The Detroit Red Wings, with another bold and graphic stroke, showed the Jackets what playoff hockey is all about. Mark your calendars. On April 21, 2009, the local NHL affiliate came to understand how far it is from a Stanley Cup.

The lesson was home-schooled. The Wings won 4-1 and went ahead in the series three games to none. How does this happen? There was an amazing buzz in the building as the game approached. A record crowd of 19,219 was on hand, and it was in full throat. Leo Welsh tested the integrity of the P.A. system when he belted out the anthem. Nationwide turned into the epicenter of a city's collective energy. The scene was set.

Tomas Holmstrom scored 67 seconds in.

Take that, Columbus.

It was a seemingly innocuous play. Holmstrom threw the puck on net from the top of the left circle and continued onward. Steve Mason made an easy pad save, kicking the puck to the right circle. There, Marian Hossa ran into it and, running out of angle, chucked a backhand off the crossbar. Holmstrom was on the doorstep and he had an easy tuck-in.

Ouch.

Hossa had slipped Rusty Klesla. Holmstrom had slipped Fedor Tyutin. Manny Malhotra arrived late on the scene. Mason lost track of the puck. It was not so innocuous. It was an utter breakdown on the back end. It was exactly what the opportunistic Wings were looking for, a chance to score first, on the road, and put a hopped-up crowd down in its seats. It was a chance to make the Jackets play from behind and, well, we all know how the Jackets have played from behind in this series.

"We talked about how in the first 10 minutes the building was going to be hyped up, and if we were patient we could take advantage of it," Wings coach Mike Babcock said. "And we did. There was a neutral-zone turnover, and we took it the other way."

Near the end of the first period -- with 45.1 seconds remaining, in fact -- the Wings scored their second goal. For them, it was just another in a series of idly thrown daggers to stick the Jackets. Jan Hejda lost his stick, the Jackets ran around and Dan Cleary threw in a spin-o-rama forehand from between the hash marks. He separated himself from Mike Commodore and stunned Mason, not to mention the crowd. There it was, a two-goal lead, and, well, we all know how the Jackets have played from behind in this series.

"All year we've had success from our work and now we've run into a wall," Blue Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock said.

The Jackets have looked spooked. Rick Nash has been nullified. The defense has had more breakdowns than it can afford, especially against the Wings, especially in the playoffs. Mason hasn't stood on his head. The Jackets have taken lazy and/or stupid penalties.

In sum, the Wings have vastly outplayed their divisional baby brothers. Last night, even Chris Osgood looked good. And last night, the Wings took the whipping to another level in the second period when Brad Stuart caught R.J. Umberger with his head down. In a violent and frightening collision, Stuart put a hip on Umberger's head and sent Umberger helicoptering. That was the exclamation.

Henrik Zetterberg, left alone in the slot, scored moments later to make it 3-0. That was the exclamation point. We all know how the Jackets have played from behind in the series.

"At this time of year, there is a different level of engagement," Babcock said.

It would be nice if the Jackets somehow managed to win here Thursday. It would be good for the fans, and for the city. But in any case, the series is over. Detroit is moving on. The Jackets are measuring the gap.

Michael Arace is a sports reporter for The Dispatch.

marace@dispatch.com