Detroit Red Wings tickets are back at full strength. In Mike Babcock's first season as head coach of the Detroit Red Wings, the team is enjoying an improved record. After Chris Osgood suffered an injury near the beginning of the year, Manny Legace filled the team's goalie position, proving to be a helpful addition. Many fans speculate that this will be captain Steve Yzerman's last season in the National Hockey League, and the team appears ready to win another championship before the veteran retires.
When the NHL first formed in 1926, the Motor City was selected to have one of the first six franchises. The team played as the Cougars, and it was not until a new owner changed the name to the Red Wings when Detroit began to see what has become an expected level of success. While the team struggled during the latter half of the 1960s until the mid-1980s, the team has otherwise enjoyed sustained dominance in league play, winning 10 Stanley Cup Championships and sending numerous players to the Hall of Fame. Included among the Red Wings' best is the legendary right wing Gordie Howe who remains the team's career point leader. While the Red Wings won the league title three times before Howe's entrance to professional hockey, he helped the Red Wings establish their greatest era. With Howe's offensive attack, the Red Wings earned four championship trophies during the 1950s.
After Howe's retirement in 1971, Red Wings hockey tickets began to fall in popularity, and the team only made the playoffs once in a span of 16 years. However, when the team drafted Yzerman in 1983, fans in Detroit began to see the team's resurgence. After considerable improvement, Scotty Bowman assumed the head coaching duties and the team climbed back into the upper echelon of the NHL. Bowman guided the team to their first victory in the Stanley Cup Finals in over 40 years and then continued to lead the team to two more championships. The franchise's 2002 season was especially remarkable. After trading for goalie Dominik Hasek and right wing Brett Hull, the team finished with the best record in the NHL and put an exclamation point on the season with a definitive victory over the Carolina Hurricanes to win the title. After Bowman relinquished the head coaching duties, the team remained a leading force in the league. However, Hasek's retirement left the team without their star goalie, and the Red Wings failed to make the Stanley Cup Finals before the 2005 player lockout. Despite recent troubles in postseason play, fans at Joe Louis Arena believe that their team will return to its powerful form.
Get your Detroit Red Wings tickets and enjoy the ride. With Legace's consistent performance and the recent signing of veteran Chris Chelios, the Red Wings are one of the most competitive teams in the Central Division of the Western Conference. While Yzerman has struggled through injuries during the past two seasons, the NHL's 6th leading career point scorer's experience will surely prove beneficial to the team during 2005 and 2006. After winning the President's Trophy for the league's best regular season record in 2004, the Red Wings hope that this year's success in the regular season can transfer to the playoffs. |
