I’m short on time today, so I’ll have to refer you to my Icesheet at the FanHouse rather than do a separate post. Sorry about that.
Archive for the 'Game Reports' Category
The Wings took a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference Finals last night with a 2-1 win over the Dallas Stars.
Some quick thoughts on the game:
… Despite the fact that they statistically dominated the Stars, i don’t think the Wings have fully hit their stride in this round. They looked a bit sloppy offensively and never really got going. Even Pavel Datsyuk, who is usually very smooth with the puck, looked a little off his game.
… Defensively, though, I thought they were real solid. Chris Osgood had another strong game.
… Darren Helm looked great on his goal. A nice shot, but one Turco probably should have had. He took Helm too lightly.
… On the Wings’ second goal, the Stars took Holmstrom too seriously. They were so concerned with him that Henrik Zetterberg had an easy time of it putting it back in the net.
… The Stars seem to be on the edge of a meltdown. Their frustration is obvious, from Marty Turco’s sneaky cheapshots on Holmstrom and Filppula, to Steve Ott’s antics.
The ultimate example was Mike Ribeiro’s absolutely uncalled for two-hander to Chris Osgood’s chest at the end of the game. Just prior to that, Osgood have moved his stick slightly as Ribeiro went by, catching the Stars forward with the butt end. That was unecessary on Osgood’s part, but certainly did not warrant a chop like Ribeiro gave him. If Ribeiro was that upset, he should have confronted Osgood face-to-face.
Personally, I do think Ribeiro should be suspended. You simply cannot use your stick like that. Osgood looks pretty foolish to have rolled around like that, but that doesn’t change the fact that Ribeiro two-handed him in the chest after the buzzer. The League has to take action, even if it’s only a game or two.
… Game 2 seemed to be another indication that perhaps the Stars have run out of steam. They’ll no doubt look better in Game 3 as they play in front of their home crowd, but it will have to be a major improvement if they want to make this a competitive series.
Links
The Detroit Red Wings took a 1-0 lead in the Western Conference Finals by defeating the Dallas Stars 4-1 at home last night.
I didn’t take notes and I’m a little short on time so this will be brief:
… I missed the first couple minutes of the game, but it looked like the Stars were in control early on. Things started to unravel for them as they got into penalty trouble before the game was four minutes old. After that, the Wings took over and held the high ground for most of the rest of the game.
… The roughing on Mark Fistric was pretty stupid. If anyone deserved a call there, it was Steve Ott. Fistric did very little, but I thought Ott went a little overboard in his encounter with Holmstrom.
… I thought Brian Rafalski had a strong night for the most part. He made absolutely the right decision on his goal, chosing to take advantage of the chaos following Lidstrom’s shot going off the post. Turco had no idea what was going on.
… Franzen continues to play like an MVP. His goal will get the press, but his play in the defensive end was exemplary. If he’d played like that all season, the Wings could have had three Selke finalists.
… Valtteri Filppula looked strong all night. He was particularly impressive in his strength on the puck, which led to a Stars penalty in one instance. He made no mistake about it when he found himself open in the middle just before his goal. Turco doesn’t deserve much criticism on that one. It was just a great shot.
… Turco, by the way, was not the stellar goalie we were led to believe he’d be. I have no doubt that we’ll see the better side of him this series, but he’d better bring it quick or the Stars will be in trouble.
… I thought Chris Osgood looked stellar. He made a few huge saves at various points in the game and definitely was the goalie his teammates need him to be.
… Of course, Osgood was helped by a tight team defense. The Wings were very good about regaining possession in their zone and closing off the Stars’ attack.
… I was surprised to see Kirk Maltby in the lineup. I didn’t notice him much, to be honest.
… Darren Helm was great last night. He took an elbow shot to the face from Turco, though. Not sure how the officials missed that one.
… Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk looked like themselves with seven shots each.
… If the Wings’ power play clicks like that all series, Dallas will be very hardpressed to win a game, let alone four. The Stars are going to have to cut down on the penalties, for sure.
… The Wings held the Stars down for a good half of the game and then let off the gas. That’s not going to work if Dallas gets its act together. They’re better off staying on the attack all night.
… You could see the Stars’ frustration late in the game. My guess is Game 2 will be a different animal as they come out looking to make up for their poor performance last night.
Links
The Detroit Red Wings advanced to the Western Conference Finals after completing their Semifinal sweep of the Colorado Avalanche last night with an 8-2 win on the road.
