2013–14 Detroit Red Wings season

2013–14 Detroit Red Wings
Division4th Atlantic
Conference8th Eastern
2013–14 record39–28–15
Home record18–13–10
Road record21–15–5
Goals for222
Goals against230
Team information
General managerKen Holland
CoachMike Babcock
CaptainHenrik Zetterberg
Alternate captainsPavel Datsyuk
Niklas Kronwall
ArenaJoe Louis Arena
Average attendance22,149 (110.4%)
Total: 908,131
Minor league affiliate(s)Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL)
Toledo Walleye (ECHL)
Team leaders
GoalsGustav Nyquist (28)
AssistsNiklas Kronwall (41)
PointsDaniel Alfredsson (49)
Niklas Kronwall
Penalty minutesKyle Quincey (88)
Plus/minusHenrik Zetterberg (+19)
WinsJimmy Howard (21)
Goals against averagePetr Mrazek (1.74)

The 2013–14 Detroit Red Wings season was the 88th season for the National Hockey League (NHL) franchise that was established on September 25, 1926.[1] In the 2013–14 season, the Wings went 39–28–15, finishing fourth in the Atlantic Division and qualifying for the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs as a Wildcard. The team was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, losing the best-of-seven series to the Boston Bruins, four games to one.

Mike Babcock served his ninth year as head coach of the Red Wings, while Henrik Zetterberg served as the team's captain.

Realignment

[edit]

This will mark the first season of a new divisional format change which the number of divisions are reduced to four. Detroit will be in a division with the Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens, Buffalo Sabres, Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs in the Eastern Conference as opposed to the Red Wings long standing within the Western Conference. This format will continue until the league either expands or a relocation requires a change.

It will also present an added difficulty in extending the club's playoff streak. The Red Wings' division is one of two eight-team divisions, as opposed to two seven-team divisions in the West. According to NHL.com "The Stanley Cup Playoffs will still consist of 16 teams, eight in each conference, but it will be division-based and a wild-card system has been added.[2]

The top three teams in each division will make up the first 12 teams in the playoffs. The remaining four spots will be filled by the next two highest-placed finishers in each conference, based on regular-season points and regardless of division. It will be possible, then, for one division to send five teams to the post-season while the other sends three." This means the Eastern Conference teams will fight to be one of eight teams out of 16, while the Western Conference has better odds with eight of 14 teams making the playoffs. The Red Wings will have a statistically harder time making the playoffs under this format. The league dismissed the issue as minor and focused on increased home and home series and the vast majority of games being played in the teams own time zone.[3]

Members of the media also predicted that Detroit and the Columbus Blue Jackets (the other team to switch conferences from the west) would benefit from the greatly reduced travel and less physical level of play on average in the Eastern Conference. The move of Detroit and Columbus to the Eastern Conference allowed the Winnipeg Jets to be moved to the Western Conference, two calendar years from when the Atlanta Thrashers were officially relocated and renamed the Jets (not to be confused with the Winnipeg Jets (1972–96), who are still the Phoenix Coyotes).

The Red Wings will compete directly against three of the Original Six teams in their division, as well as against the team of the general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning and former Red Wing Hockey Hall of Famer, Steve Yzerman. They will lose longtime rivals in the Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues. They also will no longer serve as the rivals for the Nashville Predators or Columbus Blue Jackets, though they would still have a decent shot at meeting Columbus in the Conference play in the playoffs as well as play every team in the NHL at least twice per year in the regular season.

It is likely that there will be an NHL league expansion in the near future, but Detroit will likely remain in the Eastern Conference permanently after a hard-fought campaign over the years to be moved East.

The team will also play in a rescheduled Winter Classic game on New Year's Day at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan, as well as participate in alumni games and other events at Comerica Park. The planned events were temporarily cancelled following the 2012–13 NHL lockout.[4]

Off-season

[edit]

On June 18, 2013, the Red Wings re-signed fan favorite and all-star Pavel Datsyuk to a three-year extension that will keep him in Detroit through the 2016–17 season and pay him $23 million.[5]

In a surprise move that shocked Ottawa fans, captain and multiple franchise record holder Daniel Alfredsson signed as a free agent a one-year $5.5 million contract with the Red Wings on July 5, the first day of free agency. This came as a surprise to Detroit fans, as the 18-year veteran seemed destined to retire having only played for the Senators. "It pretty much came down to a selfish decision in terms of I have not won a Stanley Cup, a big priority for me," Alfredsson explained in a candid conference call with the media.[6]

Alfredsson continued explaining how hard of a decision it was and gave his reasoning. "I feel that in Ottawa they are getting closer and closer and they have a really bright future in front of them, but at this point in my career there's not much left," Alfredsson said. "I don't have the time to wait for that." He also stated that, "I didn't really see myself making a change if you would have asked me a week ago, but as we got closer to free agency, thoughts started creeping in I've played 18 years and haven't won a Stanley Cup."[7] Ottawa, coincidentally, host the Detroit Red Wings several times in the 2013–14 season due to a change to a four-division realignment format that brings Detroit into the Eastern Conference, as well as the same division as Ottawa.

