For one game the Detroit Lions put it all together, will it last?

They had no chance to win in Arizona against the Cardinals. Zero, zilch, notta chance. Then the Detroit Lions did a very Detroit Lions thing, they won. Making everyone (nearly every expert) look bad for picking against them. Can it last? Can the Detroit Lions losers of 11 games in a row have found footing going forward?

The Detroit Lions were able to overcome the type of mistakes that lead to 11 straight losses and turned in the type of defensive effort that had eluded them early in the season.

The Lions forced Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray into throwing three interceptions and cashing them in for 10 points. Somehow the Lions also  withstood a late game penalty to set up kicker Matt Prater’s game winning 39 yard field goal.

Rookie cornerback Jeff Okudah who was put through the grinder last week against Aaron Rogers and the Green Bay Packers, had a much better game. Okudah recorded his first NFL interception.

On offense the return of wide receiver Kenny Golladay (who missed the first two games due to a hamstring injury) showed what his value is to the Lions offense. With a healthy Golladay on the field, it opened things up for the running game as well as other receivers and tight ends to get open. Golladay’s importance can not be understated.

The NFL world had the Detroit Lions six-feet under and a shovel full of dirt ready to bury the team. Somehow the Lions were able to dig down and show for at least one game what they can be.

In all three games this season the Lions grabbed an early lead. Yet it was not until yesterday in Arizona the team did not give the lead back nor did they suffer another fourth quarter collapse. This is a good sign.

Yesterday the Lions played the way many thought they could. This win needs to have a carry-over. It needs to be a launching pad for the rest of the season. The team showed they can do it. Now comes the hard part, repeating.

The Detroit Red Wings trade for veteran Marc Staal and a second round draft pick

In his quest to both fill roster needs while keeping an eye on the future, Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman did both yesterday. Yzerman traded for Marc Staal of the New York Rangers and a second round draft pick  in 2021 NHL draft in exchange for future considerations.

Marc Staal is clearly a player in decline at 33 years old. Last season for the Rangers Staal had appeared in 52 games with the Rangers last season, recording two goals and nine assists. He had one goal in three playoff games.

Staal a 13 year NHL veteran has one year left on his contract with a $5.7 million cap hit. Staal is a player who can be plugged into the fourth line and play limited minutes.

Steve Yzerman has been bent on adding draft picks since becoming Detroit’s general manager. Part of the rebuilding process, is to add draft picks, prospects, young players and future assets to really help us down the line.

In the 2020 and 2021 NHL draft’s Yzerman and the Detroit Red Wings organization as of this moment have six second round draft pick in each draft. That will certainly help add future assets.

The Detroit Red Wings were an NHL worst dead last in defense last season. Yzerman said that defensemen Jonathan Ericsson and Trevor Daley would not be resigned.

By adding Staal, he can play the left side along with Patrik Nemeth and Danny DeKeyser. So it was a good trade in the aspect of helping the roster this season. With only one year left on his contract, Yzerman could feel another Red Wing prospect is close to being NHL ready. So a short contract does no derail a player from finishing his development and being in the roster mix at 2021 training camp.

Armed with draft picks, Steve Yzerman is giving his scouting department the opportunity to add important pieces to the Red Wings organization. Just as he said he would.

An updated look at the state of the Detroit Tigers, Red Wings, Pistons and Lions rebuild’s

All four Detroit Michigan sports teams are under construction. Rebuilds across the board. It has not been a fun time for the sports enthusiasts around the state of Michigan and the rest of the country. Yet here we are, it is time to update the four major sports teams rebuild efforts to date.

Let’s take a look at the worst and possibly longest rebuild in sports, or close to it. The Detroit Lions. Bob Quinn was brought in from the New England Patriots and there was hype when he arrived in Motown. The hype is gone, fans have soured and the Lions are a total mess. Losers of 11 games in a row with no end in sight. The Lions should fire Quinn and all associated with him and start from scratch.

The Detroit Pistons, In better shape than the Lions (who is not?) The Pistons have young talent to build around. Bruce Brown, Sekou Doumbouya, Luke Kennard, Christian Wood give the Pistons some nice players to build around. The Detroit Pistons are armed with some cap space for the first time in a long time so that will help speed the process up a bit.

The Detroit Tigers, the Tigers also have some nice young talent to build around. Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal, Isaac Paredes, Spencer Torkelson, Riley Greene are a few of the names Tiger fans should know or begin to learn. The Tigers still have work to do on the rebuild, however they are in good shape moving forward.

The Detroit Red Wings, general manager Steve Yzerman is still building his team. Like the Tigers the Red Wings have some nice prospects to build around. With the No. 4 pick in the first round Yzerman is poised to bring in another high-end prospect, not to mention Yzerman also has cap space. Cap space is a good thing it is even better when a GM with a proven history of spending wisely is in charge.

