Make or Break: Detroit's next four games could determine it's season | Who is stepping up?

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Canadians, Bruins, Senators, and Sabers.

The next four games might be make or break for the Red Wing season.

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Scotty, today's episode we wanted to take and we've touched upon it.

And yesterday's episode in the game recap, we wanted to extrapolate on it.

The Red Wings next four games could very well make or break their season.

In sequence, they play Montreal on Thursday, Boston on Saturday, Ottawa on Tuesday,

and Buffalo next Friday.

All four Atlantic division teams, all four teams, you're either chasing or are chasing you

with a razor thin margin, Buffalo being the only one who has any degree of separation,

but still is an equally big game when you consider what's at stake for the Red Wings themselves.

So we're going to talk about this maker break stretch, what the bare minimum is that they have

to do to stay afloat, as well as who has stepped up so far and who needs the step up going forward.

But Scotty, you know, when it comes to this next four games and with where the Red Wings are at,

tied for third in the Atlantic division with 82 points with Montreal, one point ahead of Boston

Bruins for the second wild card. You know, do you believe that this is a maker break stretcher?

Do you think they could theoretically really drop the ball here and still find their way in?

Well, I mean, mathematically, I'm sure they can drop the ball here and still find their way in,

but it would take a Hail Mary at that point. I mean, this is, and they don't even have to go.

They don't have to go for now. They don't need eight points here, but they have to keep their

head above water. They cannot completely collapse and just drop all these games and expect everything

to be all fine and dandy, especially with how well everyone behind them has been playing over the

last, well, I guess like coming out of the Olympic break. So yeah, 100%. It's, you know, you try to

find the line of not trying to make it overly dramatic, but also trying to underline the importance

of it. Like the season is not literally over, but like it would be awfully hard for them to

drop all of these games against zero points in the next, you know, four games and then still find

themselves in postseason, like play, especially not knowing the future of, you know, health wise of

a lot of players. Right. And that's one of the reasons why it's been so razor thin with all the

teams in the Eastern Conference. And in particular, the Atlantic Division, because a lot of these teams

have yet to finish their secret season series against one another. And I mean, this is going to

be it for Detroit outside of this four game stretch, the only division game they have left

remaining are the final two games of the season at Tampa and at Florida. And the Florida game,

frankly, I mean, it could end up meaning a lot for the Red Wings based on whether standings are at,

but like in terms of both those two team standings, it doesn't mean nearly as much as boss and

Ottawa as we sit here today on March 17th. So this is a huge opportunity for the Red Wings

to really cement themselves back into the playoffs, despite who they are lacking, or it's a huge

anchor that could really put a damper on any real opportunity that they have to make the playoffs.

And so when we talk about like one, a guy I want to under, I want to know what your opinion is

in terms of the key games in this four stretch. They're all four key games, but what are the

most key games and what do you find is the bare minimum of either teams they win slash lose to

or just general what the the split's going to be and in order for them to keep their hopes

alive here in the playoff race. I mean, is it ridiculous to say that if they like I'm trying to

think of like absolute minimum here, is it ridiculous to say that they need to walk out of there

with at least three points? Like I'm trying to think of like the the floor of like they can do

this and still be very much in the hunt and not need some, you know, like historic run or

or like be on absolute fire in April in order to make the postseason like to to maintain

ground and maintain a competitive standing in the standings. I think like obviously anything more

like I'm not rooting for three. I hope they go out and and win every game, but like it's

if they walk out of these next four games with three points, that's just under a 500 point

percentage. I think they're probably still in maybe not the same position, but a similar position

within the standings after it. I tend to agree that three is the bare minimum they must. That's

what I was saving for was not like expectation or what I want. It's it's absolute bare minimum.

Yeah, and that mean that's what's on the show sheet if you're watching on YouTube. It's the absolute

bare minimum they must attain to stay afloat in the playoff chase with these all these key players

they're missing out namely cop and Dylan Larkin. The other thing to remember to Scotty is

Todd Nicole and set on March 12th. Larkin and cop would be reassessed in two weeks two weeks

from that day is March 26th the Thursday. That's the day before the final game of this next four

game stretch heading into Buffalo. So there is a potential and again they'd be reassessed at the

end of the two weeks. It's not a guarantee they're coming back, but there is a chance that you get one

or both back heading into that final game against the toughest of the four opponents in the Buffalo

Sabers. So that's an important thing to keep in mind. I think you are right about the bare minimum.

