The Detroit Red Wings have no identity
The current formula just isn't working anymore.
The Detroit Red Wings are in the midst of an identity crisis.
This can often happen when a team is ready for the next step. Take the New York Rangers, for example: the star-studded team won the President’s Trophy last season. In 2024-2025, however, they’re barely putting up a fight for a Wild Card spot in this year’s playoffs. What does this have to do with the Wings, you ask? Both teams have different standards this season, but the expectation was still the same: take the next big step.
The underlying reason these teams have been unable to take the next step, however, lies solely in their identity — or lack thereof. Every team that’s ever won a Stanley Cup has had a cohesive identity. The 2008 Red Wings, for example, built their team around consistent two-way play. From Henrik Zetterberg’s Conn Smythe shift to Pavel Datsyuk’s magical powers, the team used their awareness of both ends of the ice to steamroll every opponent.
So why don’t the Red Wings of today have an identity? Can they obtain one? And - most important of all - what would that identity look like?
Why the 2024-25 Red Wings have no identity
If there’s one thing the Red Wings love, it’s two-way hockey. Scotty Bowman made a young Steve Yzerman switch up his game in order to win Cups.
“I told him that for this team to win, [Yzerman’s] individual production was going to dip because he had to play more defense…Steve worked hard on his faceoffs, and we started having him kill penalties. We had enough scoring, but we just needed to play some sound defense.” - Former Red Wings Head Coach Scotty Bowman in an interview with the Detroit Free Press.
Since then, he’s made two-way play a priority in drafting and development. Take a look at some of his previous draft picks, for example. Marco Kasper, taken in the 2022 draft, was described as a mature two-way center by multiple prospect profiles. You can absolutely build a team around a foundation of two-way hockey. The Chicago Blackhawks did it with Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa. The Florida Panthers have Aleksander Barkov.
But those teams have what the Red Wings lack: consistent depth scoring.
Two-way hockey isn’t enough
If running a hockey team is like piloting a ship, two-way hockey is like a compass. Sure, it provides you with a general sense of direction, but you still need a ship to get you there. To give Yzerman some credit, he’s made a great effort of filling this need with Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane. But, if you take a look at the team’s stats, you’ll notice a significant dropoff after Kane. What good is two-way hockey if you can’t score? Depth is the doom of this team.
Teams like the Panthers remain consistently successful because they use two-way hockey in conjunction with other strengths. Barkov steals the puck and Matthew Tkachuk buries it. Cale Makar sets up Nathan MacKinnon for another game-winning goal. It’s always a one-two punch, if not more. You could make a case for Lucas Raymond, sure, but he and Dylan Larkin can only do so much.
There is something they can build around, however.
Hope for the future: a potential identity
Every team has their strengths. The Boston Bruins have used physicality as their biggest strength for years. The Toronto Maple Leafs run their team on high-speed star power. What stands out most about the Red Wings? Where do their biggest strengths lie? Well, if the draft history of the team tells us anything, it’s that Steve Yzerman already has an identity in mind.
Take a look at the team’s current defensive makeup:
The shortest defenseman on the roster is Albert Johansson at 6’0”. The tallest? Simon Edvinsson, 6’6”. Yzerman’s draft philosophy seems to be a multi-layered approach. If the two-way players don’t take away the puck, the defense will pulverize you until you do. When you factor in prospects like William Wallinder (6’4”), Shai Builum (6’3”), and even Axel Sandin-Pellikka (okay, he’s 5’11” but the point still stands), you can see a consistent narrative. He’s trying to get draft graduates like Moritz Seider and Simon Edvinsson used to playing with other tall defenseman.
But is big defense the answer?
Sure, teams like the Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers have won with big defensemen. But they also had multi-layered approaches to solving problems. If the Stamkos-Kucherov combo didn’t work, the Lightning had Yanni Gourde, Blake Coleman, and Barclay Goodrow. If opposing teams managed to get past Victor Hedman and Mikhail Sergachev, they’d have to contend with Andrei Vasilievskiy, one of the top goaltenders in the league. Building around big defense is possible — but will it be enough?
