On the Wings

I don’t have much time, so this will be brief:

… I guess I overreacted with my earlier post. Looking back over my notes, the Wings didn’t play all that badly, they just weren’t up to Game 3’s level. I do think the Ducks were showing better hustle and better effort, overall, though it could be said they stole one from the Wings.

… Chris Chelios’ play on the Wings’ first goal was great. He saw the puck get shot in, sawy Giguere come out to play it, gambled that JS would put his head down and send it around the boards and was in perfect position when that’s exactly what happened. After taking the puck, he immediately threw it on net, where Dan Cleary was able to redirect it into the net. I noticed on one of the replays that the two other Wings players went to congratulate Cleary, but Henrik Zetterberg turned and went to Chelios. Not sure if it was because Hank at first thought it was Cheli’s goal, or because he wanted to give him credit for a great pass.

… Speaking of great plays, Ryan Getzlaf made one on the Ducks’ second goal. That pass was nifty, though a little slow. Pavel Datsyuk nearly got to it. I wish he had. Then the Ducks wouldn’t have scored there.

… The Ducks’ third goal was ridiculous. The puck bounced away from four Wings before Teemu Selanne found a way to chip it past Hasek. Lucky bounces, obviously, but nobody should be beating Hasek 5-hole.

… Todd Bertuzzi did exactly what he’s supposed to do on his goal, the Wings’ second: stand in front of the net and score from point blank range. Giguere had no chance, with big Todd standing there unmolested after a nice roll to shed the defenseman. Great pass by Lang, who isn’t sticking out in a bad way this series.

… Bertuzzi showed his ability again on the Wings’ third goal, centering the rebound off a Samuelsson shot and making it possible for Dan Cleary to get the puck in the net. I hope this new Bertuzzi sticks around.

… It would have been nice to see the Wings capitalize on the power play that began at 19:37 of the second period. Perry had decked Henrik Zetterberg in the back in a bit of a cheapshot. But, even with a 5-on-3 in the third period, they couldn’t get it done.

… I thought Hasek should have had the game winner, of all the goals. It was long and, yes, it was through a crowd, but it felt like a stinker.

… With time winding down, it looked like Henrik Zetterberg was one of the few Wings who felt a need to perform. He looked dominant near the end of the game. Too bad the team’s effort with Dom on the bench was pathetic. Rob Niedermeyer had an easy time of it, taking the puck from Chelios and lobbing it into the empty net.

… The Wings are going to need to put on a Game 3 effort or better Sunday if they want to take back control in this series. They’re fully capable of it and I’m confident they will.

… I’m going out of town this weekend, so there likely won’t be any posts tomorrow, or Sunday (so no game preview).