… First off, I want to point you to what I think may be the best quote on this series that I’ve seen:
Bottom line is that we didn’t get the series that we thought we would; this tilt between the Wings and the Colorado Avalanche was supposed to be like a rematch between Godzilla and King Kong. And just as we’re all pumped up to see the two beasts rumble, the lizard shoots the ape in the head with a pistol like Indy against the swordsman in “Raiders.” So sad.
- Greg Wyshynski, Yahoo! NHL Experts Blog
That pretty much describes one half of my feelings exactly. The other half is thrilled, of course.
… Now: the game. For all their later dominance, I did not think the Wings started so hot. The first few minutes were sloppy and not very encouraging. Mikael Samuelsson relieved the stress a bit with a softie on Jose Theodore at 4:33, but that relief was short-lived as the Avs scored just over two minutes later. As I wrote last night, down to the 18:00 mark, the game looked like it’d be a tough one.
… The floodgates opened with a bit of a flukey one from Tomas Holmstrom. The play began in the Detroit end with Pavel Datsyuk tipping it up to Henrik Zetterberg and springing Hank and Homer on a 2-on-1.
Zetterberg made a great fake and dished the puck across to Holmstrom, who I don’t think got all he wanted on it. The puck beat Theodore just inside the right post nonetheless. Had Homer gotten the shot he wanted, he may have put it right into Theodore’s chest rather than along the ice at the post.
That goal came at 18:34.
… At 19:21, Johan Franzen made it 3-1. The play began at center on a fast transition with Franzen and Valtteri Filppula on the attack. Franzen sent the puck across to Filppula, who immediately returned it. Franzen had a split second of trouble with the puck as it came back to his feet, but he managed to put it past Theodore to score his first of the night. Theodore was slow getting across once again.
… To start the second, Jose Theodore was yanked and Peter Budaj was put in the line of fire. Within six minutes, he gave up two to Henrik Zetterberg. The first came on the power play and was a one-timer rocket from 50 feet out with Holmstrom screening. The second was Zetterberg’s circus goal. Budaj didn’t have much chance on either one.
… The onslaught continued when Henrik Zetterberg took control of the puck while the Wings were shorthanded and carried it up ice with Johan Franzen on a 2-on-1. With John-Michael Liles completely unable to do anything, Zetterberg got the puck across to Franzen, who calmly put it over Budaj at virtually the last possible moment. 6-1 Wings at 11:37.
… Franzen completed his hat trick and set a team record for most goals in a single series (and an NHL record for most goals in a four-game series) with a tip in off a Nick Lidstrom shot at 17:15.
… Mikael Samuelsson finished the scoring for the Wings with his second of the night at 8:02 of the third. After a failed Avs breakout, Filppula carried it in and dished it across to Jiri Hudler while Samuelsson went to the side of the net. Hudler got the puck over to Sammy for an easy tip-in.
… Liles put the Avs within six with a screened slapshot at 10:26.
… This is a minor quibble given the final score, but how the heck did Tomas Holmstrom get a tripping penalty there? He was the one getting hauled down in front of the net!
… Andreas Lilja had a couple bad spots in his cover game for Chelios. First and foremost was his blown coverage on the Arnasson goal. He definitely looked like a guy who hadn’t played since Game 3 of the Nashville series.
… Chris Osgood was solid once again. If nothing else, the mental effect his presence has had on the Wings is the key to the way this run has gone so far.
… Fabian Brunnstrom was no doubt wowed by the game. I just hope it wasn’t to point where he says, “I’ll never get a chance to crack the lineup!”
… Again, I want to give the Avs credit for not stooping to goon hockey despite getting embarrassed. A lot of teams would have been sore losers, but the Avs went out with class.
… There’s no arguing that Colorado’s injury troubles and poor coaching decisions made it easier for the Wings. However, I think the Wings were dominant enough in this series that even a fully healthy Avs team and one backstopped by Budaj instead of Theodore could not have beaten them. It would not have been a sweep, but I truly believe the Wings still would have advanced.
They are on a mission. Don’t expect them to stumble just because they made it look so easy against the Avs.
Links
Highlights
In the Cheap Seats (and here)
Update (11:16 AM): Some more reactions to the game:
Mile High Hockey. Comment: have you not watched this series at all? Darren Helm is the guy centering the fourth line that has given your Avs so much trouble at various. Sure, that line has allowed at least two goals, but still. He’s been impressive.
Earl Sleek at the FanHouse.
