DETROIT – In honor of the late, great Joe Falls, it's a Fish Fry Friday.

The Red Wings are heading to the NHL playoffs yet again.

In fact, it's the 24th straight season they will play on in hunt of the Stanley Cup. It's the current longest-running postseason streak in pro sports.

Yet, this time around just doesn't feel as good as in past seasons. That's because the Wings have struggled down the stretch just to get into the postseason.

In fact, with their destiny in their own hands, they lost to Montreal in OT on the road Thursday night. But Boston's loss to Florida pushed Detroit into the playoffs. Hence, the Wings backed in.

"It's probably the first game I was scoreboard watching in the end," Henrik Zetterberg told the media in Montreal after the game. "It was a good feeling. We'll take it."

Indeed. That's because, given the goalie issues the Wings have experienced lately, they feel fortunate to take another trip to the Second Season.

In the Stanley Cup playoffs, the goalie position is a big part in having success. In past seasons, some teams rode a hot goalie all the way to The Cup.

In this case, a few weeks ago, fans wanted Petr Mrazek over Jimmy Howard in the net come playoff time. Now, you get the sense that Howard is back in the lead as the No. 1 goalie, but by default. Neither goalie has really played well recently.

Stay tuned.

Tigers "Officially" Start Season

As good as it was - the start of the 2015 season against the Minnesota Twins - it wasn't a true indication what this season holds for the Tigers.

It's no knock on the Tigers' 3-0 start, in which they outscored the Twins, 22-1, in the three-game series. But let's be honest, the Twins - who are expected to finish in last place in the Central Division - were in midseason form, managing just an unearned run in Game 3. The Tigers shut out the Twins in the first two games of the opening series.

In doing so, the Tigers set an AL record for the most scoreless innings to start a season with 24.

"It's impressive," catcher Alex Avila told the media after Thursday's game. "But I don't know how to explain it. We pitched good, but it's not something I'm celebrating or anything like that."

For sure, if you're a Tigers' fan, you feel great about the pitching and hitting in the series. Your team batted .343 vs. Minnesota pitching. They drew more walks (15) than strikeouts (11).

Nonetheless, you have to play the teams on the schedule. If there is one thing you can take away from the series, it was the first start in a Tigers' uniform from Shane Greene. He pitched eight innings with 85 pitches and allowed just an unearned run.

It's back to competitive baseball this afternoon when the Tigers play in Cleveland at 4 p.m. today.

It's the Indians' home opener. They took two of three from the Astros in Houston to start the season. The Tribe are considered a real threat to win the division that the Tigers have won the last four years.

Pistons' Season Over

The Pistons were officially eliminated from the postseason on Wednesday with a home loss to the Boston Celtics.

The Pistons - who at one time went to six straight Eastern Conference Finals - have now missed the postseason each season since 2009.

Granted, a lot of things hampered the Pistons in their quest for a playoff spot this season, especially the loss of Brandon Jennings. He was playing great basketball when he was injured and lost for the season.

Still, it is a disappointment because the East was really down. And before the season, many experts picked the Pistons to make the postseason in coach Stan Van Gundy's first season at the helm.

But the teams was wildly inconsistent. There were times when they looked really impressive. Then there were times when they were off the rails and couldn't beat anyone. They had a 13-game losing streak early in the season and an 11-game losing streak later in the season.

They close out the home season with games against the Pacers Friday night and Sunday against the Hornets at The Palace.

Next season can't come fast enough.