Ben Chiarot and Lucas Raymond had to be separated during training after a quarrel

The Red Wings are in the thick of the playoff race at the moment.

They’ve collected 72 points so far this season, but the Lightning (74 points) and Islanders (72 points) occupy the last two playoff spots at the time of writing.

That said, the problem in Detroit is this: the Wings are playing their worst hockey of the season of late.

They’ve lost their last six games, which is obviously not ideal.

All the games are important at this point in the season, so the timing isn’t right for the Wings…

And there’s a lot of frustration among the players.

You can see it clearly, because at today’s practice, Ben Chiarot and Lucas Raymond had to be separated after a small quarrel:

This is the second time Chiarot has come to blows with one of his teammates. A similar situation occurred when he was playing in Winnipeg, when he got into a fistfight with Blake Wheeler.

That said, just because guys bicker at practice doesn’t necessarily mean it’s bad for the rest of the team. Robert Bortuzzo and Zach Sanford got into a fight in December 2018… And a few months later, the Blues lifted the Stanley Cup after beating the Bruins in the final.

The emotions are intense and the guys are passionate. They want to win, and it’s good to get that frustration out of the way at training.

It sends a message to the rest of the club, too. Chiarot and Raymond are two of Detroit’s leaders, and their teammates have seen how frustrated they are with the current situation.

In Montreal, we’ve also seen bickering in training.

I’m thinking in particular of the Subban vs Plekanec episode, which happened several years ago with the Habs:

Gossip

– I can’t wait to see it.

– Cole Caufield made his funny after practice.

“I may never score again…”

Is Cole Caufield affected by the fact that he’s only scored 2 goals in his last 17 games?

He doesn’t seem to be.

After all, that’s also 14 points and nearly 4 shots per game during that stretch for the 22. pic.twitter.com/keYoM16hoG

– Anthony Martineau (@Antho_Martineau) March 13, 2024

– It’s been stirring at Habs practice too!

poor Gally

practice shenanigans
#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/QnWgrtHHZo

– Montreal Canadiens (@CanadiensMTL) March 13, 2024

– Oh?

– Big loss for the Yankees.