I have that feeling too. Team has a history of not showing up against lower teams in the standings.
Lost games to Isles twice, Buffalo twice, Habs, Flyers, Ducks, Rangers when they were reeling. Obviously you wont win all of those games but we tend to play way looser against these teams and the effort and execution is just not where it needs to be. So much parity everyone can win on any given night.
I guess it’s tough to be as invested when you are playing Chicago compared to a game against Washington or Minny where you respect that team right away. I think in many ways tonight will be a test for this group. They need to show that they are going to take their points.
We have a lot of games against wildcard contenders to end the season. Winning against Washington is great, but the ones you need to win are these ones against the Preds, Habs, Wings, Isles, Jackets, etc. if you can win those consistently you make the playoffs. Everyone knows there’s a good chance on any given night that you lose against those top teams, and that’s fine if you win the games that you need to win.