updated 7:01 p.m. ET June 5, 2009

DETROIT - The NHL's regular season is often dismissed.

It starts in early October during baseball's playoffs and the heart of football season and rolls along in relative anonymity for the next six months.

The Stanley Cup playoffs usually feature upsets, showing seedlings don't matter much, and recent defending champions have been getting bounced in the first round.

Detroit is desperately hoping to prove this past regular season was relevant against the Pittsburgh Penguins, starting with Game 5 Saturday night at Joe Louis Arena — and winding up back there with Game 7 if necessary.

"That's one of the reasons you want to finish as high as possible, to gain that home-ice advantage," Red Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom said. "You have to take advantage of that, too, when you have a chance."

The reeling Red Wings have up to two games left at home against Pittsburgh in the suddenly deadlocked Stanley Cup finals — thanks to earning 13 more points in the regular season. It seems to be the only edge they have at this point.

"If you listen to what people on the outside say, Pittsburgh was done after two games. I don't think anybody in our locker room thought that," Detroit coach Mike Babcock said Friday. "Now if you listen to what people on the outside say, the Red Wings are done after two games. So I don't think that's what we think.

"What we think is ... we're going to come here tomorrow and play well."

The Red Wings usually do at home.

They're an NHL-best 10-1 this postseason at Joe Louis Arena, where they beat Pittsburgh twice, and are outscoring visitors by an average of two goals a game.

Detroit's lone loss at home was against the Anaheim Ducks in triple overtime on May 3, losing what has been the only game this postseason to be extended past one extra period.

The Red Wings beat Pittsburgh 3-1 on consecutive nights last weekend, taking advantage of fortunate caroms off their lively boards and getting some puck luck on goals that bounced off Marc-Andre Fleury and shots against Chris Osgood that hit posts.

The Red Wings then lost two straight games in Mellon Arena 4-2, failing to capitalize on chances to take control of the series in the middle of Game 3 and getting overwhelmed by Pittsburgh's speed and skill in the pivotal second period of Game 4.

Detroit seemed to show signs of fatigue in its fourth game in six nights against the Penguins and seventh game in less than two weeks, dating to the overtime-filled Western Conference finals.

"That would be an excuse," said Red Wings forward Marian Hossa, who has been held without a point by his former teammates in three of the four games.

After playing the first five games in an eight-day span, both teams will get a break after Saturday's game. The NHL scheduled two days off before Game 6 on Tuesday night in Pittsburgh and another pair of idle days if Game 7 is necessary June 12 in Detroit.

The home team has won the first four games of the Stanley Cup finals for just the third time since 1979.

Hossa hasn't been surprised by the trend and won't be stunned if it continues.

"We easily could go to Game 7," Hossa said.

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