DETROIT -- While everyone in the hockey world is looking at Mike Babcock, he and general manager Ken Holland are looking at the Red Wings' youngsters.
Pavel Datsyuk led the Wings in the playoffs with three goals and two assists in seven games. Henrik Zetterberg was fourth with three assists in the seven games.
Those two led the team in points in the regular season, Zetterberg with 66 and Datsyuk with 65.
The only problem with that is Datsyuk turns 37 in July and Zetterberg turns 35 next October.
Niklas Kronwall, the team's highest-scoring defenseman in the regular season with 44 points, turns 35 next January.
Those players still have some left in the tank but the Wings need more.
"The impetus has to come from those kids," Babcock said after the Wings took their team photo Friday at Joe Louis Arena. "We need Z and Pav and Kronner to maintain where they're at. But those guys aren't at the point in their career that they're getting better. But these kids are."
The kids that Babcock is referring to are Tomas Tatar, Gustav Nyquist, Riley Sheahan, Tomas Jurco, Luke Glendening, Landon Ferraro, Brendan Smith and Alexey Marchenko.
Tatar and Nyquist were right behind Zetterberg and Datsyuk in scoring in the regular season.
But they and the other young kids need to take the kind of step forward that Justin Abdelkader took this past season.
Abdelkader went from a previous career best 10 goals in a season to 23 this past season, to go along with 21 assists.
"We're not a thousand miles away but we're not quite good enough," Holland said, speaking for more than 40 minutes. "That was sort of part of my message. Part of getting better is going to be that some of our young people continue to push. We're going to explore July 1. But the players on July 1, they're support players, they're not franchise players, they're not cornerstone players, they're nice pieces."
Tatar is just 24 and established new career highs with 29 goals and 27 assists while playing all 82 games with the Wings this season. His four playoff points tied him with Jonathan Ericsson for second behind Datsyuk.
Tatar talked Friday about becoming an "every-dayer" like Zetterberg, Datsyuk and Kronwall.
"There's lots of (things) I can improve and I'm going to work on it in the summer and come here more ready and try to become a better player," Tatar said. "Managing the puck at certain times in a game. Just be heavy on the puck so you can be faster. Try to work on my D zone coverage."
Jurco, 22, knows he's far more capable than just the three goals and 15 assists he scored in 63 games in the regular season.
"It wasn't a great season for me," Jurco said. "I know that. I'm going to work really hard in the season and come next year I'll be ready to have a great season and score more goals and help the team more."
Ferraro, who turns 24 this August, actually played in more playoff games (7) than regular season games (3).
"It was a great experience and it gave me an idea that I wanted a chance and I finally got it and I made the most of it," Ferraro said. "I feel I did a pretty good job and they were happy with it so it's huge going into the summer, getting that under my belt and knowing that I can play in this league and kind of seeing what else I got to work on."
Whether Babcock returns or not, he knows what the Wings have, both in the veterans and in the younger players.
"Zetterberg and Datsyuk and Kronwall, in my opinion, are the best leadership group I've been around in pro sports." Babcock said. "Those guys' window isn't as long as a lot of our kids. At one point this year we had 15 kids under the age of 28 and we need the push from those kids. When I first got here, Datsyuk and Zetterberg and Kronwall were making the older players that were here, they made them better."
GOALIE COMPETITION
Petr Mrazek is one of the young players that took a huge leap this past season.
At 23, Mrazek stepped in when both Jimmy Howard and Jonas Gustavsson went down with injuries and he performed better than expected.
But that doesn't mean Mrazek is guaranteed a starting role next season.
"We just met with Petr Mrazek, if you're going to sit on your laurels we want Jimmy Howard to take the job," Holland said. "It's a competition. We need great goaltending. We need the two of them to compete."
Howard, 31, was having the best season of his career when he went down with a groin injury Jan. 10, the day he was named to the All-Star team.
When Howard returned from the injury, he wasn't quite himself.
"It's tough, you know everything was going really well prior to that point," Howard said. "We do a job where injuries happen and you can't use them as an excuse one bit. I'm not gonna use it as an excuse. When you come back and you're healthy, you need to perform and I didn't."
Howard, who has four years remaining on his contract, said he had no intention of asking for a trade.
"You constantly have to reinvent yourself, you know it's up to the individual, the person to be prepared for every situation. I can only control what I can control and that's myself and I'm gonna continue to do what I do and that's work extremely hard and try to get better," Howard said.
GUSTAVSSON'S TIME IN DETROIT DONE
Gustavsson, who suffered a dislocated shoulder early in the season and then a concussion later, is unlikely to be brought back.
"In one way I'm happy with my health this year even though it sounds funny because my groin has been feeling great from the start," Gustavsson said. "I haven't felt anything in the practice or the game when I pushed hard on the ice. Health-wise I think I'm in better shape than ever but obviously that shoulder injury and then the concussion prevented me from showing it."
Gustavsson said it was a little too early to start looking at what teams might be in need of goaltending.
"I feel I have lots left in the tank," Gustavsson said. "I'm only 30 years old so hopefully I have another 10 years of good hockey in me."
ZIDLICKY GETS MRI, ENJOYED TIME IN DETROIT
Veteran defenseman Marek Zidlicky did not play in Game 7 in Tampa because of a concussion he suffered on a hit from Brenden Morrow.
"It was a little late," Zidlicky said. "I don't see him to come, but it's late. We lost. So I don't want to say anything about it. It was a little late. So that's all I'll say right now."
Zidlicky said he's still experiencing concussion symptoms.
"I had an MRI this morning and it looks clean, so we will see," Zidlicky said. "But you never know with the head. We will see. It's tough to say right now, but hoping the symptoms are going to be better."
Zidlicky is 38 and an unrestricted free agent. He said he wants to make sure he's healthy before deciding on his future.
But he did say he enjoyed his time with the Wings.
"I had a meeting with the coaches and I said I had a great time here," Zidlicky said. "This is great team, close team, good organization and we were pretty close."
FRANZEN'S STATUS UNKNOWN
Johan Franzen had a serious concussion this season -- not his first -- one that prevented him from playing more than 33 games and none since Jan. 6.
"I don't think anybody knows," Holland said. "When you're dealing with people that have concussions and he's got a bit of a history. Certainly the message the last month he wanted to play. He told us a couple weeks ago we felt great and was on the right path. If we advanced in the playoffs he was hoping he'd be available. Then he had a bit of a setback.
"People with concussions it's hard to know, but the hope is over the summer he gets 100 percent healthy."
HEADING TO WORLDS
Both Tatar and Jurco are heading to play for Slovakia in the World Hockey Championships in the Czech Republic.
"It's always honor to play for my national team and I always love to do that," Tatar said. "Otherwise I would stick around for a little bit. I feel like I owe the country a lot for it. I grew up there, they gave me chance to become NHL player so I want to go home and play for the team."
Jurco is also happy to be able to keep playing some hockey.
"For sure I'm excited," Jurco said. "Obviously I'm still a little upset about losing in the first round, but I'm excited to go there and play for Slovakia. It's always an honor to play for my own country."
Dylan Larkin, the Wings' first-round pick last year and current University of Michigan player, is also participating.
INJURIES REVEALED
