They shoot...! They don't score.
That has been the story for the Red Wings, who, as DetroitRedWings.com reports, lead the league averaging 35.8 shots per game, but have netted a mere five goals during a five-game losing streak.
"It’s not like we don’t have the chances," said forward Henrik Zetterberg, who has two goals and two assists. "Suddenly we can’t get the puck by the goalie. It is frustrating, but you just have to keep going; doing the right things and working hard. It will turn around. You just have to believe."
The Red Wings had plenty of believers when they won their first five games, but five straight losses have pushed them into unfamiliar territory, sitting in 12th place in the Western Conference. Detroit has made the playoffs 20 straight years.
Coach Mike Babcock plans to reconfigure the lineup in order to add some zest to the offense by moving Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg to different lines.
"I just played Pav and Z together nine straight games and through that time we haven't done anything, so I'm not playing them together," Babcock said. "We need more people going. Maybe they can help them get going. They got to help themselves as well. You know what the definition of insanity is, so we got to change some things up and see if we can't do a better job.''