I personally would set that bar like you got to go 500 because you're right three would probably

keep you in the race, but four that extra point could go a long way to just really like you at

that point you're not I feel like three you're losing ground you're not out of it, but you're losing

ground with four you're at least me I think you're maintaining ground. You're going absolutely 500

and I think that every single one of these games matters a lot, but I think personally the game

that matters the most out of these four is that game against the senators because with where the

Red Wings are at and a whole conversation being around staying afloat rather than like really

locking down. I was chasing the Detroit Red Wings and I believe they're five points back with two

games in hand right now. They're pursuing. They're a pursuer. Boston's a pursuer too, but they're

one point back and with a win over Montreal tonight because we're recording this before they go

head to head in tonight's game. They could leapfrog Montreal and be the third divisional seed by

the end of the night. Montreal's or Ottawa rather is five points back of Detroit with two games

in hand. That game to me you have an opportunity to complete what a season sweep or going

because you've already won the season series I believe with the Ottawa Senators. I have to double

check on that one. You've won most of the games against them for the first time in what feels

like forever. Yeah, the Red Wings have yeah, they're three and oh with two overtime wins over the

Ottawa Senators this season. You have an opportunity to be the be what they were to you and really put a

dagger in their season like they were to youth what three seasons ago where they did that and back

to back nights just before the trade deadline and you could really hurt their their hunt for the playoffs

and kind of settle down the conversation from who makes the playoffs to what seeding these teams

are going to be you stuff Columbus to worry about you stuff the next what eight games following

that 10 eight games following that to still worry about but you could really put a dagger in the

Ottawa Senators. I think that of the four really, really important games that the Red Wings have to play

maybe the most important of the four. Now we have three games or two more games to get to before you

get to that. So things may change by the time we get to that date. But as we sit here on March 17th

that one really is like number one priority on my list of the games you've got to win of those four.

Yeah, I realize I didn't answer that question. Yes, I completely agree though. I think that it's

one of those things too where it's it doesn't even have to be like a Wings sends you know rivalry

thing. It's just straight up like math, right? Like you're trying to get rid of as many of the chasers

as possible. You are trying to get rid of as many of the teams that are not in a playoff spot that

are trying to you know play themselves into a playoff spot as you possibly can because you are

trying to clinch your own spot. So like yeah, if they can put a dagger in any team you know

and the fact that it's Ottawa would just be like icing on the cake from that perspective. But

if they can again not like mathematically but in theory like end a team season in this stretch

and with all the players they have injured still being out then yeah, that's a massive win.

But that being said, if they lose to Ottawa but they win the other three games,

doesn't matter like that's a really successful stretch six of eight points in that stretch would

be incredible. Scotty, we're going to have to a quick break when we return. We'll talk about players

who in this stretch of what what I say earlier five games since Dylan Arkins been hurt. We're

going to talk about who is stepped up and who is still falling short and needs to step their

game up. So stay tuned to segment two of lockdown red wings.

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at free episodes and that exclusive discord Scotty. The red wings sense Dylan Larkin's injury and

I'm not going to count the game in which he got hurt but the games following that because they

had him for most of that game up until late in the third period. But in the games following since

then the red wings have somehow managed to cobble together a two two and one record which honestly is

treading water and going 500 in the stretch where you're missing your top center and then your

second best center and then your foresee on top of that is pretty impressive. It's not without merit

whatsoever and I don't think it's possible without a few key players stepping up when they needed to

and I just wanted to kind of take that moment to name those players as guys who have stepped up and

I want to throw it to you first who do you believe a stepped up for the Detroit Red Wings?

Well, I really think it's hard to not start with Patrick Kane and I know that sounds kind of

ridiculous in like the scope of his history and his entire career, right? Like Patrick Kane is

arguably the greatest American to ever put on skates and his first ball in Hall of Famer whenever

he decides to hang up but I think that at this point in his career and what he has provided the

wings before all the injuries especially before Larkin and Cobb's injuries was you know like that

the even strength play is not really there anymore but he's still weapon on the power play but now

the power play is not doing well like we're just trying to find ways to get him going we kind of

have to hide him at five on five play like whatever I mean ever since cop went down man he has been

a monster everywhere and then he's obviously not only producing a lot offensively but

he's been very aggressive on the back check he's been aggressive on the forecheck like he's

he is making a difference in the neutral zone and in the defensive zone which I'm not sure we've

been able to say literally in his entire Red Wings tenure like nonetheless you know going into

this season so yeah I mean I think there are certainly guys that like already were good that are

still good right like Gibson Insider right like those are in Raymond like those are just guys you

kind of like okay yeah like they haven't stepped up per se but like they are they were really good

all season are still really good but Kane is one who like has noticeably improved pretty

dramatically since those guys went down I think he deserves a lot of credit I don't know if I'd

say monster I think that might be a little yeah he's definitely stepped his game up and

is actually giving giving it f defensively at least more so than he used to back checking and

showing effort in the back check he had the obviously very notable one against Calgary up break

up a two on one he does have six points in the five games and still Larkin has been out with

injury so he's overall point per game in that stretch his and he's had to be I mean it's crazy

the Red Wings have to lean on a 37 year old a granted a 37 year old who is going to be a first

