After an uninspired performance this evening against the Nashville Predators, the Red Wings now find themselves a point back of that very team after being beaten 4-1. Now sitting in 5th in the West, Chicago is dangerously close to also pushing past Detroit to bump the Wings down to a depressing 6th seed.
Currently I'm waiting for the post-game to hear from coach Mike Babcock. I'm truly hoping he doesn't say that he thought the Wings played well, despite the outcome, because they did not. Defense was terrible tonight, and that has been an eerie consistency lately, healthy or not. Offense was lacking, and far too saturated with fanciness and over-passing. Babcock came right out and said that more shots needed to be taken, and it seems like the team did not respond to his cries. SOG were 32-26 in favor of Nashville, and that is just too low a number against a team like the Predators and a goalie like Pekka Rinne.
This last stretch of the regular season has felt excruciatingly long, and it continues on Sunday against Florida. All the Wings can do now is try to get their act together and call the witch doctor to put the hexes on Nashville and Chicago.
