Blues 3 - 7 Red Wings
Final
  for this game

Surging Red Wings host struggling Blues

Nov 17, 2010 - 4:23 PM (Sports Network) - A dominating homestand so far by the Red Wings has helped them charge up the Central Division standings. Detroit aims for a fourth straight victory on this residency tonight when it welcomes the slumping St. Louis Blues to Joe Louis Arena.

The Red Wings dropped a 6-4 decision in Vancouver back on Nov. 6 before the start of this season-long six-game homestand and have outscored their opponents 12-5 in winning the first three games. Detroit has won four straight at home overall and is 7-1-1 in Motown this season.

On their third three-game winning streak of the season, the Red Wings bested the rival Avalanche, 3-1, on Saturday. Todd Bertuzzi had a goal and an assist and Jiri Hudler, who spent last season in the KHL, registered his first NHL goal in the regular season since April 5, 2009.

Dan Cleary also scored and Jimmy Howard made 21 saves to improve to 22-1-3 in his last 26 regular-season starts.

"I enjoy winning. It doesn't matter how, I just like winning," said Detroit head coach Mike Babcock, whose club has yet to win four in a row this year. "We kind of got into penalty troubles that put us on our heels a little bit, but we played a pretty good hockey game."

Though Pavel Datsyuk had a 10-game point streak end, defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom extended his points run to 11 games. He has a pair of goals and 12 assists over the run.

The Blues, who trail the first-place Red Wings by two points in the standings, have dropped a season-high four straight following victories in seven straight and are on their longest slide since a seven-game skid from Dec. 26-Jan. 7 of last season.

St. Louis was last in action on Monday, when it suffered a 6-3 setback to Colorado. Alex Steen had a goal and an assist and Brad Boyes also scored.

"We gave up a lot of pucks in the neutral zone, and these guys can come back really quick on the fly," said Blues head coach Davis Payne. "There's 18 guys in here who need to look in the mirror and come out with a full-team effort."

Playing for the first time since Oct. 28 due to a concussion, defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo had a goal and an assist. However, forward David Perron missed his sixth game in a row with a concussion of his own.

Jaroslav Halak struggled to his third straight loss (0-2-1) in net, allowing a season-high six goals.

The Blues have lost three straight on the road during their skid and are 3-4-2 as the guest this year. They conclude a three-game road trip this evening.

St. Louis won four of six over Detroit last year, including a two-game sweep in Sweden. The clubs split two games in Motown and the Blues have won five of the last seven meetings overall.






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