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Detroit, MI – The Detroit Red Wings have relied on offense to get back to their winning ways. Poor defense has been the main reason for the St. Louis Blues’ slide.
Detroit (22-6-4) goes for its third straight victory Tuesday when it hosts a St. Louis team that’s dropped six of seven.
The Red Wings bounced back from losing two of three with back-to-back home wins Thursday and Saturday, scoring six goals each time in victories over San Jose and Los Angeles. The effort against the Sharks was particularly impressive, as Detroit knocked off the team with the NHL’s best record 6-0.
Oddsmakers from Online Sportsbook Sportsbook.com have made the Red Wings –375 money line favorites for Tuesday’s game against the Blues. Current NHL Public Betting Information shows that 88% of more than 259 bets for this game have been placed on the Red Wings -375.
The Wings followed it up with a 6-4 win over the Kings, scoring three times in the final 3:43 to rally for the win.
"I thought we showed a lot of character," defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom said. "Especially in the third period, when we were down."
Six players scored for Detroit against Los Angeles. The Red Wings, who lead the league with 119 goals, have five players with at least 11, led by Marian Hossa’s 17.
Jiri Hudler scored his 13th goal of the season Saturday, matching his total of 2007-08. He’s three goals from surpassing his career high set in 2006-07.
Pavel Datsyuk leads Detroit with 34 points and recorded his third multi-point effort in four games Saturday with a goal and an assist. He recorded a season-high four points against the Sharks.
Datsyuk has 45 points in 38 games versus St. Louis – his highest total against any opponent.
Detroit’s Ty Conklin is expected to make his third straight start in goal Tuesday in place of veteran Chris Osgood, who’s still suffering from a strained groin. Conklin defeated St. Louis 4-3 on Oct. 22 and is 2-0-0 with a 2.56 goals-against average in three games against the Blues.
St. Louis (13-17-3) faces a major challenge defensively in the high-scoring Red Wings. The Blues have allowed a Western Conference-worst 114 goals and have given up 33 during their 1-6-0 stretch.
Part of the problem is goaltending. In his second game since returning from a concussion, former Red Wing Manny Legace didn’t make it past the second period of Sunday’s 6-3 loss to Boston, giving up five goals in 40 minutes before being lifted for Chris Mason.
Mason played all four games that Legace missed and posted a 5.01 GAA. He’s allowed 25 goals in his past seven appearances, going 0-5-1.
"Our team needs good goaltending," St. Louis coach Andy Murray said. "We made some mistakes and we’ll make some mistakes (but) we need saves."
Legace is 7-8-0 with a 2.78 GAA against Detroit, while Mason is 4-4-1 with a 2.98 GAA.
The Red Wings have gone 3-0-1 in the last four meetings with the Blues.
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Posted: 12/23/08 11:30PM ET
