from Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News,

Saturday night, Hockey Night in Canada airing the game, and against the Toronto Maple Leafs. What more could a Red Wings fan want?

For the second time in about a month, the Wings and Leafs will meet at Little Caesars Arena on arguably the best night of the week for hockey,

The fact it is the Leafs as the opposition guarantees a loud and rowdy crowd and only makes the atmosphere that much better.

"The crowds are great," coach Jeff Blashill said. "Generally, unfortunately, there's too much blue in the building (the Leafs' color) but that's the reality of their fan base and that actually makes for a wild and fun crowd.

"The crowds are going back and forth with different chants and hopefully we can keep them quiet through much of the game as possible."...

And for Wings' players, a game like Saturday's has a bit more spark than a typical game on the schedule.

"Definitely, and I'm sure the guys in the locker room do (feel the same way)," forward Joe Veleno said. "Saturday night, it's at home, we've been getting good crowds at home all year, and we'll know we'll have a good crowd (Saturday). Especially against Toronto, an Original Six matchup, it's going to be a fun one.

"We'll all be excited to play."

read on ($$$)