Detroit Red Wings: Is Jiri Hudler's Return to Form for Real?

Let's start out by acknowledging that the Detroit Red Wings are just four games into an 82-game season.

Additionally, their herky-jerky opening schedule (the October calendar features two lengthy layoffs followed by back-to-back affairs) may actually artificially help them as they could be benefiting from more than average rest to start the season.

Finally, two of their wins have come against underwhelming Ottawa and Minnesota squads.

The circumstances may be extenuating, but, that doesn't negate the fact that the Red Wings are off to their best season start since 1997-98.

Going 4-0 to start the year is a welcome development, though not altogether surprising given the team's talent and experience.

Then again, talent and experience didn't do much to help Jiri Hudler at all last season.

Hudler's post-KHL struggles were well documented last season (amply by yours truly), and the summer prognostications directed toward the Wings suggested everything from a buyout to a future-considerations trade would be preferable to actually keeping Hudler in Detroit.

The goal, clearly, was to do anything to cut lose of Hudler and his $2.75 million cap hit.

To my mind, there was no way in hell (or heaven) that Hudler would be able to contribute in any significant way after he fell so utterly flat on his face the year before.

Well, apparently that's why my mind isn't running the Detroit Red Wings.

Hudler has a point in all four games to start the season and, along with linemates Johan Franzen and Valtteri Filppula, has looked solidly dangerous each and every time he's on the ice.

His plus-four rating is tops among the Wings' forwards and his strength on the puck and in the corners is, well, noticeable.

Forget having a mere turnaround; compared to last season's start, Hudler is seemingly a man remade from the skates up.

It's not even fair to assess Hudler's performance thus far as the kind most were expecting last season, but didn't get.

Sure, the points are coming at a good clip, but even the pre-KHL Hudler wasn't as strong and dangerous as this guy appears to be.

At the end of the season, one should see "Zetterberg" or "Datsyuk" as the name at the top of Detroit's scoring chart.

But, the fact that "Hudler" is the name that currently occupies that space is a very, very good thing for the Red Wings.

It speaks not only to Hudler's rediscovered swagger, but to Detroit's depth in scoring.

As promising as Hudler's start is, whether or not it's a true harbinger of his season to come, or merely a string of good luck remains a legitimate question.

After all, Henrik Zetterberg is on pace for 20 points this season; something tells me that won't be the case in April.

Hot starts from unexpected players is a common story for many teams in October, as is the sudden fall to Earth many of those players experience shortly after.

Hudler may not be able to keep up his stellar performance to date, but, for the time being, he's leading the Red Wings in scoring and is looking good doing it.

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