DETROIT -- Forget the handshakes and courteous smiles when Detroit and Pittsburgh meet again for the first time since the Red Wings suffered a stunning 2-1 loss to the Penguins in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals last season.

In this grudge match, there’s no need for pleasantries.

The rivalry between the Red Wings and Penguins, who’ve faced off against each other in the finals for the past two seasons, should be in full bloom for NBC’s “Game of the Week” at Mellon Arena on Sunday.

“It’s a great showcase for the league,” Detroit’s Kris Draper said of the rivalry with Pittsburgh. “It’s a great test for us. We expect to have a great game. It’s going to be a great atmosphere. It’s the last two Stanley Cup finals. They won one, we won one. There’s been a lot of great hockey the last couple of years between these two organizations”

Some great action and some bad blood.

The Red Wings still haven’t forgotten that Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby took his time celebrating on the ice at Joe Louis Arena before finally joining the postgame handshake line, which is customary at the conclusion of the series. He took so long, all but a few of the Red Wings had returned to the locker room.

“Yeah, there’s some extra juice for this game,” Detroit coach Mike Babcock admitted.

The Red Wings (26-19-9), who’ve battled numerous injuries all season, are limping along in eighth place in the Western Conference standings with 61 points. They are 2-3-3 in their past eight games.

The Penguins (33-21-1) are fourth in the Eastern Conference with 67 points.

“I don’t know if I’m looking forward to it or not,” Detroit’s Henrik Zetterberg said with a crooked smile. “It’s a team we don’t see a lot in the regular season. I don’t think we need a measuring stick right now. We have our own issues. We don’t need to measure ourselves against Pittsburgh.”

The Penguins are in the midst of an 8-11-0 slump since Dec. 21.

If the current trends hold for both teams, there isn’t likely to be a third consecutive Stanley Cup finals meeting between Detroit and Pittsburgh -- although NBC analyst Ed Olczyk cautions not to count either of them out.

“They will be a dangerous team, tough medicine for any team that might take them on in the Western Conference (playoffs),” Olczyk said of the Red Wings. “It would not surprise me to see both of these teams back in the Stanley Cup finals.”

Tomas Holmstrom, out since Jan. 6 with a broken foot, was a full participant in practice Saturday and remarked afterward that he anticipated making his return to the ice against the Penguins.

“It’s my call, we’ll see how it feels tomorrow,” he said.

The coach had different thoughts about Holmstrom’s tender right foot.

“I just think watching him (in practice), he wasn’t knocking my socks off. He needs another couple of days off,” Babcock said.

The Penguins are missing former Ferris State standout Chris Kunitz (abdominal surgery), Eric Godard (groin), Alex Goligoski (undisclosed) and Tyler Kennedy (undisclosed).

Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard is shooting for his 20th win of the season.

“It will be a great test against those two guys,” he said of facing Pittsburgh’s potent scoring combination of Crosby and Evgeni Malkin for the first time in his NHL career.

E-mail Brian VanOchten at bvanochten@grpress.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/BrianVanOchten