Jimmy Howard Detroit Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings and Nashville Predators have been on a collision course for the 4-5 spot in the NHL’s Western Conference playoff bracket for several weeks now, and the matchup has now officially materialized. To the casual fan, it looks like one of the game’s great franchises against an unknown who’s never made a splash. But between the boards, it’s a dead-even matchup and Nashville is the team that angled out home-ice advantage by winning 12 of its last 20, while Detroit only won seven in that same timeframe. TheSportsNotebook previews the Red Wings-Predators first-round battle…