CBC Playoff Blog. - Matt
The Detroit Red Wings took a 3-0 lead in their Western Conference Semifinal series against the Colorado Avalanche last night with a 4-3 road win. They were the third team to do so in the same night. Pittsburgh and Dallas have also pushed their opponents to the brink of elimination through three games.
I did not take notes on the game, so some general thoughts follow:
… Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg had probably their best game of the playoffs.
For whatever reason, I had a feeling Pavel would have a big night after I saw him come out hard following the Avs’ first goal. He did not disappoint. He finished a somewhat botched (I’ll get to that) play by Zetterberg to tie the game at one, and demonstrated incredible hands on his second goal. He appeared to knock down a Brian Rafalski shot before transporting it to the left and then into the net. His pass on Zetterberg’s goal was unbelievable. Without the puck, he was a threat all night as well. He finished with only one credited takeaway, but that’s well short of accurate.
As for Zetterberg, he’s showing a newfound Datsyuk-like ability with the puck, as evidenced by his carry-in on Datsyuk’s first goal. I believe he lost the puck off the end of his stick as he cut across (hence the “somewhat botched” above), but it all turned out because he has the best linemate in the League.
… Adrian Dater wrote last night that the officiating was terrible. I couldn’t agree more, though I have a slightly different take on it. Yes, the Forsberg goaltender interference call was awful. Yes, the make-up call on Zetterberg soon after was bad as well (the concept of “makeup call” is just ridiculous to me, but that’s a topic for another time). Yes, Johan Franzen could have been called for tripping when Forsberg deked Chelios out of his jock strap and left #93 alone to deal with his countryman.
All that being said, those calls were little worse than the poor standard of officiating we’ve been seeing all playoffs. I’m more concerned with the Avs’ tactics of mauling the Wings constantly and only occasionally getting called for it. The vicious Laperriere hit on Brett Lebda was just one of three or four examples of hits from behind perpetrated by the Avs. With all the slashing and roughing going on, the Avs are fortunate more wasn’t called.
… Peter Forsberg had some moments in which he looked dangerous, but the Wings did a great job of neutralizing him. I believe Nik Kronwall got a big hit on him and it was heart-warming to see little Brian Rafalski stand him up in the neutral zone in the third period.
He played with his usual edge, taking a tooth out of Samuelsson’s mouth with a baseball swing after Sammy dared to hit him. He could have gone to the box for elbowing and high sticking on that one.
The loss of Stastny compounded the loss of Smyth and made it much more difficult for Forsberg to make an impact. It was pretty obvious that he was playing hurt.
… I thought last night was Brad Stuart’s best of the playoffs. He brought a physical dimension he hasn’t shown too often since coming here.
… I also thought Brett Lebda had a strong game. The Laperierre hit apparently knocked some good play into him as he was more noticeable than ususal. His play on the Johan Franzen goal was something I could stand to see more often.
… Valtteri Filppula needs to stop hitting the post. Twine, Fil. Twine!
… Remember when Mikael Samuelsson was in our collective doghouse? I think he’s well out of it now. He’s looked pretty good this series.
… Chris Chelios had something of a rough game.
… The fourth line didn’t shine as much last night as it did at home, but that’s understandable given the fact that Quenneville could have his top unit out there against them if he wanted.
… Chris Osgood looked like his usual solid self. He didn’t really have a chance on any of the Avs’ goals, but he still made 30 saves. As long as the Wings are scoring at this rate, three goals on 33 shots isn’t bad.
… I don’t know what happened to the Wings at the start of the third. On their first bench minor, they just had six guys out there skating around, similar to Colorado’s bench minor in the second period. On their second one, Valtteri Filppula misread Dallas Drake’s intentions and hopped on before #17 was actually coming off. The Avs smartly pressed Drake against the boards on top of the puck, forcing the call from the official.
The Avs scored on the second one and brought themselves within one. Fortunately, the Wings were able to hold them off for the rest of the period or else that stretch would have really stood out as a turning point, perhaps in the series.
… All in all, a strong game by the Wings. They handled a highly motivated Colorado team and did what they had to do to take a stranglehold in the series. They now face the difficult task of notching that fourth win and it’s not going to be easy. Game 4 will be another stiff test of their determination.
Links
Update (5:18 PM): Steph at No Pun Intended has her post on the game up here. - Matt
Update (2:10 PM): George Malik’s wrap-up is here. - Matt
The Detroit Red Wings took a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference Semifinal series with the Colorado Avalanche yesterday by winning 5-1 at home.
