Brian Rafalski

The Detroit Red Wings are going to have to fill a hole in defense. Brian Rafalski will not be easy to replace, but it has to be done. The Wings struggled in defense, and as a result, they finished as the third seed in the West going into playoffs. 

When Detroit makes the playoffs in less than a month, it will mark the 20th consecutive year in which they have reached the playoffs.

That is good for the longest active streak in any professional sport.

Of course, some may argue, that it is easier to get into the playoffs in hockey than say the NFL or the MLB because of the number of teams it allows in to the playoffs.

But the Red Wings have not only been making the playoffs, they have been worse than second in their division over that span.

This, as they say, is it.

As of now, the Red Wings have to decide if they're going to finish the season playing like the elite team they are on paper or, continue on being the porous, sloppy team they've been for most of 2011.

Why now?

Well, having lost three of their last four games, two of them by consecutive shutouts and the last so horrifically bad their own fans booed them off the ice, the Red Wings can't really play any worse.

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom may be close to achieving another milestone in his amazing hockey career. If Lidstrom continues to play at his current level and, barring no major injuries, Lidstrom could win his seventh Norris Trophy as the NHL's best defenseman.

The most exciting play in hockey is the end to end rush. A defenseman starts out behind his own net and skates through an entire team to score a goal. This slide show is designed to honour and rank those offensively skilled players who have played defense in the NHL.  

Offensive defensemen were popularized with the coming of Bobby Orr in 1966-67. That combined with the Second Six expansion that doubled the number of NHL teams from six to 12 teams for the 1967-68 season lead to an era of unrivaled offensive production, especially from defensemen.

So as the NHL season nears its beginning, the fire and passion that unites us all starts to grow within us and gets our motors jumping.

Being a Red Wings fan sometimes can be easy. Heck, it can be VERY easy. Every year we don't have to worry about if our team is going to be making the playoffs or just missing out. It's a known fact that they will be playing hockey come mid-April.

While the Detroit Red Wings' streak of playoff appearances remained untouched last year (Currently standing at nineteen straight), 2009-10 was the first year since 1999-2000 that the Wings failed to win the Central Division.

With the biggest question for the Red Wings going into this off season being whether or not 40 year old Captain Nicklas Lidstrom is going to retire or not, I have came up with a Top 5 list of who I think could be the next Captain if Lidstrom retires.

You can agree with me or not, or put your opinion in.

I will name my Top 5 and give a detailed explanation of why these 4 players deserve the "C"

Begin Slideshow

This was supposed to be the game where the Detroit Red Wings exerted their will against an inexperienced, upstart team.  Instead, the Wings walked away humiliated, spanked, and with their tails between their legs. 

Why?

Let me first note this: If the Red Wings are going to have to score four-plus goals each time they want to win a game this series, they will be golfing before the second round.  End of story.

Simply put, it's the defense.

They have been outright embarrassing, from the top on down.  Every single one of them.

This is a bit of a weird story coming out, hiding in the back pages of sports sections.

It seems that Detroit Red Wings' and US Olympic team defenseman Brian Rafalski is tired of Tennessee taking his money for being a professional athlete.