PREVIEW: Red Wings close out back-to-back Friday at Winnipeg

WINNIPEG -- Fresh off a thrilling 3-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday, the Detroit Red Wings will look to build on their all-around effort on Friday night against the Winnipeg Jets at Canada Life Centre.

Puck drop between Detroit (33-32-9; 75 points) and Winnipeg (41-31-3; 85 points) is set for 8 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. CT, with broadcast coverage on Bally Sports Detroit Extra and the Red Wings Radio Network (97.1 The Ticket in Detroit).
Speaking to the media after Thursday's game, Jake Walman said Detroit can learn a lot playing against top-tier opponents like Carolina.
"Specifically with that team, up and down the lineup, every player plays the right way," said Walman,
who scored the game-winner with 3.2 seconds left in the third period against the Hurricanes
. "Not a lot of room out there. It feels like they've got 10 guys on the ice. They're a really strong team and that's what we're trying to do. Just making sure every guy is dialed in and doing the little things right. Makes a big difference."

With eight regular-season games remaining, Detroit has already surpassed its win (32) and point (74) totals from the 2021-22 campaign. But according to head coach Derek Lalonde, it will be difficult to judge the Red Wings at the end of the season because "we are a shell of what we were before the deadline."
"I don' even know if it's gonna be fair to judge us on being above the playoff line," Lalonde said. "I thought that was a little credit to the guys, a little overachieving. I guess you wanna take steps forward, but that's just on paper. No matter what happens in these last games, this group felt like we moved forward."

Winnipeg currently holds the second and final wild card spot in the Western Conference. The Jets have dropped two straight, most recently falling to the San Jose Sharks, 3-0, on Tuesday.
Three different Winnipeg players pace each of the club's three main scoring categories. Kyle Connor leads in points (75), while Josh Morrissey has a team-high 54 assists and Mark Scheifele's 38 goals are tops.
Goalie Connor Hellebuyck, a Commerce, Mich., native, has made the majority of starts in the crease for the Jets this season, posting a 32-24-2 record with a 2.60 goals-against average and .917 save percentage.