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All of a sudden Petr Mrazek isn’t so unbeatable

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Less than three minutes into the contest with the Red Wings, the Blackhawks get on the board thanks to Brent Seabrook, who blasts a shot past a screened Petr Mrazek to give Chicago a 1-0 lead.

Petr Mrazek wasn’t the reason the Red Wings lost to Chicago last night at Joe Louis Arena. Nobody’s blaming him. Just to be clear.

Of the five goals Mrazek allowed, Detroit coach Jeff Blashill “didn’t think there was much he could do” on four of them, the exception being the first one, and that was off a pretty big blast by Brent Seabrook.

Still, that hasn’t stopped people from noticing that Mrazek -- not long ago one of the hottest goalies in the NHL -- has cooled off. Specifically, he’s allowed 23 goals in his last seven appearances, with a save percentage of just .880 over that stretch.

“To me, it’s just the natural ebb and flow of the season,” Blashill told reporters. “You’re going to have some stretches like he had during January on the road there and you’re going to have some stretches like recently.”

Blashill will be hoping that Mrazek can ebb or flow back the other way, and soon, because the Red Wings -- with just four wins in their last 10 -- are still not guaranteed to make the playoffs. As it stands, there’s an outside chance they could be run down by a team like the Flyers for a wild-card spot.

It’s also worth noting that Jimmy Howard has played extremely well in his last two starts, allowing just three goals on 71 shots. During one of those starts, Mrazek sat with a “tender groin.”

The Wings don’t play again until Sunday what they face the Blackhawks in Chicago.

Related: At season’s end, Holland will ‘plot a plan’ to deal with Red Wings’ goalie situation