SEATTLE — About the only dissatisfactory element to their trip was that the Detroit Red Wings stayed an extra night on the road, making an already long trip even longer.
Coach Todd McLellan — who one player described as having performed something nearing miracle work — said that remaining in Seattle after topping the Kraken in a shootout Tuesday “was in play a while ago. Science does play a role in it — sometimes coaches or managers trump it, but in this case it was already in play. I think if we had our druthers, we’d be flying home tonight and dealing with a couple days off. But we just eliminated the travel excuse.”
Eliminate excuses: It’s what McLellan and Trent Yawney, the assistant coach he brought with him on Dec. 26, have been doing with such stunning success. The Wings suddenly look like not only will they be in the playoffs, they might be a top-three team in the Atlantic Division.
It’s been great,” Patrick Kane said. “I’m not sure any of us really thought we’d be in this position right now. What a spot we’re in. It’s fun when you’re playing for something every night. We’re in a good spot and we put ourselves there.
“You have to give Todd a lot of credit, too, he’s done a great job of coming in and kind of settling things down and making sure we’re playing aggressive. Even when we get back on our heels a little bit, and things aren’t going our way, to keep pushing forward and try to turn the game in our favor.”
The Wings surrendered a two-goal lead in the third period and still beat the Kraken. Two nights earlier, they looked gassed, were outplayed and still defeated the Vancouver Canucks. Now the Wings (28-21-5) take a seven-game winning streak into their next game — which isn’t until Saturday, against divisional rival Tampa Bay.
It’s unreal,” Jonatan Berggren said. “Since the coaching change, and Todd and Yawns come in, we play better hockey and it shows.
“The boys are fired up and we play good and we have a lot of fun on the ice and off the ice, too. These weeks have been really fun.”
From the first full practice Dec. 28, when he urged the Wings to “just play hockey” and rediscover the joy of the game, players have responded to their new coach.