So there it is in a nutshell. The Lions are a mess as usual, the Pistons, Tigers and Red Wings are advancing rather nicely in the rebuilding of the respected organization.

I am sticking with my initial thought that the Detroit Red Wings finish their rebuild first.

 

The Detroit Red Wings must show improvement 2020-21

The Detroit Red Wings rebuild has gone on for about three full years now. With current Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman overseeing the past two years. The 2020-21 NHL season is critical to the rebuild. Since Yzerman arrived in Motown the organization has been trending upward.

This season in order for a light to be seen at the end of the long rebuild tunnel, The Detroit Red Wings need prospects to play, in Detroit, at Little Caesars Arena to be exact.  Prospects such as  Mathis Bromé, Gustav Lindström, , Evgeny Svechnikov Joseph Veleno, and Filip Zadina an others need NHL playing time.

By perhaps adding a goalie in free agency and another player the Red Wings will not become a contender during the 2020-21 season. They organization can however takes steps towards becoming a contender.

Yzerman, understands todays NHL is a young players league now. The Red Wings have long believed in sending prospects development. No matter a players draft position they are sent to the minors to fine tune their skills.

That said the Red Wings do have players who need to take the next step which is NHL time. It is something the Columbus Blue Jackets have done with most of their top prospects.

The future of the Red Wings will be centered around the teams top line of Tyler Bertuzzi, Dylan Larkin, and Anthony Mantha. The Red Wings now need to fill in other lines with players who will be playing on the other three lines.

This is where the Detroit Red Wings rebuild is. It is time to the next step or phase (depending how you like to say it.) The team is preparing to add another prospect during this years NHL draft.

This season will be a measure marker for the Detroit organization.

With the sudden retirement of manager Ron Gardenhire, the Detroit Tigers should get a good manager

Saturday afternoon at Comerica Park, Detroit Tigers general manager Al Avila met with manager Ron Gardenhire in their usual pre-game meeting. It was then Gardenhire told Avila he was retiring effective immediately. Tigers bench coach Lloyd McClendon will manage the team for the remainder of the season. That said with a much improved minor league prospect pool the Detroit Tigers should have little problems hiring a good manager.

First off one thing I will not do is drop names and speculate who could be in the running for the sudden managerial opening. What I will do is explain why the Detroit Tigers will be able to attract a good solid manager.

As mentioned earlier, the Tigers prospect pool is an attraction on it’s own. Casey Mize, Spencer Torkelson, Tarik Skubal to name a few have the Tigers rebuild now moving along at a faster rate.

The fact that Tigers owner Christopher Ilitch publicly said he would spend money on high priced free agents the closer the prospects got to the major leagues also helps making the Detroit managers job attractive.

Ron Gardenhire did his job. He lost (as expected) a lot of games in his three seasons in Detroit. That was not the point. He was brought on board to get prospects up to major league playing standards. He did his job.

In my opinion, the next Detroit Tigers manager needs to be a person who can get the team to take the next step. That is the key. Gardenhire coached prospects to things the right way, now come the need to get the entire team on the same page and begin to win.

The Detroit Tigers opening will have it’s fair share of coach’s who will throw their names into the mix, because the Tigers have a history of spending money something Ilitch said he would do.

The key is for the Tigers to nail the hire. No former fan favorite player, nor a coach with a big name. The hire needs to be able to balance a largely young roster with some veterans sprinkled in and begin to move up the win/loss column.

These are the final steps of the rebuild.

The Detroit Red Wings could draft defensman Jamie Drysdale

HAMILTON, ON – JANUARY 16: Jamie Drysdale #4 of Team Red skates during the 2020 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game against Team White at FirstOntario Centre on January 16, 2020 in Hamilton, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

The 2020 NHL draft is stocked with high-end talent. Alexis Lafreniere, Quinton Byfield, Lucas Raymond, Cole Perfetti, Anton Lundell, Alexander Holtz, Tim Stutzle to name a few. The Detroit Red Wings already have solid defensive prospects in players like, Filip Hronek, Gustav Lindstrom, Kasper Kotansalo and Moritz Seider. Yet, the Red Wings could look to draft defenseman Jamie Drysdale with the teams first round draft pick.

Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman understands you build (or in this case rebuild) a team from the back end out. The Red Wings are armed with some very good defensive prospects. Jamie Drysdale could be the icing on the cake for a unit that has some teeth to it.

Jamie Drysdale, has a superior hockey IQ he also has lightning quick feet, and playmaking ability that is well above average. Drysdale is viewed as the best defensive player in the 2020 draft.

Another aspect of Drysdale’s game that really stands out is his speed. At 5′ 11″ Jamie does not have ideal size but makes up for it with hands and stick to disrupt his opponents. The number of turnovers Drysdale has created this season by stick checking was absurd.

