‘This is where you want to be’: Red Wings embracing pressure during postseason push 

DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings’ attitude all season has been to focus on the task at hand.

And with 13 regular-season games left, the Red Wings, who entered Wednesday holding the Eastern Conference’s second wild-card spot, know how important keeping their one-game-at-a-time mentality will be down the stretch.

“The games feel bigger and in essence, they are,” goalie James Reimer said after Wednesday’s practice. “But obviously if you focus on the pressure, that’s when you make mistakes. It’s like playoffs now. You just focus here on the room and what you can do together on the ice as a group, then what happens on the ice will take care of itself.”

Every point matters for Detroit right now as its looks to end a seven-season Stanley Cup Playoffs drought. With their 4-3 comeback overtime victory against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday, the Red Wings improved to 35-28-6 (76 points) this season and kept pace in a crowded postseason race that currently has six clubs separated by 10 points battling for two wild card spots.

“Nothing in this league is perfect,” said Reimer, who made 32 saves for Detroit against Columbus on Tuesday. “It’s all about resiliency and mental toughness, and we showed that last night. That is one of the main characteristics you must have. If you only have one characteristic, that’s it. We showed that last night and now we have an opportunity tomorrow to go show it again.”

Reimer, who has NHL postseason experience with three different clubs, said teams raise their urgency and desperation levels as the regular season winds down.

“Everyone wants it more,” Reimer said. “You bring your A-game and the intangibles. This late in the year, those are physicality, urgency and competitiveness. Things get a little testier.”

Pushing for a playoff spot this season has been exciting for Lucas Raymond, who extended his goal streak to an NHL career-high five straight games with a two-goal night against the Blue Jackets. Through 69 games this season, Raymond has a career-high 24 goals and team-leading 59 points.

“This is where you want to be,” Raymond said. “It’s a tough spot and pressure on everyone, but it’s the fun part of it. You’re playing for something meaningful. You can just feel it within this locker room. The crowd showing up for us every night, it’s awesome. It’s just about enjoying it and trying to come through.”

Moritz Seider, who had a goal and an assist in Tuesday’s overtime win, said the Red Wings want to start strong Thursday against the New York Islanders, who trail Detroit by three points in the standings.

“We really got to focus on tomorrow,” said Seider, who ranks second among Detroit defensemen with 37 points this season. “I think we had a really good day of practice today. I think everybody should be excited. It’s a big challenge. Time for payback and hopefully now we can win three out of the last four, then it’s looking obviously a lot better.”

Head coach Derek Lalonde said playing high-stakes games will guide the development of Detroit’s young players like Raymond and Seider.

“You talk about the emotional ups and downs, it’s real and hardens you in your growth,” Lalonde said. “Most good players have to go through it. That’s why this is extremely valuable to play these types of games down the stretch, especially those two guys leading us.”