The NHL’s most hated team, the Detroit Red Wings, are rising from the ashes of the fallen dynasty. As they say what goes up must come down, but this is the story of being reborn from a few surprising characters. Here’s who and why.

Since the Detroit Red Wings fell from grace, the NHL has felt so empty, but the emptiness is soon to be filled with the gear changes for the Detroit Red Wings.

One of my favorite shows is Psych. The comedy/mystery series consists of a duo who have a private detective agency. In the show, one of the duo is Burton Guster (Gus). He’s a straight edge, disciplined, and mature pharmaceutical salesman.

At one point, Gus meets a man who informed viewers (and Gus) that he was just released from prison. As a response, Gus told us that he’s been to jail. Only once. In monopoly. He said it was awful.

It’s kind of how I feel as a Detroit Red Wings fan, sitting in monopoly’s jail. Waiting for the perfect roll of the dice or number of turns to pass, as other teams get to celebrate. Whether it’s victories on or off of the ice, I kind of feel left out.

Our highest pick in the draft was fourth overall. Although I wouldn’t trade Lucas Raymond for anything or anyone, I’m annoyed that a team who has struggled for so long and so much hasn’t received any help from the National Hockey League (NHL). Meanwhile other teams are handed multiple top-three picks in the draft. Yes, I understand it’s a lottery, but it doesn’t make it less frustrating to experience.

Then, we get to see teams watch either their star players rocking it out on the ice every night or hoisting Lord Stanley. Try with all his might, Dylan Larkin is an incredible player who gets fans out of their seats and leads the team on and off the ice, but it’s not the same.

As we approach a new generation of ice hockey stars, fewer people (both players and fans alike) know or remember the Detroit Red Wings dynasty of the late 1990s and early 2000s.

In the past few seasons, the Detroit Red Wings have been in a renaissance–a movement starting with Olli Määttä, Alex DeBrincat, and Patrick Kane.

The Detroit Red Wings are preparing to take flight with a healthy mix of winning veterans and budding youth, but is the NHL ready for it?

This feeling of hope is a bit new in this rendition of the Detroit Red Wings.

The long, winding road, thus far, has been a tiring teardown and rebuild. It left broken hearts, anger, and despair in its wake. But, there was a flash of light in the seemingly endless tunnel.