Derek Lalonde gets real about Detroit's playoff chances

The upcoming 2023-24 NHL season is shaping up to perhaps be the most crucial for general manager Steve Yzerman sine he returned to the franchise to take over for the maligned Ken Holland in 2019. He's had to clean up various messes left behind by Holland in the form of bloated contracts and underperforming players, but there has been a growing segment of the fan base who has grown impatient at the playoff drought.

This offseason, Yzerman embarked on a huge shopping spree that brought the likes of J.T. Compher, Daniel Sprong, Klim Kostin, Shayne Gostisbehere, Justin Holl, Jeff Petry, James Reimer and Alex Lyon to Hockeytown. And it was in early July that he made arguably the biggest trade in his tenure so far by acquiring native son and two-time 40 goal scorer Alex DeBrincat in a deal with the Ottawa Senators.

"A necessity," said head coach Derek Lalonde of DeBrincat. "We had a lot of really good team games last year where we did a lot of things right and a lot of things that were asked of us, and we just couldn’t put it in the net. We would find ways to lose some of those tight games. We need goals and that’s something he can do, so it’s a necessity for us as an addition. "I love the fact that he wanted to be here. Very attractive piece for us."

How does Lalonde feel about the chances of finally breaking the team's postseason drought next spring?

"I love what we did this offseason," he said. "We’ve improved, there’s no doubt about it. We’re going to be significant (in the playoff race). That’s all I ask, that’s all I want. We just gotta keep pushing in the right direction.

"That said, I also understand why there’s not a single projection or a single expert out there that says we’re going to make the playoffs. It’s on us now. We’ve added some nice pieces, but we're still not there. And what more motivation can you have as a group than that?"

"If we played in the West, we would have made the playoffs," he continued. "What does that mean? We’re still not good enough to win the Stanley Cup. That’s Steve’s job to get us there. I’m a coach, I want it right now, but Steve reminds me all the time: 'When we get there, we want to be sustainable.'"

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