battle hockey ala famous achieved everything you could ever want at a professional level but he's

playing top line now is time on ice per game has gone from 1650 a game to 1905 a game because they've

had to rely on him to be kind of the the production carrier for this team and he's done so six points

in five games is nothing to sneeze at considering what this team is lacking and who his center is now

and I think that's a great point of transition Scotty and to the other guy who's stepped his game up

in in a moment where the Red Wings needed him to and that was JT Comfort and now JT Comfort isn't

like Patrick Kane he doesn't have the production that Kane does but I think he has been far more

noticeable on the ice and having far more positive impact every shift than he did when he was

centering the third line for the bulk majority of the season granted he's playing with

to bring it and Kane now which is something to note but he's also playing against the toughest

competition the other team has to offer and he has a goal to show for it he almost has two more he

hit the post on a redirect in Dallas and then hit the post on a power play opportunity against the

flames the other night like he is stepped his game up and I think his impact is definitely been a

lot more off-puck than it has been for Patrick Kane Patrick Kane has stepped off-puck impacts up

but Patrick Kane's more on-puck production has stepped up and I just do want to give JT Comfort

props because we've been very critical I have in particular been very critical of JT Comfort this

season and in the five game sense he has been called upon to become the right well not the five

game sense because cop was the no de facto one C for a moment there but in the few game sense

then I think he has stepped his game up in the absence of cop and larkin and I wanted to give credit

where credit is due yeah no 100% and I mean that was our biggest concern when cop went down right

was like who on earth is gonna play up the middle and I think that he has not only filled that role

just like literally right like not only has he just been the guy to play there but he's actually been

I think the most noticeable in terms of his performance on a night and a night out basis again

this entire season maybe even since his first year in Detroit to be honest yeah I think he's

been he's been really solid and kind of centered that line really well three points and three games

since cop went down and he had to fill in in that one C position so definitely something to know

this isn't necessarily a player who stepped up but you know me Scotty there's no way I'm not

going to talk about this guy like you know way and that's more its citer and I don't mean he

hasn't stepped up in like he hasn't stepped up it's that his level of play has been consistently

stepped up the entire year right it's hard to get much higher than this but like in the absence of

a lot of the offense he and Edithson a lot of the other defenders they talk about the broadcast

have been asked to kind of step up offensively and take a few more risks to get involved to keep

offensive plays alive and more its citer is now got 47 points in the year we mentioned in

yesterday's episode he's tightest career high in goals he's four points shy of breaking his career

high in points with 16 games left I'm sorry 14 games left to play and it's not as if he you know

think about the game against New Jersey he had five shots on that the game against the Panthers he

had three he had six against Dallas like he is starting to fire the puck a lot more because they

need to get pucks on net for reader X and he obviously scored that goal the other night but like he's

he's realizing that oh man the team doesn't just need me for defense now they need me for both

like more so than ever and I I wanted to shout him out too because and he's been great great

he's been fantastic doing that for sure Scotty let's head to another break when we return we'll

talk about some other players have stepped up in some whom they need to have a step up so let's

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community Scotty who will see you have on your list of players you have stepped up or even if

you want to touch upon one that you think is still got more to give yeah to be honest I think uh

kind of over these next four games the the player and maybe this isn't even fair to him

with the player that I'm kind of looking at and and hoping that will step up over this stretch is

folk uh I mean like it's it's not fair necessarily he did not trade uh uh first round pick and

uh highly regarded prospect for himself right but um like ultimately that was the decision the

front office made and and we again like support it still do support it um it's just those are the

caliber of players that you want to rely on when stuff gets tough and and when injuries pile up

and when you need to rely on someone you'd hope that you could uh you know rely on the again the

guy that cost uh uh a prospect and a first so um not that he's played like super poorly or been

terrible it's just like you know you need your best players to to step up and you traded for him

with the assumption that he would be one of your best players so I think that um you know a good

three or four games from him would certainly go a long way yeah I think the sentiment can be the

same with David Peron and that not that they have been bad I think David Peron's actually looked like

pretty exactly what we expected and that's a good like David Peron yeah he hasn't found the back

of the net yet but he's had chances he looks good right he did it was close I think both of them

have given us exactly what was advertised of them since they've come to play for the Detroit um but

you're gonna need that and maybe a little bit more going down the stretch Justin Falk has

done wonders to stabilize the back end like you always knew you had a good top pair your second

pair was a huge red flag when ASP was there because he just wasn't quite ready for that type of

roll yet and they put it that upon him and you know he did what he could do he he took it on the

chin all season long uh and then they got Justin Falk and now Justin Falk is really stabilized the

second pair and Albert your hands and stepped up so it's not really a concern but him being acquired

the way he was you're gonna need him to continue to be this and maybe get a little bit of extra

offense out of him because you know that he's got that in his game um David Peron same thing like