When I think of team identity, I think of it as a three-headed beast: the core philosophy, the method of attack, and the method of defense. Let’s go over each one and see if we can build an identity for the Wings.
How to build the identity of the future
The Red Wings need to build their team around three key traits:
The offense is built on a foundation of smart, selfless two-way hockey.
The defense is designed to suffocate their opponents with an aggressive, physical approach.
Each line and pairing takes on a different role while keeping the first two points in mind.
This approach combines the identities of the 2008 Red Wings and the Lightning of the early 2020s. It’s fast, physical, and designed for grueling games in the playoffs. Plays are designed to suffocate the opposition’s offense, wear them out with the defense, then use the opportunity to set up scoring chances. Each line will serve a separate purpose to give the team a variety of options for offense. Here’s how it would work:
The offense: Smart and selfless
Dylan Larkin is the engine that powers this machine. He’s consistently one of the best two-way players in hockey, using speed and vision to stifle opponents’ scoring. This is the core identity of the offense. Smart and selfless is the answer. While it might not be the flashiest brand of hockey, it’s designed to break down the opposition for easier scoring opportunities.
The name of the game is consistency. This means always breaking up passing lanes, staying on assignment, and snuffing out any chance for offense the other team can get. It’s about confounding and frustrating the other team until they make a hasty mistake. When everything goes as planned, your team becomes a storm that erodes at their opposition.
The defense: Aggressive and physical
While the offense breaks down the passing lanes, the defense breaks down the passers. Imposing, physical play will take this team’s defense to the next level. It’s one thing to snuff scoring chances: it’s another to make an opposition think twice about even trying. Getting pulverized by a guy like Moritz Seider is bad enough, but to have five other defensemen capable of doing the same? It’s almost too much for any team.
The big game-breaker of this, ironically, comes in their shortest defenseman. Axel Sandin-Pellikka, should he make a name for himself in the NHL, is built to generate offense. At just 20 years of age, he’s already broken records across the board in the SHL. He’s even been compared to Erik Karlsson by some analysts. While the rest of the defense wears down the opposition, Sandin-Pellikka can skate safely through beaten-down defenses. It’s a match made in heaven.
The depth: Consistent but different
Every player has their own strengths. Why not create a roster with that in mind? If you want to build a consistent contender, you need a solution for every problem. What do you do when the other team shuts down your snipers? What happens if your top line can’t score? Here’s how I belive the roster should be built:
Offense:
Balance at the Top: Your top line should be your most well-balanced. This one should be more than capable at two-way hockey while providing some surprising scoring.
Scoring Line: This one plays like a power-play, partnering playmakers with high-scoring snipers for maximum offense.
Grinding Line: That’s right: we’re bringing the old band back together! With power forwards at the foray, the team can join in on the physicality and really put the hurt on other teams.
Star-Stoppers: This line is built to shut down any team in the league. Its defense-first focus makes it a nightmare for any offense that comes its way.
Defense:
The Best of Both Worlds: The top pairing is built with balance in mind, focusing on two-way play across the board.
Sword and Shield: Your second pairing, however, should take it to an extreme, partnering a high-powered offensive defenseman with a smart, stay-at-home one.
Built for Battle: True to the core philosophy, the bottom pairing should put its efforts into wearing out the opposition with long passes and big hits.
Closing thoughts: How we get there
Sure, we can sit here all day playing make-believe with roster philosophies, but how does that change the current situation for the Wings? Well, the short answer is, it doesn’t. The long answer rests entirely with Steve Yzerman and the moves he decides to make this offseason. Plenty of players are or should be ready to take the next step. A handful on this current roster shouldn’t play another game for the team. What - and who - changes this offseason will tell us whether or not this team is ready for an identity.
Until then, get ready for more third period collapses and frustrating ends to the season.