Scott Merryfield
Senior HTF Member
The reasons, in no particular order, are (1) the late starts for the road games, (2) they are stuck in a division with crappy teams that they play too many times due to the unbalanced schedule, and (3) Wings fans really miss playing the Original Six teams. The only one that comes to town regularly is Chicago, and the Blackhawks have never been much of a franchise (they're sort of the Detroit Lions of the NHL). Montreal, for example, played at Joe Louis Arena this season for the first time in five years! I was at the game -- I'm a huge Habs fan -- and there were numerous signs around the arena asking for more Original Six games.
Most Wings fans would prefer more games against Toronto, Montreal, Boston, etc. than seeing Nashville and Columbus all the time. Toronto, especially, used to be a huge rivalry, with lots of Leafs fans living right across the Detroit River in Windsor. Now Toronto only comes to town every 2-3 years.