Slumping Red Wings plan to treat Sharks as ‘very, very big game’

The Detroit Red Wings are in dire need of turning the corner when they visit the San Jose Sharks on Monday.The Red Wings arrive in San Jose with only one victory in their last five outings and having dropped the first two clashes in their set against the trio of California teams. Detroit opened a four-game road swing with a 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins, but after blowing a two-goal lead in a 6-4 loss at the Anaheim Ducks on Friday, they were handed a 4-1 loss by the Los Angeles Kings the next night.”One shift can turn the whole ship around,” forward Andrew Copp said. “I think we’re going to put some pressure on ourselves Monday night. Treat it as a very, very big game for us just in terms of mentality. Salvage a 2-2 road trip, then go from there.”The Red Wings never really had a chance in Los Angeles, falling behind 2-0 late in the first period thanks to a pair of Kings goals 22 seconds apart and then surrendering a third goal 15 seconds into the third period, which coach Derek Lalonde called a “backbreaker.””What’s frustrating about this is having some moments of some pretty good hockey. It’s just not enough of it,” Lalonde said.The Red Wings were given a day off Sunday with the hopes the rest will be rejuvenating after their travel stint to the West Coast began with games on successive nights.”We got to go earn some confidence on Monday night, and hopefully bring some swagger back to Detroit,” Copp said.Speaking of travel, the Sharks return home after ending a four-game road trip with a 4-3 shootout loss to the Penguins on Saturday.San Jose trailed 3-0 early in the second period but mounted a comeback to earn a point.

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