The Red Wings are slightly behind last season's pace after 42 games, but they appear to be in better shape now than they were in 2010-11.

That's because many of the concerns they took into the season have been alleviated.

Largely because of goaltender Jimmy Howard's strong play and a new, aggressive defensive style, their goals-against average has improved markedly -- from 23rd in the NHL a year ago to fifth.

The three players coach Mike Babcock was counting on for "bounce-back years" have responded. Johan Franzen, Valtteri Filppula and Jiri Hudler rank among the club's top-five scorers.

They have re-established dominance at home, where they have won 12 in a row and are a league-best 15-2-1, based on point percentage. Last season, they were better on the road (26-11-4) than at Joe Louis Arena (21-14-6).

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