.
Detroit Red Wings:
How They Finished: 47-25-10 104 points
1st in Central Division, 3rd in Western Conference.
What Went Wrong:
To answer that question we have to go back to the month of March. During the last 19 games of the season the Red Wings finished with a record of 8-7-4.
That slump at the end of the season left them one point behind San Jose in the standings to end the year meaning the Sharks would have home ice in the playoffs if the two teams met.
Now a lot of people think home ice doesn't mean today what it meant 20 years ago. I'll agree that it doesn't but if you asked every team if they had their choice between having home ice or playing Game 7 on the road I'd be very surprised if any of them would pass up having home ice.
The other thing that hurt the Red Wings was losing the 1st three games of the series with two of those losses being in overtime. In Games 1 & 3 I thought the Red Wings were the better team. That being said San Jose was able to stay with the Red Wings and found a way to win those two games.
Detroit did a great job holding off elimination to force a Game 7 but we saw last night why only three teams have come back from 3-0 down to win the series.
In Game 7 the Sharks best players came up big. Joe Thornton played his best game of the series, setting up the 1st goal of the game on a pass to Devon Setoguchi and Patrick Marleau, who Jeremy Roenick called gutless after Game 5, came through with the Game winning goal to put away Detroit.
The Red Wings had their chances in the game but with Todd Bertuzzi & Dan Cleary leaving the game with injuries the task was too big to overcome and the Sharks move on ending Detroit's season for the 2nd year in a row.
Where Do They Go From Here:
That depends on Nicklas Lidstrom.
The captain of the Red Wings just turned 41 and is a free agent. His play this season proved he can still play at a high level. The question is does he want to come back for another season.
Lidstrom's oldest son attends a hockey school in Sweden and there has been talk about him leaving Detroit to move back to Sweden for the last few years.
If Lidstrom stays that should keep Detroit near the top in the Western Conference although they have other holes to fill.
The Red Wings have about 12.5 million in cap space for next season. Besides Lidstrom the other free agents on the roster are Kris Draper, Mike Modano, Patrick Eaves, Drew Miller, Ruslan Salei, Jonathan Ericsson & Chris Osgood.
I don't see Modano, Osgood & Salei returning next season. Eaves & Miller should re-sign with Detroit. Draper & Ericsson are a little harder to predict.
Draper will be 40 years old next season. He can still skate well but Detroit is set at center with Pavel Datsyuk, Valteri Filppula, Darren Helm, & Jiri Hudler. There may not be room for Draper on the roster.
As for Ericsson, he will be sought after should he hit the free agent market. I think the Red Wings will do everything they can to re-sign him before July 1st but if he hits the free agent market I don't see him returning to Detroit.
For the last few years I keep hearing how old Detroit is and how it's only a matter of time before they are no longer an elite team. After watching this post-season, the Red Wings have proven they can still play with any team in the NHL.
If Lidstrom returns they still will be a favorite to win the Stanley Cup next season. If he doesn't then the transition phase will begin sooner rather than later.
Now if you'll excuse me, I have to shave.
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