Pavel Datsyuk

The end of the season is in sight, and the Detroit Red Wings found themselves needing a win on home ice to try and maintain their position in the Western Conference standings against the team that trailed them by only a point: the St. Louis Blues. It was the day of the press conference confirming what everyone already knew--though still enjoyed hearing--about the 2014 Winter Classic. It was a day where the Wings needed to be tough, and resilient, and smart.

Of those three things, we witnessed the first two. The last one cost Detroit dearly.

Last night's game in San Jose was a hard one to watch, and not just because the Red Wings didn't come away with the win. Yes, Detroit lost 2-0 to the Sharks, but the game overall--on both sides of the ice--was chore to watch, and certainly not worth staying up till 1AM ET to behold.

With the second half of the season well underway, the Red Wings know there are games they need to win even if the odds are against them. Last night was one of those games, as Detroit skated into Honda Centre and reminded the Anaheim Ducks how to play a good road game. Justin Abdelkader exploded offensively, notching his first NHL career hat trick, and Pavel Datsyuk got goal #250 and assist #500 of his career in what was a stellar outing for the Wings. Both players will more than likely say, however, that the best part of last night was earning 2 points against a hot team that many expected more tenacity from.

The Wings began the second leg of this season yesterday and started off nearly as poorly as they began the season. Let's face it, when you lose to a team half as good as the Blues by half the margin, the odd's the difference.