Red Wings using OT to keep heads above water

As long as there is overtime, the Detroit Red Wings will have life.

With a nearly a third of the season already in the books, Detroit finds itself just outside of a playoff spot. The club has dropped 14 of its last 22 games, but remains just two points behind the Boston Bruins for the final playoff spot in the Atlantic Division, thanks in large part to the extra frame.

Over this 22-game span, the Red Wings have managed just two regulation wins, as pointed out by Sportsnet's Jonathan Willis. They have gone past regulation 10 times and despite this, still cling to the hopes of a 26th straight playoff appearance.

The club is 8-10-4 in this stretch, collecting 20 points, with 16 of those earned in post-regulation activities, and has claimed just seven of its 13 wins in regulation this season - five of them coming in the first seven games. All this comes despite the team averaging just 2.28 goals per game this season - the fifth-lowest mark in the NHL.

Detroit's other saving grace: the shootout, in which the team has managed a league-best 4-0-0 this season.

The Eastern Conference standings have become quite a logjam, with just four points separating all eight teams currently outside the playoff picture. Points could be tough to come by, but as long as the Red Wings can continue to guarantee themselves points by sending games past regulation, they should remain in the thick of it.

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