Detroit (41-20-8) is trying to gain some steam after a deflating four-game losing streak. The Red Wings have won back-to-back games since then, including a 5-3 win over St. Louis on Saturday. Neither victory came against a playoff contender, though, while all four losses were against teams in the hunt.

A struggling offense was the major culprit during the slump. Detroit managed four goals in an overtime loss to the Coyotes, but it scored just one goal in each of the other three losses.

Henrik Zetterberg is shouldering a large part of the blame. The veteran forward has a career high 51 assists, tied for third in the NHL, but he’s managed just two goals in his last 26 games. And while Zetterberg was at least setting up his teammates for scoring opportunities, even that has dried up; he has a six-game pointless streak going and is minus-10 in his last 10 games.

Washington (41-20-10) is coming off a 4-2 win against the Montreal Canadiens. The team improved to 11-1-0 with that win in its past 12 games, clearly one of the hottest teams in the NHL.

The Caps have been pleasantly surprised by the outstanding play of 21-year-old goalie Braden Holtby. Holtby has taken the NHL by storm since being called up as an injury replacement; he was named the NHL’s first star last week after going 3-0-0 with a 1.05 goals-against average, .965 save percentage, and a shutout in four appearances.

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