Babcock Guards Against Letdown

With a seven-point lead over ninth-place Nashville in the Western Conference, it will take a collapse by the Mighty Ducks over their final 13 regular-season games for them not to make the playoffs.

The Ducks are seventh in the conference with 76 points and play seven of their next nine games against teams currently out of playoff position. After today’s game against Detroit at the Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim will face Chicago (twice), San Jose (twice), Phoenix, Calgary and Columbus around a game at St. Louis over the next three weeks.

But the Ducks can’t get too comfortable, even with the favorable schedule. If they take a night off in any area, they can lose to any team in the league, and first-year Coach Mike Babcock knows this.

“We have to get prepared for each game individually,” Babcock said after the Ducks’ 45-minute workout Saturday at Disney Ice in Anaheim. “What we do is work real hard and we play with good structure. When we deviate from structure, we’re not a very good team.”

The Ducks will get a chance to see how they match up against a league power today when they face the Red Wings, who have a 12-game unbeaten streak. The defending Stanley Cup champions have been getting the job done behind Sergei Fedorov, who had three goals and an assist in Detroit’s 7-2 victory over Central Division rival St. Louis on Friday.

With captain Steve Yzerman back in the lineup after sitting out most of the season because of a knee injury, first-year Coach Dave Lewis has the Red Wings playing well at the right time of the season, having won their last eight games.

“We have to make intelligent decisions [against the Red Wings] and we can’t cheat [on plays],” Babcock said. “We can’t make plays hoping that they work. We have to take what is given.”

*

TODAY

vs. Detroit, 3 p.m.

Channel 9, ESPN2

Site -- Arrowhead Pond.

Radio -- KPLS (830).

Records -- Ducks 32-25-8-4, Red Wings 38-17-9-3.

Record vs. Red Wings -- 0-3-0-0.

Update -- Jean-Sebastien Giguere is fifth in the NHL in wins with 28 and has a 2.35 goals-against average. The Ducks are 17-10-6-1 at home. Fedorov leads Detroit in scoring with 66 points; Hull is the top goal scorer with 28. This is the opener of a three-game West Coast trip for the Red Wings. Defenseman Ruslan Salei will sit out his second consecutive game because of a back injury. The Ducks expect a sellout.