Red Wings at Panthers
The Detroit Red Wings continue to search for answers and the top form they displayed when winning six consecutive games back in October. Detroit has dropped five of its last six contests, and a struggling power play is not helping a cold offense as it prepares to conclude a postponement-shortened two-game road trip Friday against the Florida Panthers.
“Frustration usually means you’re pointing fingers at other people,” Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill told the Detroit Free Press. “We have no time to point fingers at anybody. We better look in the mirror and say, ‘How can I be better?’ To a man, including myself, we’ve got to own it, we’ve got to find solutions.” The Red Wings defeated Anaheim 6-4 on Saturday before their game in Carolina two days later was postponed due to poor ice conditions, but the extra rest did not benefit them in a 4-1 loss at Tampa Bay the following night. The Panthers have won all three meetings with Detroit this season but are treading water since making a coaching change late last month, falling to 4-4-4 after a 3-1 home loss to Boston on Thursday. Jaromir Jagr hopes to add to his gaudy career numbers after recording an assist versus the Bruins to pass Mark Messier for second place on the all-time points list with 1,888.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Detroit Plus, FSN Florida
ABOUT THE RED WINGS (14-15-4): Detroit has managed just one power-play goal in 32 opportunities over 10 games this month and is last in the league with the man advantage on the road (2-for-40). It won’t help that second-leading scorer and power-play ace Mike Green (18 points) is expected to miss his second straight game with a lower-body injury. Jimmy Howard suffered a lower-leg injury against Tampa Bay and was placed on the seven-day injured reserve, forcing the Red Wings to recall fellow goaltender Jared Coreau to team with Petr Mrazek.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS (15-14-5): Roberto Luongo did not dress for Thursday’s contest but is expected to get the start against Detroit as he attempts to pass Terry Sawchuk (447) for fifth on the all-time wins list. Aleksander Barkov scored the team's only goal Thursday and has notched 12 points in his last 11 games to take over the team lead with 26 – six better than Jagr and Jonathan Marchessault. Defenseman Keith Yandle recorded his second goal of the season in Tuesday’s win over Buffalo and is third on the team with 13 assists but posted a minus-2 rating on Thursday.
OVERTIME
1. Jagr, who has registered 755 goals and 1,133 assists in his career, has collected 37 points in 43 career games against Detroit.
2. Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg notched an assist in the final seconds Tuesday and leads the team with 22 points.
3. The Panthers are fifth in the league on the penalty kill (84.9 percent) but 26th on the power play (14.8) after going 0-for-3 on Thursday.