Red Wings eliminated from playoffs for 10th consecutive season

For the 10th season in a row, the Detroit Red Wings will not qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

By virtue of their 5-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils, the Red Wings have been mathematically eliminated from contention in a season that they spent the vast majority of looking like a near-lock to play games in the spring.

With the Buffalo Sabres locked into a spot, Detroit now owns the longest active playoff drought in the league. With the Anaheim Ducks looking close to snapping their seven-year spell, the Wings will have the distinction by a three-year margin over the San Jose Sharks.

The Red Wings had some things shake out against them, as down the stretch, they were forced to contend for the Eastern Conference’s two wild card spots while the No. 3 spot in the Metropolitan Division appeared more attainable the whole time.

The strength of the Atlantic meant one solid team was going to miss out, but Detroit simply played too poorly down the stretch to be able to expect to make it as Boston and Ottawa surged.

On January 24, the Red Wings were first in the Atlantic with a 32-16-5 record, but an 8-13-4 stretch between then and April 9 saw them rapidly fade out of the picture.

Detroit does not have its first-round pick in the upcoming draft, as general manager Steve Yzerman traded it to the St. Louis Blues as part of a sizable package to land defenseman Justin Faulk at the trade deadline.

While the season in Hockeytown ends in crushing disappointment, there were a few silver linings in terms of the individual efforts that the Wings can hope will carry over toward building a better team next year.

Moritz Seider spent most of the year as a contender for the Norris Trophy in what has been the best season of his career, and Alex DeBrincat hit the 40-goal mark for the third time in his career and first time since 2021-22.

While it’s possible that a collapse like this one necessitates changes throughout the organization and possibly in the core, there are solid building blocks in place that will at least have Detroit in the picture once again next season.