The Detroit Red Wings are off to a surprising start. The perennial Stanley Cup contenders have won just one of their three matches, but have looked ineffective offensively and defensively.
The team suffered a dreadful 6-0 loss on opening night at the hands of the St. Louis Blues. They saved face against the Columbus Blue Jackets a few nights later, but just barely did so. Detroit managed to blow a 2-0 lead against last year's worst team but managed to win in the shootout. A day later, the Red Wings were defeated 2-1 by the Dallas Stars and are falling behind the pack in the Central Division. Pavel Datsyuk has scored three points in the first three games and has provided the lone bright spot for the team. The Red Wings will need better play from goaltender Jimmy Howard who currently has a 3.64 goals against average and was pulled against St. Louis.
The Red Wings' opponent on Friday is the revived Minnesota Wild. The Wild started the season off with a 4-2 takedown of the Colorado Avalanche. They followed that performance up with a 1-0 shutout of the Dallas Stars but fell back to earth in a 3-1 loss to the Nashville Predators. The new acquisitions Zach Parise and Ryan Suter have had differing results. Parise has four points in the three games while Suter has zero and is a -3 in the defensive statistics.
Predictions: Detroit looks like it is on a downward spiral but their play at the Joe Louis Arena is generally strong. Look for Detroit to slightly edge Minnesota 3-2.
Start Time: 7:30 PM EST
TV Info: NHL Network
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