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Well, for one, I can't see why anyone was worried about the Red Wings at all. The players they lost were disposable, especially with the new rules in place, and it allowed them to re-sign their future, namely Datsyuk and Zetterberg, as well as add to that future with Kronwall (who unfortunately got jipped out of this season). As far as goaltending is concerned, anyone who has watched Legace over the last 3 seasons knew that he was solid, and long overdue for a chance to be the starter. The core of their team is still there, and with Babcock actually motivating the vets to skate this year, they are as strong a team as any in the West.
On the other issue of their schedule, you can hardly blame the team for that. Not to mention, the key to a great regular season is taking advantage of those easy games on the schedule, which they obviously have. I've seen plenty of strong teams drop games to scrubs this year already, but the Red Wings have taken care of business and have been rewareded for it. So while we'll have to wait to see how they will perform against better competition, at least we know they can stay focused against lesser opponents, even in the new NHLs "rivalry" scheduling.
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