Even with his size it is difficult to poke holes in his game. If Yzerman decides Drysdale is the player to help push the Red Wings rebuild forward the organization will not only get an elite hockey player, but they will also get a great leader and someone of very high character.

When Jamie Drysdale is on the ice  he is a dominant player who uses excellent speed, agility and rapid decision making to make himself the most dangerous player on the ice at all times. Drysdale is close in style to 2017 fourth overall pick Cale Makar who was selected by the Colorado Avalanche.

Jamie Drysdale has the ability to be both a shutdown defender on a teams top pairing and also power play quarterback.

At 0-2 the Detroit Lions need to fire Matt Patricia

DETROIT, MI – NOVEMBER 28: Detroit Lions Head Coach Matt Patricia reacts to a defensive call during the fourth quarter of the game against the Chicago Bears at Ford Field on November 28, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. Chicago defeated Detroit 24-20. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)

The Detroit Lions lost Sunday afternoon to the Green Bay Packers, 42-21. That is 11 straight losses, something needs to be done ASAP to save (if that can be done) the season. It is simple Matt Patricia needs to go. After two seasons and two games Patricia’s coaching record is 9-24-1.

At the end of last season both general manager Bob Quinn and his hand picked head coach Matt Patricia was given by then Detroit Lions owner Martha Ford and win or else ultimatum for the 2020-21 season. So far it does not look good for the tandem.

The Lions have started this season 0-2 with both losses to divisional rivals. While replacing Patricia should take place sooner than later, GM Bob Quinn should be shown the door as well. If one goes they both should. For the fact it has not worked.

The Detroit Lions should start fresh. That means a rebuild. Sure the Lions do have some talented players to build around. Taylor Decker, Kenny Golladay, T. J. Hockenson, Jeff Okudah, Frank Ragnow, D’ Andre Swift, and a few on defense would be keepers if a total change is made.

Getting back to Matt Patricia, it simply has not worked in Detroit. Players have been rumored to not like him and do not give maximum effort for him. Patricia has made many poor coaching decisions that has left fans and Detroit Lions beat writers scratching their heads.

In the last five quarters of play Matt Patricia’s Lions have given up 63 points. Let that sink in. Bob Quinn brought in his friend Matt Patricia to coach a team that posted back-to-back 9-7 playoff seasons under then head coach Jim Caldwell. Because Quinn thought the team needed more.

With only 9 total wins to his name and falling to 0-2 not only on the season but in the division it already feels like this season may be on the brink of a disaster. There is no excuse Quinn and Patricia can come up with. The two friends time in Detroit should be up sooner than later.

 

Why the Tampa Bay Lightning playing for the Stanley Cup is good news for the Detroit Red Wings

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – JUNE 21: General Manager Steve Yzerman of the Detroit Red Wings looks on from the draft table during the first round of the 2019 NHL Draft at Rogers Arena on June 21, 2019 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images)

Since the 2016-17 NHL season no team has accumulated more wins than the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Lightning have accumulated one President’s Trophy, two 100-plus point seasons and plenty of regular season records as well. For all the winning the Lightning have done one thing has eluded them, a Stanley Cup championship.

It is fair to say the Tampa Bay Lightning are due. Being a consistent NHL regular season winner has paved the way for the organization to face the Dallas Stars in this year Cup Finals.

So just how does the Lightning playing for the Stanley Cup bode well for the rebuilding Detroit Red Wings? Let’s start with the obvious. The same man who built the juggernaut Tampa Bay hockey team is the same man tasked with rebuilding the Red Wings. Steve Yzerman.

When Yzerman took over as Lightning general manager he took over a bad hockey team. Through shrewd traded and savvy  free agent signings, the Lightning became a regular season giant and a regular in the NHL playoffs.

Things are a bit different in Detroit. Yzerman is building a young core around Dylan Larkin, Tyler Bertuzzi, Anthony Mantha and Filip Hroneck. Yet, Yzerman has made some rather nice trades for the Red Wings, such as trading for Robby Fabbri from the St. Louis Blues.

Seeing the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 20129-20 NHL Stanley Cup finals, should be a welcomed sight for the Red Wings organization and the Red Wings fans base. Yzerman stated over and over during his time as Red Wings general manger, it takes time to build a winning. Yet, that is what he does.

There are different expectations in Detroit. Yzerman himself acknowledged this by saying he understands the Detroit Red Wings play for championships. He is tasked with getting the organization back to that level of play. There is next to no doubt Yzerman will deliver.

