Tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Detroit Red Wings (31-14-10, 72 points) and Chicago Blackhawks (35-18-4, 74 points) face-off for the second and final time this season live from the United Center in Chicago.
Detroit has dropped three straight games and embarks on a six-match road trip while Chicago has won two consecutive contests and is 2-2 entering the fifth match of an eight-game home stand.
The Red Wings enter play in third place in the Atlantic Division, eight points clear of the fourth place Boston Bruins and four points behind the second place Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Blackhawks, meanwhile, come into tonight in third place in the Central Division, four points ahead of the fourth place Winnipeg Jets and trailing the St. Louis Blues by four points.
The first time these two teams met, Detroit dropped Chicago 4-1 on Nov. 14.
Though they're in separate conferences now, the bad blood between these franchises runs deep and this game is part of the Wednesday Night Rivalry, which can be live streamed for free here.
The Red Wings are coming in off of a 2-0 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Monday and will try to avoid a three-game skid. The team called up rookie Teemu Pulkkinen from the AHL for tonight's game.
"He's got an absolute bomb of a shot," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said per NHL.com. "He's tenacious. He's on the puck. He's strong. In the NHL today, there's no room. We have to find ways to generate offense in no space. You have to create your own space.'
Captain Henrik Zetterberg has paced Detroit this season with 49 points off of 15 goals and 34 assists. Pavel Datsyuk is second on the Red Wings with 42 points off of 17 markers and 25 helpers while Tomas Tatar has found the back of the net a team-best 23 times and has 41 points.
The Blackhawks are coming off of a 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in the shootout on Sunday and expect a tough matchup from their opponents.
"They're good right off the bat," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville told NHL.com. "They're good on faceoffs, they get to the net, they have a lot of guys who can handle it. They don't try to be fancy."
Patrick Kane has been a force for Chicago this season, leading the team with 27 goals and the NHL with 63 points. Captain Jonathan Toews is second on the team with 47 points off of 16 goals and 31 assists while Marian Hossa has 17 tallies and 25 helpers for 42 points.
In between the pipes, the Blackhawks are set to turn to Corey Crawford and he is 23-12-3 with a 2.26 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage.
Detroit is set to counter with Jimmy Howard in the crease and he is 16-8-8 while ranking third in the NHL with a 2.11 GAA and adding a .921 save percentage.
An old rivalry is renewed when the puck drops on the Red Wings and Blackhawks live tonight from the United Center in Chicago.
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