Rest of week will tell a great deal about Detroit Red Wings. Here’s why

TAMPA, Fla. — This week will be revealing for the Detroit Red Wings.

They’ve achieved a winning record on the strength of beating teams that don’t project to make the playoffs, but now come a trio of elites, one after the one: The Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday, Florida Panthers on Thursday, and Dallas Stars on Saturday.

Recent tests — at home against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Vegas Golden Knights — ended with losses. To their credit the Wings stayed with their structure and competed both nights, but the bottom line is they have measured up short against the teams they want to be among.

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Coach Derek Lalonde called the 4-1 loss to Vegas, “a little reality of where we are at. There’s moments we’re with these top teams, there’s moments we’re even pushing against these top teams, but we need a little bit more out of our entire game, a little more execution.”

Monday was a day off, common practice after playing back-to-back. The trip at least began on a winning note, as the Wings used their power play and Ville Husso’s goaltending to defeat the Columbus Blue Jackets, at team hovering in the lower third of the standings. The Wings are 12-7-5 with a .604 winning percentage, clinging to fourth place in the Atlantic Division just one point ahead of the Panthers.

The Wings are 3-4-1 against teams that made the playoffs last season, earning victories against the New York Rangers, Minnesota Wild and Nashville Predators, and losing to the Rangers, Leafs, Los Angeles Kings (regulation and overtime) and Boston Bruins.

During the five-game home stretch that ended Dec. 3, the Leafs game was marked by a rare off night from Husso. The power play was another let down against the Leafs, going 0-for-3. The Golden Knights scored one minute in but otherwise Husso was fine that night, and a power play conversion pulled the Wings within 2-1, only for momentum to swing back to Vegas within minutes.

Dylan Larkin, who leads the Wings with 26 points in 24 games, admitted after the loss to Vegas that the Wings still struggle to find ways to get two points out of games against elite opponents, even as they put up a good effort.

“What I’m really positive about for myself is, we don’t really shoot ourselves in the foot like we have in the past,” he said. “We give up ill-timed goals but we are playing well with the puck, we are playing well in the d-zone. It’s a process. That’s what Derek talks about a lot to us.”

Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.