32 NHL Cities in 32 Days: Detroit Red Wings

Alexis Bazydola
May 11, 2020
6 min read

The Location: Detroit, Michigan

Opening in 2017, the Detroit Red Wings currently play in Little Caesar’s Arena. This arena replaced Joe Louis Arena where the Red Wings were previously playing. Seating just over 19,500 for a hockey game, this venue is home to both the Red Wings and the NBA’s Detroit Pistons. Little Caesar’s Arena has hosted various sporting events including the League of Legends Championship Series Summer finals, WWE events, the 2019 U.S. Figure Skating Championships; and entertainers like Paul McCartney, Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake, Elton John, and Celine Dion.

Team History

As the WHL was about to fold in 1926, the NHL met to comprise a deal that would begin to expand the league. This included a team in Detroit and the owners of the WHL, Frank and Lester Patrick, agreed to sell the players of the Victoria Cougars to the new Detroit owners. To honor the fallen franchise, Detroit adopted the new name Cougars. While not having an arena in their inaugural season, they played in Windsor, Ontario at the Border Cities Arena. The next season, they would move in to the Detroit Olympia which would remain their home until 1979. This also marked the first season of Jack Adams with the franchise who would remain with the team for the next 30 years.

In 1930, the team was renamed the Falcons. They struggled to make any sort of traction in the playoffs during their first years as a team. 1932 saw the purchase of the Falcons by James E. Norris who again renamed the team to the Red Wings. The team would go on to win their first playoff series against the Montreal Maroons in 1933 before falling to the New York Rangers in the next round. The next year saw their first Stanley Cup Final appearance, but they again fell in this series this time to the Chicago Black Hawks.

The Red Wings would return to the Stanley Cup Final and win their first title as a franchise in 1936 after defeating Toronto. They would claim the title again the next year as well. While they made it to the Stanley Cup Finals for three consecutive years in the early 40s, they would not claim the title again until 1943.

Gordie Howe became a Red Wing in 1946. In his second season with the team, he was paired with Sid Abel and Ted Lindsay to form the “Production Line.” This iconic pairing took the team back to the Stanley Cup Finals only to be swept by the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Red Wings would again win the Cup in 1950 behind a goal scored in double overtime by Pete Babando in Game 7. They would then win their fifth Cup as a franchise in 1952 by sweeping both the Maple Leafs and Canadians. In December of that year, James Norris died and was succeeded by his daughter Marguerite who became the first woman to head an NHL franchise.

In both 1954 and 1955 the Red Wings would add another Cup to their franchise history. The team was turned over to Marguerite’s brother Bruce in 1955 after an intra-family power struggle. In 1957, Lindsay along with some of his fellow players teamed up to form the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) which resulted in his trade to the Chicago Black Hawks. In 1959, the Red Wings would miss the playoffs for the first time in 21 years. Although making the playoffs again for the next four of six years between 1961-66, the team would not walk away with another Cup in hand.

1967 saw the beginning of the “Dead Wings” era when the team would finish 24 points out of playoff contention. Ned Harkness began this era as coach and was promoted to general manager. He was quick to force a two-way style of play on the resistant team as well as instituting rules surrounding smoking, hair length, drinking and phone calls. He was forced to resign in 1974. Gordie Howe also retired in 1971.

In 1979, the team would leave the Olympia for Joe Louis Arena. A new owner was announced in 1982 when Bruce Norris sold the team to Mike Illitch, the founder of Little Caesars. The next year, Steve Yzerman would be drafted to the team. In 1987, the team found themselves back at the Conference Finals behind the leadership of Yzerman. They would lose in five games to the Edmonton Oilers. The next year was the same and would not result in another Cup hoist for the team. Despite standout seasons for Yzerman in 1989 and 1990, the team would not make more traction in the playoffs.

In 1993, Scotty Bowman was hired as the new head coach of the Red Wings. In the 1994-95 season, the team would once again return to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in 29 years. They would ultimately be swept by the New Jersey Devils. It was not until 1997 that the Red Wings would once again return to the Finals this time to become victorious. It was their first Cup since 1955. 1998 was another victorious year for the Red Wings as they once again captured the Cup this time defeating the Washington Capitals.

While the next few seasons were not as victorious for the Red Wings, in the offseason of 2001, the team would acquire Dominik Hasek, Luc Robitaille and Brett Hull and prospect Pavel Datsyuk. They would once again see their names engraved on the Cup that year after besting the Carolina Hurricanes. Bowman and Hasek retired following this season. During the offseason the team acquired more talent including Henrik Zetterberg. While they were not able to make it past the first round of the playoffs in 2003, Hasek decided to come out of retirement to join the team once again in the 03-04 season. He was sidelined for some of the season with a groin injury.

After the lockout of 04-05, Mike Babcock was named the new head coach. They won the Presidents’ Trophy in 2006, but would lose in the first round of the playoffs to the Edmonton Oilers. After this season the roster was once again changed with the retirement of Yzerman, the departure of Brendan Shanahan and the return of Hasek.

In 2007-08, the team would once again return to the to the Finals and win their 11th Stanley Cup against the Pittsburgh Penguins. July 2008 saw the signing of Marian Hossa to the team. They would return to the Finals in 2009 to once again face the Pittsburgh Penguins but would lose the series in seven games.

With the retirement of captain Niklas Lidstrom in 2012, Zetterberg would step up to take his place as captain. While they would continue to make the playoffs each year, they again were not making much traction towards another Cup. In 2015, Babcock left at the end of his contract to go to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Jeff Blashill was named his replacement. Mike Illitch died in February 2017. This same year, the Red Wings would end the 25 consecutive playoff appearance streak. This would also end their tenure at Joe Louis Arena.

The team has not made the playoffs since 2017. In 2019, Steve Yzerman returned to the team as General Manager. Currently at the season’s pause the team is 31st in the league with 39 points, the worst overall record since 1985-86

Fanbase & Traditions

One of the most famous fan traditions of the Detroit Red Wings is the throwing of an octopus on to the ice for good luck. This began back in 1952 when Peter Cusimano, the owner of a local fish market, threw an octopus on to the ice during the playoffs. The eight legs were symbolic of the eight wins it took to win a Stanley Cup.

Another fan tradition includes the singing of “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey in the last two minutes of games that the Red Wings are winning. The song is muted during the words “born and raised in South Detroit” as fans sing along.