On January 24, the Detroit Red Wings found themselves atop the hockey world. Well, okay, to be specific, atop the NHL’s Eastern Conference.

A solid 5-1 win at Winnipeg over the Jets that night left the Red Wings with 69 points from a 32-16-5 record. They were in first place in the Atlantic Division, one point ahead of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Wings were also deadlocked with the Carolina Hurricanes for the best overall record in the Eastern Conference.

They were 12 points clear of the Florida Panthers, at the time the ninth seed in the East. The Panthers were the first team in the conference sitting outside of the postseason placings.

The Red Wings led 3-2 with 1:30 left… AND THEY LOST IN REGULATION 🥴

Could come back to HAUNT THEM in the East playoff race 🫣 pic.twitter.com/h16OgnDL6o

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) March 11, 2026

Since that day, Detroit has sunk like a rock. The Red Wings have assembled a 4-7-2 record over that span. They’ve slumped to seventh overall in the East.

Suppose that the Red Wings lost on Saturday to the Stars in Dallas. At the same time, the Boston Bruins, the eighth seed in the East, get a point at Washington. And at the same time, the ninth-seeded Columbus Blue Jackets defeat Philadelphia.

If all of the parts of that equation add up, the sum will be that come Sunday, the Red Wings will no longer be holding down a playoff spot.

Dallas A Nightmare For Red Wings

Coach Todd McLellan believes the key for his team is not to allow their belief system to waver. That may be easier said than done with captain Dylan Larkin and Andrew Copp, the club’s top two centers, both on the injured list.

“First of all, we have to believe in ourselves,” McLellan said. “That’s real important. I think that’s still there. Keep the spirit up.

“We’ll go back to last year when we started talking about spirit. We worked hard to put some structure into place. We have to rely on that. And then individuals have to deliver.

“So if we can keep all those things in line, we gotta scrap out.”

Starting the turnaround in Dallas will be a tall order for the Red Wings. Detroit has lost 12 in a row in Dallas. The Wings have been outscored 53-22 in those games.

Two of those losses were in overtime, and one came in a shootout. Overall, Detroit has gained three of a possible 24 points during this stretch of failure in Dallas that began in the 2016-17 season.