I did not take notes on the game, so I just have a few thoughts on it:
… The Wings came out flying for the second game in a row. After watching the Predators swarm for the first ten minutes of nearly every game last round, the Wings’ early dominance has been a refreshing change of pace. The best part about it? With just a few hitches, they kept it up for the rest of the game.
… Just prior to the game, it was announced that Peter Forsberg, who participated in warmups, would not play. They also told us that Scott Hannan was out. Both players would have had an impact on the game, to be sure, but it’s hard for me to see the result being that much different. The Wings were on a mission.
… I thought that was Henrik Zetterberg’s best game of the playoffs. He looked very confident with the puck and made decisions with it we haven’t seen from him in a while. For one thing, he didn’t constantly take it around behind the net, chosing instead to take it to the front much more often.
… Johan Franzen continues to impress. There are shifts in which he just will not be denied. He’s excelling at both ends and looks nothing like a mere third year player.
… Franzen’s linemates, Mikael Samuelsson and Valtteri Filppula, are also having a solid second round. That’s creating a problem for the Avs, who apparently don’t have the depth to stop both the Wings’ dangerous top line and their hot second line. Both the Eurotwins+Homer and Franzen’s line are wrecking havoc in the Colorado end. Even the third and fourth lines have caused problems for the Avs in this series. The Wings’ depth is incredible.
One thing’s for sure: Babcock should not make any changes to the lines for the road games. Keep the Eurotwins together and Franzen with Fil and Sammy. Keep Helm in the lineup and continue to rotate Drake on the third and fourth lines. That is the arrangement that is winning these games. Anything else is a concession to the Avs.
… The Wings’ third pairing combined for a whole lot of fail on the Ian Laperriere goal. Brett Lebda, instead of quickly sending the puck up and out of the zone when there was plenty of space to do so, opted to rattle it around the boards behind the net to Chris Chelios.
Kris Draper by that point had left the right wing boards and was in the middle of the ice, operating under the assumption that Lebda would make the right decision. Chelios, for his part, had a brain cramp. Rather than take a second to think and adjust to Draper’s new position, he sent the puck up along the boards to where Draper used to be, promptly turning it over. Seconds later, the Avs ruined the shutout.
… Chris Osgood, by the way, had another solid game. He wasn’t given a lot of action, facing just 20 shots, but was there to make the save when needed.
… At the other end, Jose Theodore continued his “sick” play. He had no chance on Franzen’s first, but was caught somewhat out of position on his second. Filppula’s goal was a bit of a bad bounce, but Theodore’s poor positioning cost him that one. As for the Zetterberg goal, he didn’t look like a former world-class goalie on that one either.
Peter Budaj, on the other hand, was solid. He faced 20 shots and it took the hot stick of Johan Franzen to beat him in the third. I’d think the Avs would go with him in Game 3, but Joel Quenneville seems intent on sticking with Theodore.
… Brad Stuart did not really stick out in his return. That’s a good thing, for the most part.
… Darren Helm and his fourth line compatriots, Jiri Hudler and Darren McCarty, continue to look great. They had the Avs on their heels a few times yesterday and provided great energy.
… Unlike the NBC broadcast crew, I didn’t think McCarty was foolish to fight Cody McCormick in the second period after the Wings took a 4-0 lead. He would have been foolish to turn down such a blunt challenge. Had the Wings not had a four-goal lead, it’d be a different story. As it was, however, McCarty showed that he was not averse to droppinng the gloves and may have deterred unecessary violence against the Wings’ stars as the game went on.
If the Avs take that fight and make something of it in future games, good for them. It won’t change the fact that this is the Wings’ series to lose.
… The main concern coming out of the game was the fact that the Wings couldn’t find a way to put one or two in the net when the Avs had their meltdown in the second half of the second period. Five penalties in a row should have resulted in something. Of course, by that point, they already had two power play goals, so it’s not the end of the world.
… The Wings did not take their foot off the gas yesterday and they cannot take it off going into Game 3. The extra day between games will be good for resting bumps and bruises, but it can’t dull their resolve. They have to put on a similarly dominating performance Tuesday night and take a stranglehold on this series. There can be no repeat of 1999.
The Avs, whether or not they get Forsberg or Hannan back, will be highly motivated in Game 3. They know the series is not over and that they can take a step toward preserving themselves with a win at home in front of their crowd.
I can’t wait.