Signing Alfredsson seemed to close the door on young bright spot from the prior season, Damien Brunner. Detroit added on the same day centre Stephen Weiss, a former fourth overall pick in 2001 of the Florida Panthers. His numbers were comparable to Valtteri Filppula, who the club seemed unwilling to pay the $5 million salary he wanted, and instead gave Weiss a five-year deal worth $4.9 million per year.[8]

The Red Wings also lost three key members of the front-office staff when Jim Nill, former director of amateur scouting for the Red Wings, took the general management job of the Dallas Stars. Joe McDonnell, who replaced Nill for a few weeks as director of amateur scouting, and amateur scout Mark Leach followed their former colleague Nill to the Stars.[9]

Regular season

[edit]

The Red Wings set a franchise record this season, surpassing their most man-games lost due to injury or illness in one season since the stat started being kept in 1985–86. The previous high was 346, which Detroit eclipsed on March 23 against the Minnesota Wild. Detroit ended the season with 421 man-games lost, second only to the Pittsburgh Penguins, including six key players who missed at least 25 games. Fifteen players missed ten or more games, resulting in Detroit dressing 38 different players during the regular season. That marks the most since the team used 45 in the 1990–91 season. Nine players made their NHL debuts with the Red Wings this season, their highest total since 14 debuted in 1990–91.

The Red Wings reached several milestones as a franchise this season, including their 3,000th home game (1/31 vs. Washington), 3,000th road game (2/26 at Montreal) and 6,000th game (2/8 at Tampa Bay). After the 2013–14 regular season, the Red Wings stood at 2,774–2,328–815–107, ranking third in NHL history in wins.[10]

Standings

[edit]
Atlantic Division
Pos Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 p – Boston Bruins 82 54 19 9 51 261 177 +84 117
2 x – Tampa Bay Lightning 82 46 27 9 38 240 215 +25 101
3 x – Montreal Canadiens 82 46 28 8 40 215 204 +11 100
4 x – Detroit Red Wings 82 39 28 15 34 222 230 −8 93
5 Ottawa Senators 82 37 31 14 30 236 265 −29 88
6 Toronto Maple Leafs 82 38 36 8 29 231 256 −25 84
7 Florida Panthers 82 29 45 8 21 196 268 −72 66
8 Buffalo Sabres 82 21 51 10 14 157 248 −91 52
Source: National Hockey League
p – Clinched Presidents' Trophy; x – Clinched playoff spot
Eastern Conference Wild Card
Pos Div Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 ME x – Columbus Blue Jackets 82 43 32 7 38 231 216 +15 93
2 AT x – Detroit Red Wings 82 39 28 15 34 222 230 −8 93
3 ME Washington Capitals 82 38 30 14 28 235 240 −5 90
4 ME New Jersey Devils 82 35 29 18 35 197 208 −11 88
5 AT Ottawa Senators 82 37 31 14 30 236 265 −29 88
6 AT Toronto Maple Leafs 82 38 36 8 29 231 256 −25 84
7 ME Carolina Hurricanes 82 36 35 11 34 207 230 −23 83
8 ME New York Islanders 82 34 37 11 25 225 267 −42 79
9 AT Florida Panthers 82 29 45 8 21 196 268 −72 66
10 AT Buffalo Sabres 82 21 51 10 14 157 248 −91 52
Source: National Hockey League
x – Clinched playoff spot

Schedule and results

[edit]

Pre-season

[edit]

Regular season

[edit]
2013–14 Game Log

Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

Playoffs

[edit]
2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs

Legend:   Win   Loss

Player statistics

[edit]
Skaters
Goaltenders
Regular Season
Player GP GS TOI W L OT GA GAA SA SV% SO G A PIM
Jimmy Howard 51 50 3004 21 19 11 133 2.66 1482 .910 2 0 0 6
Jonas Gustavsson 27 26 1551 16 5 4 68 2.63 735 .907 0 0 0 0
Petr Mrazek 9 6 449 2 4 0 13 1.74 178 .927 2 0 0 0
Goaltenders
Playoffs
Player GP GS TOI W L GA GAA SA SV% SO G A PIM
Jimmy Howard 3 3 178 1 2 6 2.02 87 .931 1 0 0 0
Jonas Gustavsson 2 2 133 0 2 6 2.71 72 .917 0 0 0 0

Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Red Wings. Stats reflect time with the Red Wings only.
Traded mid-season
Bold/italics denotes franchise record

Awards and honours

[edit]

