Staring down a six-game stretch heading into the Olympic break, the Maple Leafs gathered as a group and discussed the importance of yielding as many points as possible out of a pair of match-ups with the Panthers and Lightning as well as games against the Senators and Canucks. Nick Toon Saints Jersey . Already with four wins out of five, a victory on Saturday night against Vancouver would make it mission accomplished. "We want to end this part of the year off on a winning note," said Dion Phaneuf after the team took part in an off-ice workout on Friday. "We talked about it two weeks ago, how we wanted to get as many points as possible to set ourselves up going into the break in a good position." Despite the Leafs rolling to a 10-2-1 record in their last 13 games, a playoff position is still far from secured though. On Jan. 12, the day they beat the Devils 3-2 in a shootout to begin this impressive stretch, the Leafs sat two points out of a Wild Card spot. As of Feb. 7, they sit with a five-point Wild Card cushion and have gained ten points on the Montreal Canadiens to draw even at 68 points. Though still with 23 games remaining, Toronto is nowhere close to a position where they can ease up on their effort. "I dont think any team wants to give away any points," said Carl Gunnarsson. "Were in kind of a tight spot too. We really need the points." So too do the Canucks who have struggled mightily of late, losing six straight games and posting a dismal 4-12-2 record since the turn of the calendar to see their six-point Wild Card cushion evaporate to just one. That doesnt, however, mean the Leafs are taking anything for granted. "When youre playing a team that hasnt had as much success as theyd like, theyre going to want to end their pre-Olympic break on the right note," Phaneuf said. "Were expecting a push out of them." How hard the Canucks can push though is the question, since they are missing Henrik Sedin, Kevin Bieksa, Dan Hamhuis, Chris Tanev, Andrew Alberts, Mike Santorelli and Yannick Weber to various injuries and ailments. "Quite honestly, Ive never been through so many injuries at one time in all the years that Ive coached," said head coach John Tortorella after putting his team through practice at the MasterCard Center on Friday. "I dont want to paint this as Woe is me and were getting all the bad breaks, we have to find a way to get out of it. I think we have in the past three games regained our structure and hopefully itll get things going our way tomorrow." Outscored 23-10 during their six-game skid, an inspired performance from both Daniel Sedin and Roberto Luongo would be most welcomed by the Canucks. Sedin has not scored in 2014 and has just five assists in the 18 games he has played since the turn of the calendar. Luongo meanwhile has lost his last four starts, posting an ugly 3.50 GAA and .881 save percentage. With their playoff cushion all but evaporated, the Canucks no longer have time to slowly work their way out of this slump. They need points, and fast. "I think a win is the top priority," Luongo insisted. "I dont want to sit here and make excuses, injuries are part of every team in the NHL, and everybody goes through it. You still have to find a way to accumulate points. That being said, were missing a lot of guys but sometimes its little things and then all of a sudden it snowballs into bigger things and next thing you know, you dont realize it but youre in a six-game losing streak." John Jenkins Saints Jersey . That is how long it has been since Canadas mens national team were humiliated 8-1 in their final World Cup qualifying match in Honduras. Brandon Coleman Saints Jersey .UEFA says it charged the Turkish club for crowd disturbances, fans going on the pitch and throwing lit fireworks during a 4-1 loss at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday.UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- The Detroit Red Wings are surging and the New York Islanders are sinking. Daniel Alfredsson, Darren Helm and Jimmy Howard led Detroit past New York 5-0 for the Wings first regulation win against the Islanders in a decade. Alfredsson had two goals and an assist, Helm scored twice and Howard made 29 saves and the Red Wings controlled play for their third win in a row as the Islanders lost their fifth straight. Since beating Boston 3-1 on home on Nov. 2, New York is 2-10. "You keep your head up and you keep playing hard but this isnt good enough in any way," Islanders captain John Tavares said. "As a team, all we can think about his playing a better game next time out." New York came into the game with a 6-0-1 mark against Detroit in its past seven meetings. The Red Wings hadnt beaten the Islanders in regulation since November 2003. "Its great to see guys scoring goals and gaining confidence," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. "And our goaltender had a dominant performance." The shutout was the second this season for Howard and the 18th of his career. The 29-year-old goaltender entered with a 0-3-4 record in his past seven starts, allowing at least three goals five times during the streak. "We were getting chances and burying them," Howard said. "I give all the credit to the team in front of me. We played a very strong game in our zone." Helm scored his sixth of the season at 7:09 of the first. He took a pass from Alfredsson at the top of the left circle, then skated in and slid a backhand past a flailing Kevin Poulin, making his fifth straight start for the Islanders. Helm made it 2-0 with a spectacular short-handed score at 16:49 of the second, after he and Poulin lunged for a loose puck in front of the crease. Helm poked it free and then past the prone goaltender, tumbling upside down to the ice in the process. The goal with Justin Abdelkader in the penalty box brought out boos at Nassau Coliseum. The 40-year-old Alfredsson, who joined Detroit after 17 seasons with Ottawa, made it 3-0 just 12 seconds into the third, beating Poulin high to the glove side on a breakaway. "This was a huge win for us," said Alfredsson, who was playing his 1,200th career game and will return to Ottawa on Sunday for the firstt time. Kyle Wilson Jersey. Gustav Nyquist scored his fourth of the season at 6:12 of the third, finishing a two-on-one break with Johan Franzen by sending another high shot past Poulin. Alfredsson completed the scoring, knocking a loose puck past Poulin for his sixth of the season and the 432nd goal of his career at 16:13 of the third. "When you score goals and get great goaltending, you feel better and better as a team," Alfredsson added. "Our hard work going forward will be the key for us." The 23-year-old Poulin became New Yorks No. 1 goaltender after starter Evgeni Nabokov was injured when the teams met on Long Island on Nov. 16. The Islanders won that game in a shootout, but havent recorded a victory since. Poulin is 2-7 in his past nine appearances. "Tonight we made decisions with the puck that werent very good," Islanders coach Jack Capuano said. "You just cant do that against this team or any team." The Islanders fell to 8-15-3. The game started slowly with an unusual 4 p.m. start time the day after Thanksgiving. The Islanders outshot the Wings 12-9 in the first period. Detroit had a 9-7 shots advantage in the second. Detroits loss on Long Island two weeks ago was part of a stretch when they were 0-2-5 from Nov. 4-19. But the Red Wings have won four of five since, including Wednesdays 6-1 drubbing of Boston at home. Detroit played without top centre Pavel Datsyuk, who was elbowed in the jaw at Ottawa last Saturday and missed his third straight game. Detroit also scratched forward Todd Bertuzzi, out for a fourth straight game with an upper body injury. Centre Josh Bailey was a healthy scratch for the Islanders for the first time this season. Bailey has no goals and two assists since Oct. 25. The Islanders host Washington on Saturday and Pittsburgh next Tuesday before leaving on a five-game road trip. New York has lost seven straight away from home. NOTES: The Islanders continued to be without defencemen Lubomir Visnovsky (concussion) and Brian Strait (upper body). ... New York also scratched left wing Eric Boulton and defenceman Calvin de Haan, who was recalled from AHL Bridgeport on Thursday. ... The Red Wings were also missing defenceman Danny DeKeyser (shoulder). ... 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