It has felt different, this first half of the season for the Red Wings.
There’s more of a quiet confidence, which the addition of playoff-tested veterans has brought. The Wings have shown the ability to come back from deficits, showing an admirable determination.
Young players have established themselves in the lineup, which should be good news for the future.
But when they reached the halfway point of the schedule with last Saturday’s disappointing 4-3 loss to Columbus, it left the Wings with an 18-16-7 record, with 43 points (now 19-17-8). A year ago, at the same juncture, the Wings were 18-17-6, with 42 points.
Coach Derek Lalonde, to his credit, hasn’t sugarcoated anything. The Wings aren’t supremely talented, but as long as they keep showing the effort they’ve largely shown, this season can be a success.
“We’re not these elite teams or have these elite players, or the type of players where you don’t play well and win,” Lalonde said. “It’s the reality of what we are and our guys accept it. That’s how we have to play.
“The good thing is we’ve done that and there’s times we’ve been rewarded for it. Hopefully we can take a step in our maturity knowing that if we’re not on all the time, we’re not going to be successful.”
The Wings have talked openly about making a push toward the playoffs and playing meaningful games deep into the season. It’s something that is conceivable, but the Wings will have to play more consistently and sustain longer win streaks, while squashing losing streaks.
That just hasn’t happened enough the first half, keeping the Wings around the .500 mark, and looking to avoid the second-half downfall that specifically spoiled last season.
“That’s been the story of the season,” captain Dylan Larkin said. “We win two or three and then we can’t find the fourth or fifth and get on a nice run. We need to do it pretty soon here.”
Larkin is enjoying another elite season and appears determined to end the six-year playoff drought. If nothing else, not having another roster rebuild by the March 3 trade deadline would be a positive step.
“We care about trying to turn this around, tying to make the playoffs,” Larkin said. “It’s talked about in our locker room. We want to make a strong push here before the trade deadline.”
At the halfway point, let’s assess each player based on performance and expectations heading into this season, as the Wings reach midway point.
tkulfan@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @tkulfan