The Daily: Rivals Closing on Red Wings; Blackhawks Blockbuster

COLUMBUS — The objects in the Detroit Red Wings’ rearview mirror are closer than they appear.

Detroit’s two losses against the Columbus Blue Jackets has allowed the list of Eastern Conference playoff hopes to close the gap in the race. The Blue Jackets, trailing Detroit last week, are now two points ahead of him.

The Ottawa Senators (vs. San Jose) and Boston Bruins (vs. Pittsburgh) both won Saturday, and they are now only two points behind Detroit. The Montreal Canadiens are now three points behind Detroit and the New York Rangers.

More importantly, the Red Wings seem to have lost their way defensively. They have given up four or more goals in six of their last seven games. As coach Todd McLellan points out, those games were all different in terms of cause what occurred in them.

Danforth drags his stick across Edvinsson's face, takes the puck and scores. Refs somehow missed it. EGREGIOUS high stick.

What a joke. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/s0XfsHNJt1

— Ryan Hana (@RyanHanaWWP) March 2, 2025

But the bottom line is the Red Wings are making more mistakes than they did earlier in McLellan’s tenure.

“We’ve gone on two, seven-game winning streaks. Kind of seen it all in 26, 27 games,” McLellan said. “But I do believe we have work to do in understanding the ebbs and flows of a game, the ups and downs, the situations that when we should swing for the fences and sometimes we should just punt and defend a little bit and we’re caught in between a few times.”

Red Wings In Case You Missed It

The Red Wings paid tribute to the memory of late Columbus forward Johnny Gaudreau and his brother before the Stadium Series game Saturday.

Dylan Larkin had no issue with coach Todd McLellan calling him for his poor performance last Thursday against Columbus. He was much sharper Saturday in the 5-3 loss.

What are the Red Wings odds of qualifying for the NHL playoffs? We have the latest odds.

Red Wings Extra

In their final 22 games, the Red Wings will meet the Carolina Hurricanes three times. The first time will be Tuesday at Little Caesars Arena (7 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network).  The Hurricanes are 4-6 in their last 10 games.

Hockey Now Network

Chicago: The Blackhawks eat some salary and land a solid return for Seth Jones. Chicago Blackhawks.

Philadelphia: How Ivan Fedotov’s big night in goal helped the Flyers take down the Winnipeg Jets. Philadelphia Flyers.

Pittsburgh: PHN gave defenseman Erik Karlsson for his performance in a loss to the Boston Bruins. Pittsburgh Penguins.

San Jose Sharks: The Sharks are on pace to be the NHL’s worst team in two decades in terms of points percentage. San Jose Sharks.