DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings are desperate for wins as they try to get into the playoffs for the 23rd straight time. Wholesale Custom Jerseys . On a night in which they barely beat the worst team in the Western Conference, coach Mike Babcock didnt diminish the importance of the much-needed victory. Tomas Tatar scored on Detroits third shootout attempt, and Jimmy Howard stopped all three Edmonton attempts to lift the Red Wings to a 2-1 win over the Oilers on Friday night. "Huge," Babcock said. "Howie, obviously, in the shootout, bailing us out was a real positive for us. "It gives us some confidence." Howard finished with 21 saves. Edmontons Ryan Smyth tied the game midway through the third period. Smyth scored on a shot from the slot that was set up by Detroit defenceman Brendan Smiths backhanded giveaway. "I absolutely didnt expect that," Smyth said. "I thought he was going to throw it around the boards. Smith just threw it up the middle." Riley Sheahan put the Red Wings ahead 1-0 late in the first period. They lost the lead and failed to take advantage of power plays late in regulation and midway through overtime. The banged-up Red Wings are missing numerous key players, including Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg, because of injuries and that is forcing players such as Sheahan to go from prospects to NHL players. Sheahan, who played only once in the league in each of the previous two years, said playing 26 games for the Red Wings has made him more comfortable. "Every day is a little step further," he said. "The guys have been awesome. Its a fun atmosphere and a great team to play for." Edmontons franchise is far from the greatness it enjoyed decades ago and is close to being eliminated from the playoff race for the eighth straight season. Oilers coach Dallas Eakins, though, has been pleased with how much effort his players appear to be giving despite their place in the standings. "What weve been preaching to them and they understand, down the stretch are the building blocks for training camp," Eakins said. "We dont want to go into full-teaching mode when we hit training camp. We want to hit the ground running and have a foundation on how were going to play. On a lot of nights, were starting to see how we want to play. "We still have such a long way to go to get up to be able to play with the top teams on a nightly basis, but were taking the necessary steps." The last time the Oilers were in the playoffs they beat Detroit in the first round and went on to lose to Carolina in Game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup finals. With much less at stake, the Oilers went into the third period with a shot to win at Joe Louis Arena for the first time since 2009. Detroits young lineup didnt generate many scoring chances against Viktor Fasth, who made 22 saves. He was acquired from Anaheim earlier this month for draft picks and won his Oilers debut against Minnesota on Tuesday in a shootout. Each team had only one shot in the opening five minutes of the lacklustre game, which had many more sloppy moments than spectacular stretches. "I didnt think either team was real smooth," Babcock said. "It was kind of a grind." Detroit was up 1-0 after two periods and probably didnt feel comfortable after losing one-third of their previous 27 games when entering the third with the lead. The Red Wings allowed the Oilers to pull into a tie because Smith failed to clear the puck out of their end or at least pass it to a teammate, and Smyth took advantage. "If (Smith) puts it on the guys tape on our team and you skate out through the middle, I like it," Babcock said. "When you turn it over, it doesnt look very good." NOTES: Babcock said he hopes F Darren Helm, who has been out with a concussion since March 4, will play Tuesday night at home against Toronto. ... The Red Wings had lost two straight. ... Edmonton has lost three of four. ... The Red Wings are 13-0-1 in their last 14 against the Oilers, who have lost eight straight in Detroit. China Custom Jerseys Store .ca. Mr. Fraser, It looks like Martin Brodeur is coming back to play for the Blues. I was wondering if you have any great stories or fond memories of your time on the ice with Brodeur - in the NHL, or maybe even the Olympics. Wholesale Custom Jerseys Authentic . Ted Ligety, Mikaela Shiffrin, Bode Miller and Tim Jitloff underlined the squads enormous potential on the Rettenbach glacier in Austria. http://www.jerseyscustom.us/custom-arizona-cardinals-jerseys/ . As deep as their roster is, they need their superstar. Rose scored 23 points in his return from a five-game absence due to back pain, and Chicago hung on to beat the struggling Atlanta Hawks 90-79 on Monday. PHILADELPHIA -- After playing some of their best hockey this month, the Philadelphia Flyers now sit and wait. Or take a relaxing vacation somewhere warm. Brayden Schenn and Scott Hartnell scored, Ray Emery stopped 32 shots and the Flyers beat the Calgary Flames 2-1 on Saturday for their fourth straight victory. With momentum going their way, its not an ideal time for Philadelphia to take 18 days off for the Olympic break. Five players are headed to Sochi to play for their countries and several others are headed to sunny destinations. "We knew this was going to happen," Schenn said. "Its up to us to keep in shape and be ready when we come back." Flyers chairman Ed Snider expressed his disdain for the break Thursday night, saying "its ridiculous. Theres no benefit to us whatsoever." Players werent quite that vocal. "Im going to relax mentally and make sure Im ready for the second half," captain Claude Giroux said. Making his first start since Jan. 23, Emery had a shutout going until Matt Stajan scored with 2:26 left. The Flyers are one point behind the New York Rangers for fourth place in the Eastern Conference. Despite winning six of their past eight games, the Flames are tied for the third-fewest points in the NHL. "I think weve been playing good hockey. Weve been in every game," Stajan said. "Sometimes the hockey gods dont reward you, and thats not to say they didnt play well. They had chances, too, that our goalie made some saves. Thats the game. Well take this break, come back, and try and get back at it on home ice." The teams resume ttheir regular-season schedule Feb. Custom Jerseys From China. 27. Schenn gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead in the second period when he ripped a shot from the left circle off goalie Reto Berras glove and into the net. Wayne Simmonds set it up with a nice pass from the side of the net. Hartnell made it 2-0 early in the third when he scored his 15th goal, deflecting a slap shot by Giroux. Passed over by Team Canada for the Olympics, Giroux has been one of the leagues top players the past two months. He has 37 points in 29 games since Dec. 11. Giroux still plans to watch the Winter Games and root for Canada. "Its a great event and good hockey," he said. Forwards Michael Raffl and Jakub Voracek, and defencemen Kimmo Timonen, Andrej Meszaros and Mark Streit are the Flyers heading to the Olympics. Berra and defenceman Ladislav Smid are the only Flames going. "I think the team is getting comfortable with the way we are expected to play," Emery said. "I think the rest of the year is not so much easier, but you get into the playoff battles and you get those competitive juices flowing. I think the tough part is out of the way, the tough months are normally January and February and it gets a bit long." NOTES: Flyers G Steve Mason had cramping issues during a win over Colorado on Thursday night, but couldve started against the Flames. ... Schenn extended his career high in goals to 15. ... . Emerys previous appearance was Jan. 25 in relief of Mason. ... The Flames had won five of their previous six games in Philadelphia. ... Calgary lost 2-0 in Montreal on Tuesday night. ' ' '