Red Wings embrace winning spirit
Hockeytown heroes surrounded by tradition
DETROIT — The Detroit Red Wings can’t go two steps in Joe Louis Arena without being shown what it means to play in Hockeytown. Everyone who was part of their 11 Stanley Cup winners has his name painted on a wall. The MVPs, the Conn Smythe winners, the Hall of Famers — each and every one is immortalized in one spot or another. The reminders are everywhere.
But here’s the funny part. The thing that makes the Red Wings so special, the thing that makes them the NHL’s model franchise, is no one in the organization needs a reminder. They know they are expected to be better than everyone else.
“We all feel it, right from our ownership on down,” coach Mike Babcock said this weekend. “We expect to win.”
The last thing the Wings see when they exit their dressing room is a message above their door. “To whom much is given, much is expected.” The organization believes in that.
“I’ve been on different teams, and it’s a big difference from going out and hoping you win, and knowing how to win games,” goaltender Chris Osgood said. “It’s a big difference. Our team, we know how to win games if we have to.”
They continue to do so. Just months after claiming the Cup, the Wings are third in the league with 63 points. They improved to 29-7-5 with Saturday’s 3-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres.
So much for that famed Stanley Cup hangover that seemingly plagues every finalist.
“Definitely, we have pretty high expectations,” forward Kirk Maltby said. “Our whole organization does, and our fan base. We don’t sit on last year and assume things are going to fall into place. We know what we have to do.”
The scary thing is the players insist there actually was an early season malaise.
“Our record is maybe better than what we’ve played this year, especially the first 25 games,” Osgood said. “It was real hit and miss, from period to period even. Mentally, we weren’t as there as we should have been.”
Added Maltby: “You end the season on the highest point possible, and it’s definitely hard. . . . It took us a little while to get things going.”
So how does a team win that much even when it’s not playing well? Obviously, talent helps. The Wings — with Nicklas Lidstrom, Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, Tomas Holmstrom, Brian Rafalski and Marian Hossa, to name just a few — are among the most skilled in the NHL.
But there are plenty of examples of talent not being enough. The Red Wings’ success can be traced elsewhere.
“We’ve relied on our character and our discipline,” Osgood said. “We’ve been together for a long time, and I think that’s pushed us in a lot of games where we didn’t play very well.
“Guys in the room know how to win. If we don’t have it, we figure out a way to scratch one out, even if it’s ugly sometimes.”
The Red Wings also have the right leaders on and off the ice. Owner Mike Ilitch will spend whatever it takes. Ken Holland is regarded as the top general manager in the sport, and Babcock has climbed most coaching lists. On the ice, a player would be a fool not to listen to Lidstrom, Maltby and Kris Draper.
“They’ve got some guys that have been here and know how to do it,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. “They really expect a lot of each other. Winning Stanley Cups almost becomes the normal around here, and I think that is from a solid group of guys that have been around here a long time.”
It’s a group of guys that have embraced the winning philosophy. It’s a group of guys that know they are the measuring stick for the rest of the league.
“We understand that and face that each and every night. We’re excited about it,” Babcock said. “You’ve got to perform every night when you’re on a good team. When you’re on a mediocre team, you don’t have to. But it’s way more fun to come to the rink every day [this way].”
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