The second game of the Detroit Red Wings’ back-to-back with the Columbus Blue Jackets this week will attract more attention. The first one, in Detroit on Thursday night, will count just as much as in the standings.
Both Eastern Conference teams are in a spirited battle for a playoff berth. The Red Wings currently hold a wild-card spot after going 9-1-1 on their last 11 games. The Blue Jackets are only two points behind Detroit in the standings after winning their last two games.
They’ll square off once again on Saturday night, this time outdoors at Ohio Stadium in Columbus as part of the NHL Stadium Series.
“We’re fighting for that wild card and fighting to move up in our division,” Red Wings goaltender Cam Talbot told the Detroit News. “It’s going to be four big points on the line, an eight-point swing (potentially) one way or another. It just can’t be an experience (of playing the outdoor game), it has to be a game and you have to approach it that way. Business as usual.”
The Red Wings took care of business against Minnesota on Tuesday, rallying from a two-goal deficit to pull out a 3-2 victory. Detroit got two goals from rookie defenseman Simon Edvinsson.
The Red Wings have become increasingly reliant on their young talent since Todd McLellan took over as head coach in late December.
“One, we don’t have a choice because we have a lot of young guys, and they’re very capable of playing,” McLellan said. “We don’t hesitate to put them out there. We feel comfortable with the job they can do and they’re gaining valuable experience. And then secondly, the veterans appreciate them. It’s a two-way street — there’s nothing worse than having an old and a young team divided. I think we have a good mixture of just being a Red Wings team. We don’t talk a lot about young and old, veteran and rookie.”
The Blue Jackets recorded a 6-4 home win over Dallas on Tuesday.
“Every game we’ve got to play like it’s a playoff game to make it in there, and that’s been our goal,” center Adam Fantilli said. “We’ve had that belief in ourselves, so we just want to start the same way we did (Tuesday) and continue that on through the whole game every single night.”
Kirill Marchenko had two goals and an assist to lead the attack. He’s now got a team-high 23 goals and 59 points, second to Zach Werenski (62).
“We’re playing our style every game,” Marchenko said. “We try to play our style every game, and (find) good opportunities to score. Just a fun and nice game (Tuesday). Everybody enjoys this moment, and when you win, you have a lot of fun.”
In the first meeting on Jan. 2, Detroit won on Columbus’ home ice, 5-4. Jonatan Berggren scored the game-winning goal with 36 seconds remaining. Alex DeBrincat contributed a goal and two assists for the Red Wings.
DeBrincat carries a seven-game point streak into Thursday’s game. He has five goals and six assists during that span.
–Field Level Media
