What a win for the Red Wings. The roller coaster ride known as the Red Wings season hit a lift the size of the Millenium Force Wednesday night as the Wings, despite being with out three key players, stuck a pitch fork into the heart of Buckeye Country with a 9-1 win over the Central Division leading Blue Jackets.

After an embarassing  loss the Toronto in their last game, Detroit looked focused and at motivated. I think they wanted to send a message to the rest of the Division and the NHL that even though they are banged up and inconsistent, they are still the 11-time Stanley Cup Champions and defending Western Conference title holders.

Although the offensive output was exceptional, to me the most impressive aspect of the Wings game tonight was the continued effort on the back check. Even when they were up by five, six, seven goals, the Wings crashed the boards hard and made it near impossible for Columbus to even get the puck remotely close to Jimmy Howard, who even though didn’t need to make a ton of saves looked strong in net.

The game was a great way for Detroit to kick off a back-to-back road and home series. With Vancouver coming into The Joe tonight with Roberto Luongo back in between the pipes, some offensive confidence is welcomed.

The question remains, which Wing team will show up? If it is the team that put a damper on Ken Hitchcock’s 1,000th game as a coach, then I think the Canucks will have a miserable trip to Hockeytown.

I have been waiting for something big to spark a winning streak for the Wings, since they have been short lived early on this season. With a game like this, and the next four at home, I think the opprotunity to make a move in the Central standings is pretty good right now.

Three Stars:

3.  Todd Bertuzzi

2. Niklas Kronwall

1. Pavel Datsyuk