This is something Red Wings fans have had to deal with in a long time.

The Wings are barely hanging on to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. They have 45 points on the year, only two points ahead of the Dallas Stars. The Wings have a 19-15-7 record, and are in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time in 21 seasons.

Last night the Red Wings lost another tough one to the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 in a shootout.  Here are some quotes from some of our favorite Red Wings.

“It’s going to come right down to the wire,” predicted defenseman Niklas Kronwall. “Every game is huge obviously. Tonight, I thought we did some good things out there. We got to keep our heads high and stay focused and positive on what we have to do.

“It is what it is. There’s no time for feeling sorry for ourselves.”

“The good thing is all the games matter,” said captain Henrik Zetterberg. “We didn’t do that before. We’re playing playoff hockey right now. I think it’s a good test for us.”

But the best quote came from head coach Mike Babcock.

To me, strange is living in the past,” said coach Mike Babcock. “You are what you are. This is what we earned this year. This is what our team is. We’re no better or no worse than we are. We’re just a team battling to get in the playoffs.

“Win a game, that’s all. To me, we take the same approach we have every year: Try to win games and get better.”

With only seven games left, with four of them on the road and the final game being against the Stars, the Red Wings will be in for hard road to keep the playoff streak alive. However, I feel like they are too well coached to not make the playoffs. It will be very close but Babcock will find away to motivate the team to play well in these last seven games.

The streak will be extended to 22 and their will be hockey in Hockeytown in May.