Awards

[edit]
Regular season
Player Award Awarded
Jonas Gustavsson NHL First Star of the Week October 21, 2013 [11]
Niklas Kronwall NHL Second Star of the Week December 2, 2013 [12]
Gustav Nyquist NHL Second Star of the Week January 27, 2013 [13]
Johan Franzen NHL First Star of the Week March 3, 2014 [14]
Gustav Nyquist NHL First Star of the Week March 24, 2014 [15]
Gustav Nyquist NHL Second Star of the Month March [16]

Milestones

[edit]
Regular season
Player Milestone Reached
Luke Glendening 1st Career NHL Game October 12, 2013
Kyle Quincey 300th Career NHL Game October 14, 2013
Xavier Ouellet 1st Career NHL Game October 21, 2013
Kyle Quincey 100th Career NHL Point October 30, 2013
Mike Babcock 800th Career NHL Game November 1, 2013
Niklas Kronwall 200th Career NHL Assist November 1, 2013
Petr Mrazek 1st Career NHL Shutout November 2, 2013
Stephen Weiss 250th Career NHL Assist November 4, 2013
Adam Almqvist 1st Career NHL Game November 4, 2013
Danny DeKeyser 1st Career NHL Goal November 4, 2013
Adam Almqvist 1st Career NHL Goal
1st Career NHL Point
November 7, 2013
Pavel Datsyuk 800th Career NHL Game November 16, 2013
Henrik Zetterberg 700th Career NHL Point November 24, 2013
Daniel Alfredsson 1,200th Career NHL Game November 29, 2013
Daniel Cleary 900th Career NHL Game December 10, 2013
Jonathan Ericsson 300th Career NHL Game December 12, 2013
Tomas Jurco 1st Career NHL Game
1st Career NHL Goal
1st Career NHL Point
December 15, 2013
Luke Glendening 1st Career NHL Assist
1st Career NHL Point
December 17, 2013
Daniel Alfredsson 700th Career NHL Assist December 19, 2013
Jonas Gustavsson 50th career NHL Win December 19, 2013
Alexey Marchenko 1st Career NHL Game January 4, 2014
Riley Sheahan 1st Career NHL Goal January 11, 2014
Justin Abdelkader 300th Career NHL Game January 18, 2014
Mike Babcock 400th Career NHL Win with Detroit January 18, 2014
Gustav Nyquist 1st Career NHL Hat Trick February 2, 2014
Pavel Datsyuk 800th Career NHL Point February 8, 2014
Joakim Andersson 100th Career NHL Game March 7, 2014
Brendan Smith 100th Career NHL Game March 7, 2014
Teemu Pulkkinen 1st Career NHL Game March 14, 2014
Landon Ferraro 1st Career NHL Game March 18, 2014
Todd Bertuzzi 300th Career NHL Game with Detroit March 20, 2014
Jakub Kindl 200th Career NHL Game March 20, 2014
Mitch Callahan 1st Career NHL Game March 25, 2014
Darren Helm 1st Career NHL Hat Trick March 29, 2014
Darren Helm 100th Career NHL Point March 30, 2014
Brian Lashoff 100th Career NHL Game April 2, 2014
Drew Miller 400th Career NHL Game April 2, 2014
Jimmy Howard 150th Career NHL Win April 2, 2014
Mike Babcock 700th Career NHL Game with Detroit April 4, 2014
Luke Glendening 1st Career NHL Goal April 5, 2014
Drew Miller 100th Career NHL Point April 8, 2014
Ryan Sproul 1st Career NHL Game April 13, 2014
Tomas Tatar 100th Career NHL Game April 13, 2014
Playoffs
Player Milestone Reached
Luke Glendening 1st Career NHL Playoff Game April 18, 2014
Tomas Jurco 1st Career NHL Playoff Game April 18, 2014
Riley Sheahan 1st Career NHL Playoff Game April 18, 2014
Luke Glendening 1st Career NHL Playoff Goal
1st Career NHL Playoff Point
April 20, 2014
Justin Abdelkader 50th Career NHL Playoff Game April 20, 2014
Drew Miller 50th Career NHL Playoff Game April 20, 2014
David Legwand 50th Career NHL Playoff Game April 22, 2014
Jonas Gustavsson 1st Career NHL Playoff Game April 24, 2014
Xavier Ouellet 1st Career NHL Playoff Game April 26, 2014

Transactions

[edit]

The Red Wings have been involved in the following transactions during the 2013–14 season.

