As Red Wings enter 4 Nations break, a frantic playoff race awaits their return

DETROIT The Detroit Red Wings didnt get their perfect punctuation mark going into the 4 Nations Face-Off break.

Coming into a Saturday matinee on a seven-game win streak, Detroit doomed its chances of continuing that run when it let up four goals to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the games first 15:13.

Its hard to win that way, and even more so when the Lightnings Andrei Vasilevskiy is in the opposing net.

Advertisement Though the Red Wings goaltenders wont be thrilled with a night they allowed five goals on just 18 shots (including an empty netter, in a 6-3 Red Wings loss), Detroit coach Todd McLellan made a point to say of the teams slow start, by no means is that on the two guys that wear the pads.

Detroits starter Alex Lyon will particularly want the games first goal back a routine shot from Brandon Hagel that just leaked through him but the Red Wings first period as a whole left a lot to be desired in multiple ways.

Shortly after that first goal (which came just 1:28 into the game), Erik Cernak lofted a point shot through a screen that beat Lyon again chasing him for Cam Talbot in the games first three minutes.

After that, an Alex DeBrincat turnover at the offensive blue line sent the Lightning in transition, where Brayden Point got loose and scored an easy-looking one, despite Detroits having all five skaters back on the track.

Brayden Point's got his 30th goal of the season off a sweet feed from Gage Goncalves! How many goals do you think Point will score at the #4Nations Face-Off? : ABC & @ESPNPlus https://t.co/S5tPrXCygm : @Sportsnet or stream on Sportsnet+ https://t.co/4KjbdjVctF pic.twitter.com/7FRNzLkn7z NHL (@NHL) February 8, 2025 Then, rookie Marco Kasper turned one over on an entry, leading to a Nick Paul breakaway to make it 4-1 Lightning just over 15 minutes into the game.

Theyre a team that (if) you make a mistake with the puck, its a good chance theres gonna be some sort of chance coming the other way, Ben Chiarot said.

It was an all-around bad start and not even necessarily in the way McLellan had feared before it started, going into a long break for his team.

We didnt have any game management skills at all, he said.

The number of turnovers, the gifts that we gave them I didnt see that part coming.

I thought the game management might be there but we might not have the drive or the jump that we might need.

So it worked out (the) exact opposite as I thought it could for our team.

Advertisement Credit to the Red Wings for finding their game as it went on, cutting it to a 4-3 game after a roaring second period in which they outshot the Lightning 19-15.

It wasnt enough to overcome that sloppy start, though and now theyll have to wait two weeks before their next game.

Though that naturally comes with disappointment, coming down from the high of a seven-game win streak that included a four-game sweep in western Canada and Seattle last weekend, the Red Wings still feel good about where they stand as the league takes its pause.

I think our games in a pretty good spot, DeBrincat said.

Obviously, not as good tonight, but overall were doing good things and winning games.

And yeah, the feelings confident in that room.

The breaks going to be nice to get rested and come back full strength.

And theyll need that because when they do get back, the Eastern Conference playoff race is shaping up to be quite the derby.

Saturdays loss does sting extra in that way, as with the win the Lightning put a gap between themselves and the Red Wings in the Atlantic, sitting at 64 points in 54 games 3 more points in one fewer contest.

Theyll have a chance to add 2 more points Sunday in Montreal.

By the end of the game against Tampa Bay, Detroit was holding steady in the conferences second wild-card position 1 point behind division rival the Ottawa Senators .

But its grip on that spot is tepid and could change depending on results in Boston and Columbus later Saturday.

Also lurking in the weeds are the New York Rangers and New York Islanders , both of whom have started to find their game and are still within striking range.

If you include the Lightning, thats seven teams battling for, realistically, three spots down the stretch.

And the Red Wings have the leagues hardest remaining strength of schedule, with a combined opponents points percentage of .586.

Advertisement The good news is, that will include multiple head-to-head chances against the Columbus Blue Jackets and Senators in the second half, and they will also get another look at the Lightning and Boston Bruins .

But its going to be a real challenge to emerge from that pack.

Its a testament to how good Detroit has been under McLellan that the Red Wings are even in this position at the break.

At Christmas, before the Red Wings brought him in to replace Derek Lalonde, they looked destined for another year in the NHL Draft lottery.

After going 15-5-1, though, theyve earned their way back into the race.

Theyve seen surges of growth from young players such as Kasper and Albert Johansson , and returns to form from veterans such as Chiarot and Andrew Copp .

Saturday notwithstanding, theyve made strides defensively, and perhaps most impressively, have done it while getting more aggressive.

Theyre scoring more and finding ways to win even on nights they dont.

Its been a great story one of the best in the NHL over the last six weeks.

The loss Saturday means the story will not be going into the break on a high note.

But its all set up for one heck of a race to the finish when they return.

(Photo: Rick Osentoski / Imagn Images).

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