Did poor preparation coming into and out of breaks in the NHL schedule cost the Detroit Red Wings a playoff spot last season?
Coach Todd McLellan wonders about that.
Last season, the Red Wings faced two lengthy breaks in the schedule. There was the Christmas break, and then the time off for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Each time, they didn’t deal with it well on either end of the break.
“Last year we had, in those four games, we had three flat-out losses, and we played against Minnesota, and lost in overtime,” McLellan said.
A 4-0 loss to St. Louis sent Detroit off for Christmas. Upon returning from the festive season, the Wings were dealt a 5-2 setback by Toronto.
Entering the 4 Nations break, Detroit was humbled 6-3 by Tampa Bay. Returning to action, the Red Wings lost 4-3 in OT to the Wild. In that game, Detroit blew a 3-1 third-period lead.
Making matters worse, all four games were played on home ice at Little Caesars Arena.
“So we took one of eight points,” McLellan said. “We missed the playoffs by five. Maybe those four games had something to do with it.
“Every team we played in those situations – St. Louis, Toronto, Tampa, and Minnesota – all made the playoffs. Maybe those games were more important to them.”
McLellan Challenges Red Wings
In preparation for the holiday season, McLellan threw down the gauntlet to his team. He put forth the demand that they not get ahead of themselves in the pre-Christmas rush. He also requested that they come back from their holiday with a sharp focus on the task ahead.
“We talked about these types of games,” McLellan said. “So the one pre-Christmas, the one post-Christmas, pre-Olympic break this year, post-Olympic break, they’re not easy games to play for a lot of different reasons.
“Not just for the Red Wings, but for all 32 teams.”
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 24, 2025
McLellan asked his team to be ready for each of these games, prepared to play. The mission was accomplished in Game 1. Detroit rallied to beat Dallas 4-3 in OT in the last game before Christmas.
Coming back from the holiday celebration, it’s another stiff challenge. A showdown of division leaders between Detroit (Atlantic) and Carolina (Metropolitan), with first overall in the Eastern Conference on the line.
It’s No. 1 vs No. 2 tomorrow to see who will reach 49 points first between the Carolina Hurricanes & the Detroit Red Wings.
Here is what the tale of the tape says about both teams heading into the first game back from Winter Break #CarolinaCulture pic.twitter.com/IAIKko4Z1V
— Zachary Martin (@OneTrueZach) December 27, 2025
McLellan liked what he saw against the Stars. He’s looking for a repeat performance Saturday on the road against the Hurricanes.
“We challenged our group (before the Dallas game), and I thought when the game started, we were really ready to go,” McLellan said. “The response to those challenges is encouraging for us right now.”