Detroit Red Wings look to make it 22 home wins against Nashville Predators - NHL Preview
The Detroit Red Wings are seemingly invincible at home and will look to maintain their winning run on home ice when they welcome a tough Nashville Predators side to the Joe Louis Arena on Friday, February 17th, 2012.
Detroit will be looking to build on their record winning run at home with a 22nd straight victory at the Joe Louis Arena.
The Red Wings are top of the Western Conference with 80 points and are two points ahead of the chasing Vancouver Canucks, who are second in the conference table.
Nashville Predators, on the other hand, trail Detroit by eight points as they lie fifth in the Western Conference and will not be an easy opponent by any chance.
The Predators have just ended a three-game losing run on Tuesday and will be fired up for the game as they look to move up the rankings.
Red Wings (39-17-2, 80 pts)
Detroit are currently on a four-game winning run, all of them at home ice. The Red Wings had previously lost twice on the road before returning to their comfort zone inside the Joe Lewis Arena.
The Red Wings won a record 21st straight home game on Tuesday with a 3-1 win over the Dallas Stars.
Detroit were always in control throughout the game as they took a two-goal first period lead and made it 3-0 in the third.
The Stars could only settle for a consolation goal in the final minute of the game as the 20,066 capacity crowd gave their team a long standing ovation on their record achievement.
Captain, Nicklas Lidstrom, though is not going to rest on his laurels and wants the team to concentrate on getting more points to maintain their position.
"It's something we're going to cherish, but we've talked about getting more points to stay where we are in the standings,"
Predators (33-18-6, 72 pts)
Nashville ended a run of three losses in a row on Tuesday, with an important 3-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.
The Predators though defeated a struggling Chicago side and the Detroit Red Wings will be a completely different proposition.
Goaltender, Pekka Rinne, knows the importance of this game and believes that facing their Central Division rivals will not be an easy task.
“It's a big deal, obviously. It's division games and those points, really, they make a big difference and I think that's a reason for our separation in the standings right now. Those games have been really crucial for us, but it's not going to get any easier.
We're going to face a tough team in Detroit."
Predictions
Detroit Red Wings home ice record run has to end some day, but it won’t be against Nashville if they can put a few goals past Pekka Rinne early on.
Expect the Red Wings to come out on top as a 20,000+ capacity crowd cheers their team on.
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