Trades

[edit]
Date
Details
June 30, 2013[17] To San Jose Sharks
1st-round pick (18th overall) in 2013 – Mirco Mueller
To Detroit Red Wings
1st-round pick (20th overall) in 2013 – Anthony Mantha
2nd-round pick in 2013 – Tyler Bertuzzi
March 5, 2014[18] To Nashville Predators
Patrick Eaves
Calle Jarnkrok
Conditional 3rd-round pick in 2014[a] – Julius Bergman
To Detroit Red Wings
David Legwand

|}

Draft picks

[edit]

The Detroit Red Wings' picks at the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, held in Newark, New Jersey on June 30, 2013.

Round # Player Pos Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
1 20 Anthony Mantha RW  Canada Val-d'Or Foreurs (QMJHL)
2 48 Zach Nastasiuk RW  Canada Owen Sound Attack (OHL)
2 58 Tyler Bertuzzi LW  Canada Guelph Storm (OHL)
3 79 Mattias Janmark-Nylen C  Sweden AIK IF (SHL)
4 109 David Pope LW  Canada West Kelowna Warriors (BCHL)
5 139 Mitchell Wheaton D  Canada Kelowna Rockets (WHL)
6 169 Marc McNulty D  Canada Prince George Cougars (WHL)
7 199 Hampus Melen RW  Sweden Tingsryds AIF (Division 1)
Draft notes
  • The Detroit Red Wings' first-round pick went to the San Jose Sharks as the result of a trade on June 30, 2013, that sent a first-round pick in 2013 (20th overall) and Pittsburgh's second-round pick in 2013 (58th overall) to Detroit in exchange for this pick.[36]
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins second-round pick went to the Detroit Red Wings (via San Jose), San Jose traded this pick to Detroit as a result of a trade on June 30, 2013, that sent a first round pick in 2013 (18th overall) to San Jose in return for a first round pick in 2013 (20th overall) and this pick.[36]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ National Hockey League (2013). NHL Official Guide & Record Book 2014. Triumph. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-60078-916-8.
  2. ^ Rosen, Dan. "Realignment plan approved by Board of Governors". NHL.com. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  3. ^ CHAPPELL, BILL. "NHL Realignment: New Divisions Drawn To Ease Time Zone Conflicts". NPR. Retrieved March 15, 2013.
  4. ^ "Report: 2014 Classic at 'Big House'". ESPN.com news services. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
  5. ^ "Red Wings' Pavel Datsyuk signs three-year, $23-million extension, happy to be here for four more years". Mlive.com. Retrieved June 18, 2013.
  6. ^ GARRIOCH, BRUCE. "Daniel Alfredsson leaves Ottawa Senators to chase Stanley Cup with Detroit Red Wings". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved July 6, 2013.
  7. ^ Peters, Chris. "Daniel Alfredsson signs one-year deal with Detroit Red Wings". CBS Sportsline. Retrieved July 5, 2013.
  8. ^ a b Alfie, Weiss excited for opportunity
  9. ^ Daniel Cleary isn't at top of Wings' to-do list right now
  10. ^ Detroit Red Wings 2014 Playoffs Media Guide
  11. ^ Gustavsson, Crosby, Marleau named NHL three stars of the week
  12. ^ Malkin, Kronwall, Keith named 'Stars' of week
  13. ^ Lehtonen, Nyquist, Sekera named 'Stars' of week
  14. ^ Franzen, Henrique, Kuemper named 'Stars' of week
  15. ^ Nyquist, Lundqvist, Iginla named 'Stars' of week
  16. ^ Iginla, Nyquist and Giroux named 'Stars' of March
  17. ^ Wings land a sniper with NHL pedigree
  18. ^ Red Wings acquire forward David Legwand from Nashville
  19. ^ Red Wings reach deal for Alfredsson
  20. ^ Glendening signs 1-year deal with Wings
  21. ^ Red Wings sign forward Colin Campbell to entry-level contract
  22. ^ Wings sign free agent winger Nosek
  23. ^ Lightning sign free agent center Valtteri Filppula
  24. ^ "Devils sign forward Damien Brunner – New Jersey Devils – News". New Jersey Devils. September 24, 2013.
  25. ^ Blues Agree to Deal with Colaiacovo
  26. ^ [severstalclub.ru/index.php?action=Press&newscat=3&newsid=32559 Adam Almqvist joins Severstal]
  27. ^ Smith, Red Wings reach new deal
  28. ^ Red Wings sign Joakim Andersson to a two-year deal
  29. ^ Wings reach agreement with Nyquist
  30. ^ Cleary, Wings agree on one-year deal
  31. ^ Wings and Paterson agree to entry-level contract
  32. ^ Wings sign Mantha to entry-level contract
  33. ^ Wings sign Zach Nastasiuk to entry-level contract
  34. ^ Wings signs Ericsson to six-year deal
  35. ^ Red Wings ink center Luke Glendening to three-year contract extension
  36. ^ a b "Canucks-Devils trade highlights day of deals at draft". National Hockey League. June 30, 2013. Retrieved July 1, 2013.