-- Now that looked like the Red Wings.

-- I like these lines better than the ones used in the past couple of games. Marian Hossa seems to be more dynamic on Pavel Datsyuk's line. Valtteri Filppula is a darned good third-line enter. Niklas Kronwall and Brad Stuart seem to be at their best as partners. Of course, it could just be that these lines are more familiar and thus more comfortable to watch. But I do like the balance of these units.

-- Hossa passed at being the first star of the game. Never heard of that before and it speaks to how good of a person that he is and where his priorities are. I didn't even know that players were tapped for the stars before the game was over. But when Hossa was told, he said that he didn't deserve the top star. That's pretty humble .

-- Evgeni Nabokov played bad.

-- Six even-strength goals might be a sign that the Wings are coming around five-on-five. We'll see if this is the start of even-strength play returning to being an advantage.

-- Brett Lebda was back in the lineup for the second straight game after being a healthy scratch in Phoenix. I have no idea how Lebda, Chris Chelios and Derek Meech will be able to get enough games in during the regular season to be ready come playoff time. The rotation would work much better without Chelios, using Meech as a spare defenseman ready to take over if any blue-liner falters. That would also open up cap room for a spare forward. But maybe the point isn't to have Lebda, Chelios and Meech all ready for the playoffs.