you just you need him to be a productive member to productive depth member at all not depth

anymore with the injuries but productive depth member of the director's fourth quarter yeah

another guy I need to step up and it's Mason Appleton he has been we talk about

Michael Rasmussen so much as having not done a whole heck of a lot uh the last 22 games prior to

his injury of course because he's really not gonna do anything but Appleton's only got 13 points

and 58 games played and I understand we did not the Redemies did not sign him to be a point guy

he was supposed to be a marginal upgrade in the bottom six and really be able to play with some

pace which he does do but his life he had two assists against the Nashville Predators and that's

the last points he's gotten home he he really went those two points against the Nashville Predators

and that Metney Day win Scotty was his first points since December 31st when he scored the

eventual game in the New Year is crazy yeah that's his first point in 2026 was those two assists

against Nashville so like yeah you know you didn't get him to a crew points but that doesn't

mean you shouldn't expect some production that doesn't mean zero's okay yeah right right so definitely

need a little bit more out of Mason Appleton here as this the thin lineup and he's a veteran like

the HL guys are giving it their all I don't bemoan anything and Dominic shine has done a really

nice job and John Leonard had some nice opportunities get the post but I my bar for them is they're

already at it or exceeding it with their level of effort and play because they're career a HL guys

Mason Appleton is not that he needs to be better than what those guys bring and he really hasn't been

so that's a guy that you desperately I wouldn't say desperately need because you can win a lot of

games as long as Patrick can and Alex to bring it or pop it off but you need those guys to

to be able to play their game for sure yeah that the only other this is kind of a duo but the

only other person and people that I really want to bring up well I mean like it kind of goes

without saying but we'll just bring it up just for the sake of bringing it up John Gibson needs

to continue to be unreal that would certainly go a mighty long way during this this injury riddled

stretch if they had you know illegal tending still but I think that the duo of Finney and Casper

is like we've talked about it a lot and you know like Finney had the goal what last night

two nights ago as people listen to this they have I feel like they have stepped up and they have

been pretty good especially when they play together if they like again you're going through a gauntlet

here these next four games if just really important games to play if you want to be successful

in those I think you're going to need that tandem to kind of continue producing and and look I

guess like they have the last couple of games Finney got a goal as your two C last night like that's

yeah he stepped up he's got three points in the five games sense but he's

a seventh round pick from two years ago being put in that position having having having played center

sense juniors is it's hard for me to be mad at his love for play when you know he's giving it all

I honestly think like we we haven't spoken untouched upon the two biggest people who have to

carry this team and that is Lucas Raymond and Alex to break it now to bring out a three point

he's still producing even if he's not scoring goals he's not scoring a lot right now he's

gotten cold with the goal scoring but he's still getting a lot of sys same thing with Lucas Raymond

right get Raymond had a nice assist against the flames but you need those two guys to be able to find

the back of the net themselves Todd McClellan said it he has to be able to shoot more he got took

taken off of power play number one because he's not shooting the puck and there is a belief amongst

fans not confirmed this is not confirmed but it's belief and speculation amongst fans that he's

still dealing with some kind of injury because it doesn't quite look like himself with these injuries

but two years ago down the stretch when the Red Wings needed to keep winning I mean who was it

pulling the wagon for the Red Wings it was Lucas Raymond so we know he's got that clutch

up ability we know the level of shot that he has he's just not utilizing it he's only got 21

goals on the season so as much as he is a great playmaker you need him to be able to shoot the

puck and score goals and Alex to bring it like that's his go to so you need to bring it break out

of his goal scoring slump even though again I'm not mad at them they're producing points still

which is important but you need them to be able to find the back of the net too and especially

with Larkin out you're going to be leaning on them to score goals more heavily than ever

yeah 100% you know it's it's funny we are talking about like who needs to step up and I think we've

touched on like 90% of the entire roster so that's great yeah who needs to step up well everyone

there's there's your you know 15 seconds to summarize 30 minutes there that is genuinely what

needs to happen though yeah I know I I'm not saying it was wrong of us I'm just saying it's funny

that we we kind of just did the rounds there but like any guys we any guys we haven't mentioned

is basically like they're they're not they're doing fine like they're doing enough yeah but it's

either guys that we think of are doing a good job or guys who need to do more and that's between

the two of them it's like 90% of the roster right yeah oh off day episodes Scotty any final thoughts

we ball baby with you ball we'll be back with a new episode tomorrow previewing the game against

the Montreal Canadian and Scotty big game tonight as we record Boston and Montreal are facing

off Tuesday night hopefully by the time you're listening to this it is a regulation finish one

way or the other just that's regulation maybe no please for the time where's my I need a like a

pennant or like a flag that just says no OT on it and that can be like my fandom for for certain

games that is certainly how we feel all right all right Scotty we'll be back tomorrow same time same

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