from Ansar Khan of Mlive,
The "Lose for Hughes" campaign was in full force when the Red Wings were 1-7-2 and looked destined to having the best draft lottery odds for generational talent Jack Hughes. It has lost some steam during a 7-1 run that has drawn them even at 8-8-2.
It's a long season that promises to deliver many ups and downs.
But those who favor winning at the expense of draft position and those committed to tanking can agree on this much: It's good for the future of the franchise that young players are stepping up and gaining confidence.
Nobody is hotter than Andreas Athanasiou, who has three two-point games since returning from an injury and is tied with Dylan Larkin for the team lead with seven goals.
Anthony Mantha has three goals in the past two games after an awful start. Michael Rasmussen is improving as a net-front presence and has three goals in seven games. Dennis Cholowski (three goals, nine points) is tied for fifth among rookies in points and tied for first among rookie defensemen.
"They are the future. They're the ones who are going to push this train forward," Niklas Kronwall said.
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