The time for talk is long over.
The time for the Detroit Red Wings to go out and get the job done is long overdue.
“We’ve just got to find a win in any way possible,… Detroit forward Darren Helm said.
He was talking about Friday’s game at Joe Louis Arena against the Minnesota Wild.
He could have been talking about all five of the games the Wings have remaining on the NHL’s regular-season schedule.
Trailing the Boston Bruins by one point for third place in the Atlantic Division and the Philadelphia Flyers by two points for the final Eastern Conference wildcard position, the Wings see only one alternative at this point in their hunt to extend their streak of consecutive Stanley Cup playoff appearances to 25 years.
Win out of they’ll be out for the first time since 1989-90.
“It’s going to be an intense game tonight I’m sure with both teams battling for their playoff lives,… Detroit forward Luke Glendening said of the Wild, currently holding down the final Western Conference wildcard spot. “But I think every game we have to take as a playoff game at this point. We have to put our best foot forward.
“With five games left, we need to win every game here.…
A Wing since the 2007-08 season, the last spring the club captured a Stanley Cup title, Helm is baffled by the Jekyll-Hyde personality Detroit has displayed this season. Since Valentines Day, the Wings, who were fifth in the East at the time, are treading water at 10-10-2 and that’s not good enough to grab a playoff spot, explaining why they’ve dropped to ninth overall in the conference.
During that time frame, Detroit has assembled just one three-game winning streak and only two stretches of back-to-back wins.
Helm believes they are a better team than they’ve shown of late.
“I look around and I see a lot of talent, a lot of guys that want to win, a lot of guys that work hard,… Helm said. “We just can’t seem to get a good streak put together right now.…
He recognizes that this situation must change or for the first time since 1990, Detroit’s playoff status will change to outsider.
“It has to,… Helm said. “We know the situation we’re in. We know what we have to do. We’ve known it for a long time.
“You can feel it in the room each day that we need to tighten up a little more. The inclination is there. We’ve just got to put in the minutes.…
Time, though, is not on their side.
Back To The Future Seeking to kick-start his team, Detroit coach Jeff Blashill is opting to go back to the well of his days as coach of Detroit’s AHL farm club in Grand Rapids. He’s putting forwards Anthony Mantha and Andreas Athanasiou together on a line with Glendening.
That duo was an effective tandem when Blashill was behind the Griffins’ bench.
“When he came up we wanted to put him in a position where he was playing with Pav (Datsyuk), and I think there’s still a good chance he’ll be in positions where he’ll play with Pav and whatnot throughout the game,… Blashill said of Mantha. “It’s also, anybody who’s followed those two guys – Double A and Mantha – know they have really good chemistry together. They’ve been very, very good, they certainly were for me last year, so there’s some chemistry as well that can go into it.…
Glendening provides a defensive conscious in the middle between the two rookies.
“(Mantha) and AA are so skilled I just have to be responsible defensively,… Glendening said. “Just be at the net, be hard, get them pucks and just try to help them in any way I can.…
His mere presence on the unit allows Blashill to feel that help will always be on the way for Athanasiou and Mantha if they are overcome by the errors of youth.
“Having Glennie in the middle – if that line plays together – gives them a real trust factor from my end, which ultimately allows you to get on the ice a little bit more,… Blashill said. “So, again, we’re just looking for the best mix to give ourselves a best chance to win.…
Jimmy Howard will start in goal and Blashill indicated any other lineup changes would be considered following the pre-game skate.
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