18

The Red Wings have made the post-season 18 straight seasons. That's the longest current streak in any sport. Last night, the Red Wings sat in the 8th and final spot for the playoffs. They played the Calgary Flames who were just one point behind in the standings. The Red Wings led 2-1 entering the 3rd period. The Flames outshot the Wings 15-4 in that final period, scoring 3 times. Final score: 4-2 Flames.

The Wings are now on the outside looking in, with 16 games remaining. Of course, this is no surprise. They've blown 3rd period leads all season. I posted in late January that we should start to prepare for the inevitable - a post-season without the Wings. A quick look at the boxscore shows the Wings' failings. The Flames goals by period: 0-1-3. During crunch time, the Flames proved they were the more desperate team. That's a sad indictment on the Wings, who just minutes earlier, looked like the Western Conference Champion from '09.

While the Flames were desperate, the Wings were at least focused. This is not the same team from late January - both literally and figuratively. The injured players are back, and they've injected some life, especially on the power-play. In the 2nd period, the Wings worked the best power-play I've seen all season. The passes were crisp, fast, and they scored within seconds. The Flames had no chance.

The Wings seemed to be in control. If not for an unfortunate bounce off the walls, the score would've been 2-0 Wings. Yet, the cliche is true - hockey is a game of bounces, and the bounces went the Flames way in the end. The Flames worked extremely hard in the 3rd period to get the equalizer. They kept the puck deep in the Wings zone, and a rebound eventually found an unmarked Iginla. It was Iginla's first regular season goal against the Wings since 2004 (Iginla scored 181 goals against the other teams during that span). The game-winning goal did require a bit of luck. With more sustained pressure, the Flames shot the puck, but it ricocheted off a player's thigh and tumbled behind Howard. It was a clear case of effort leading to luck. Later, the Flames scored an empty-netter from a shot clear across the ice. I'd never seen a player score an empty-netter from his own defensive zone, but it was obviously the Flames night.

So now the Wings find themselves in the 9th spot. While they're playing like a top-8 team, it may be too late. For the season, the Wings remain 4 games under .500, and they've yet to win 3 in a row. That's hardly the mark of a playoff team. With 16 games left, they can still put together a run. Earlier in the season, their level of play left me pessimistic. Now that they at times resemble a playoff team, I hold a glimmer of hope.