Who will be on the 2020-21 Detroit Red Wings opening night roster

DETROIT, MI – MARCH 06: Filip Hronek #17 of the Detroit Red Wings talks with teammate Dylan Larkin #71 on a play stoppage during an NHL game against the Chicago Blackhawks at Little Caesars Arena on March 6, 2020 in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit defeated Chicago 2-1. (Photo by Dave Reginek/NHLI via Getty Images)

The rebuilding Detroit Red Wings look to take a step forward during the 2020-21 NHL season. Young prospects should get at the very least a nine game call up. Others may be on the opening night roster for the Red Wings. So who exactly will be on the roster. At this time that is unknown, based on the players now (free agency starts October 9, due to COVID-19) here is a guess.

The NHL is targeting December 1, 2020 as the season opener, the season would end July 5, 2021. The NHL is watching the NFL’s mold for allowing  limited capacity attendance to see if it is possible.

The Detroit Red Wings are on a mid-November target for training camp. The camp will be at Little Caesars Arena and not Traverse City. The Red Wings are hopeful for a 2021 return to  Traverse City for training camp.

The Red Wings have some glaring needs which general manager Steve Yzerman will need to address and fill during the free agent signing period. The Red Wings have the cap space to begin to improve the roster this off season, but not at the expense of prospect development.

So let’s look at who could be in the Winged Wheel opening night,

Goalie- Jonathan Bernier, He is currently the only goalie under contrat for Detroit. He will enter the 2020-21 season as the guy. His numbers last season were not bad. Bernier posted a .915 save percentage in 25 games.

There are good goalies that will hit the open market. This will be worth paying attention to for Red Wings fans.

The Detroit Red Wings first line, Dylan Larkin, Anthony Mantha and Tyler Bertuzzi have excellent chemistry. While   Robby Fabbri and Filip Zadina can help the second line with scoring. Valtteri Filppula should once again center the second line. Filppula is not the goal scorer he once was but is solid in passing the puck.

Luke Glendening, Darren Helm and Adam Erne Should be the Red Wings third line. It is a solid yet not spectacular third line. With Helm the really only scoring threat and Erne providing the physicality of the line.

The Detroit Red Wings was (to put it nicely) a hot mess last season. This season, Frans Nielsen, Evgeny Svechnikov, Dmytro Timashov, Justin Abdelkader, Michael Rasmussen, Christoffer Ehn, Givani Smith and Mathias Brome will battle it out in training camp in hopes players step up.

On the defensive front for the Red Wings, Danny DeKeyser, Patrik Nemeth and Filip Hronek are locks for the top four. I fully expect 19 year old defenseman Moritz Seider will be in the opening night lineup as well.

The rest of the Red Wings defense needs upgrade. Otherwise it will be another tough season.

Can Detroit Lions fans trust the hype surrounding the team?

ALLEN PARK, MI – AUGUST 21: Detroit Lions WR (1) Jonathan Duhart and Detroit Lions S (35) Miles Killebrew pair off in drills during NFL football practice on August 21, 2019 at Detroit Lions Training Facilities in Allen Park, MI (Photo by Allan Dranberg/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Year in and year out the Detroit Lions are projected to improve, some years enough to make the playoffs. Most years the Lions season ends in disappointment. Heading into today’s season opener against the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions hype is at fever pitch. Should fans trust the hype?

Football Outsiders, have listed the 2020 Detroit Lions not just a team that will move out of the NFC North’s basement, but a team that will go from worst to first. In this seasons Detroit Lions hype train the bold predictions started last January when multiple analysts said the Lions would take a massive step forward this coming season.

Sure the Detroit Lions offense lead by quarterback Matthew Stafford is a dangerous group. Stafford, WR, Kenny Golladay, TE, T.J. Hockenson and others give the Lions the best offense in the NFC North division. So that is reason for hope and hype.

On the flip slide, the Detroit Lions defense last season was abysmal and that is being kind. Lions general manager Bob Quinn has rebuilt the defensive unit for 2020. Signing LB, Jamie Collins, Danny Shelton and Reggie Rangland and some others give the defense at least signs of hope.

The question is did Bob Quinn improve the defense enough? Also the offensive line looks like a hot mess at this time. There has been no preseason games this year due to the pandemic. So it is hard to get a pulse on what the Lions have on the defense as a whole and offensive line.

With two games right out of the gate against NFC North teams the Bears week 1 and Green Bay Packers week 2, the Detroit Lions of 2020 can not afford a slow start.

Both general manager Quinn and head coach Matt Patricia were told by then Lions owner Martha Ford they needed to win or else at the conclusion of last season. Martha Ford turned the team over to her daughter, Sheila Ford Hamp who now serves as Principal Owner and Chairman.

It remains to be seen if Hamp will make changes if needed at the end of the season after the win or else mandate came from the previous owner.

So here we are on the verge of another Detroit Lions season and the hype train, all aboard with caution.