Detroit Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan opened up about the club's collapse last season in March, saying that it felt as though the entire dressing room was essentially waiting for it to happen.
The Detroit Red Wings are currently stuck in the NHL's longest active postseason drought, and that's due, in large part, to having squandered comfortable cushions in the standings in each of the past three seasons once the calendar flipped to March.
The Red Wings, who held a top-five position in the NHL in late January, went 7-11-4 after March arrived, ultimately falling out of the postseason picture. Their collapse was capped by a 5-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils at Little Caesars Arena in their home finale, which was followed by a chorus of boos.
As things began to unravel, head coach Todd McLellan decried what he felt were too many "jerseys" on the ice during such a critical stretch of the season.
During his first media availability session following the opening day of Training Camp, McLellan recalled only using the term on one occasion, believing he needed to set the tone for the team at the time, while feeling some players were not doing enough when the Red Wings needed them most.
However, as far as the fate that ultimately befell them, McLellan said it was as if the players were essentially waiting for it to happen.
“As far as the March part of our schedule, I can tell you exactly how I felt," he said. "I felt that everybody in this building - most importantly in that locker room - was waiting for it to happen. Just waiting for it to happen, and it trickles in.”
“We have to answer the questions you present, and you can feel it, and it becomes a burden, and eventually the mind goes, 'Aw, here we are, we're doing this again.' And that's exactly how it felt.
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Red Wings interim general manager Shawn Horcoff, who spoke the day before, explained that his focus is on the immediate runway ahead for the club.
McLellan echoed Horcoff's sentiments, saying that while the team will eventually have to deal with March approaching on the calendar this season, its immediate task is to win each day as it comes.
"You heard (Shawn Horcoff) talk about how we're moving forward; we are moving forward," McLellan said. "We are not talking about March yet... but we're talking about winning the day. We have to win today, and that was on the ice, that was in the locker room, preparing, and then tomorrow, win tomorrow. And then we'll start the season."
"We know there's a March in the season, and I know what's going to come when we get to it, and we'll deal with it as we go. But waiting for it to happen and expecting it to happen usually means it's going to happen."
For the Red Wings to return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2016, they need to take care of what's in front of them before worrying about several months from now.
"Now we have to hit it head-on," McLellan said. "We have a lot of work to do before we start talking about March.”
The Red Wings continue Training Camp on Friday and will later play the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday evening in their preseason opener.
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