Does anybody remember the last time the Red Wings were outside of a playoff spot at any point after the first ten games? I certainly can't, but that's where they find themselves right now. t's easy to point at the coaching change, but that's not the only thing.
One issue has been injuries. You can see the list of players on IR, and it includes some key players like Franzen and Richards. It also, until recently, included Pavel Datsyuk.
Another is the aging key players. The aforementioned is 37. Franzen turns 36 next month.