The Detroit Red Wings are on a roll after a successful tour to California’s West Coast. Detroit comes home after defeating the San Jose Sharks, Los Angeles Kings, and Anaheim Ducks this week. Historically, these travels have not been favorable to the Red Wings; the last time they won one of these California trips was in 2008.
The Red Wings also defied another long-standing tendency on Sunday night in Anaheim. It was Detroit’s first win this season without scoring four or more goals. It’s odd, but I’m relieved the streak is gone. I can’t tell you how many times I mumbled “Yes, Mr. Ducksworth, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, Mr. Ducksworth” to myself during Sunday’s game, especially with the Ducks wearing a retro-style shirt. The Mighty Ducks movies were a fixture of my childhood or pre-teen years. If you were a hockey enthusiast in my area, you envisioned yourself as Charlie Conway, and you spent many hours on the pond each winter practicing the legendary ‘triple-deke.’
The Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference playoff races are locked. There is minimal room for error, and if the Detroit Red Wings hadn’t had such a bad December, they would be right at or near the top of the Atlantic Division. Right present, the Detroit Red Wings have 44 points, good for fourth in the division.
The Red Wings trail the Toronto Maple Leafs by three points, who have three games in hand, as well as the Boston Bruins by eleven points and the Florida Panthers by eight. The wild card race becomes more fierce. The Red Wings are only one point ahead of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Like the Red Wings, the New Jersey Devils, Washington Capitals, and Pittsburgh Penguins have 44 points and are fifth and sixth in the Metropolitan Division, respectively. The New York Islanders hold fourth place with 46 points.
Again, there is no room for error, and the Detroit Red Wings cannot afford to go on another 3-9-1 skid, like they did in late December. Detroit faces a difficult stretch of the schedule, beginning with home games against the Edmonton Oilers, who are on a seven-game winning run, followed by the Los Angeles Kings before going on the road. The following three-game road trip will include stops in Toronto, Florida, and Carolina before returning home for a six-game run. The six-game home stand to close January will include games against Tampa Bay, Dallas, Philadelphia, Vegas, Ottawa, and Vancouver.