Links
Update (10:32 PM): Christy Hammond has a brief post up on the game with some great accompanying pictures. My favorite: Al twirling the octopus in the zamboni pit. - Matt
Update (10:22 PM): Apologies to Joe Sakic: it was Andrew Brunette who turned the puck over along the left wing boards just prior to Johan Franzen’s second goal, not the Avs’ captain. Thanks to Justin for pointing that out in the comments. - Matt
Update (12:46 PM): George Malik’s wrap-up is here. - Matt
The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Colorado Avalanche last night 4-3 and took a 1-0 lead in their Western Conference Semifinal series.
Just prior to the game, it was announced that Peter Forsberg would not play because of a groin injury. The news had an obvious effect on Colorado’s morale. For more on that, see Adrian Dater’s post.*
The Wings came out strong, with the top line of Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, and Tomas Holmstrom looking particularly good. From the onset, it looked like the Avalanche did not have an answer for those three.
Andreas Lilja and Niklas Kronwall laid on a couple big hits in the first five minutes as the Wings looked more physical than their opponents, for once.
The Avs scored first, despite the fact that they were being outplayed for the bulk of the first 10 minutes. With the Wings only partially changed from their fourth line to their second line, Paul Stastny, Ryan Smyth, and Milan Hejduk gained the Detroit zone and began to grind it out. A quick centering pass by Smyth from behind the net led to a lightning-fast goal by Stastny. He got the puck up over Osgood from close range and put his team up 1-0 at 8:53.
The Wings responded 53 seconds later. Zetterberg carried the puck into the Colorado zone on the left wing and, met with Cody McLeod just over the line, dropped it off to Datsyuk behind him. McLeod then released Zetterberg and took Datsyuk, who sent the puck up to a free #40. Hank fought through a hold from Adam Foote and put the puck through Jose Theodore to tie the game up at 9:46.
Following the goal, the Wings looked strong. Their physical edge continued with a Kris Draper hit on Tyler Arnason at the Colorado blueline and the top line continued to wreck havoc in the Avalanche end. The fourth line of Jiri Hudler, Darren Helm, and Darren McCarty, put on a nice shift just prior to an Avalanche penalty at 11:04.
The Wings took a 2-1 lead at 13:48 off a fortunate bounce. Johan Franzen began the play as he carried the puck into the Colorado end. He was sandwiched by two Avalanche players and just managed to get the puck up to Dan Cleary. Cleary’s shot was stopped by Theodore, but the puck disappeared. Watching it live, it looked as though Franzen was the first to find it and knock it in. Replays, however, showed that the puck hit Theodore and bounced 20-30 feet straight up in the air. After a delay, it landed to Theodore’s left and bounced into the net.
Not long after the goal, Ben Guite had a big scoring chance for the Avs, but Chris Osgood made the save.
The Wings extended their lead at 17:23 while on the power play. Following the faceoff, Niklas Kronwall and Jiri Hudler played catch for a little bit before Kronwall unleashed a blast toward the net. Johan Franzen, coming across the front, got his stick on it and redirected it down to the top of Theodore’s right pad and in.
At 18:48, the Avs returned to the penalty box as the Eurotwins+Holmstrom cycled in the Colorado end. Those three then skated circles around the Avs until the period ended.
The Wings began the second on the power play, but couldn’t convert. They did, however, score within the first two minutes of the period. Joe Sakic Andrew Brunette turned the puck over to Mikael Samuelsson along the far side boards in the Colorado end. Sammy then slid it across to Valtteri Filppula, who dropped a no-look pass to Johan Franzen 43 feet out. Franzen’s one-timer beat Theodore over his left pad at 1:13.
Of the four goals Theodore allowed, this was the worst, but the blame rests mostly with Sakic Brunette for the turnover. In any case, Joel Quenneville saw fit to pull Theodore at this point. Peter Budaj came in and Theodore went to the bench, though he eventually changed into street clothes and left the arena because he was “ill.” If he was so sick, why did he start in the first place? I wonder if he wasn’t pouting.
The Avs seemed to wake up a bit after the goalie change. They had a couple solid scoring chances not long afterwards and scored their second goal just over four minutes after the Wings’ took their 4-1 lead. It ws a simple enough play: JM Liles broke in down the left wing and took a shot that beat Osgood five-hole. Chris Chelios dove across in an attempt to block the shot, so it may have been tipped. If it wasn’t, it was a weak goal to give up. 4-2 at 5:17.
The Wings didn’t immediately take their foot off the gas, as they had a number of solid chances in the subsequent minutes. They put on a decent power play beginning at 6:15 and and had some strong cycle shifts at full strength. The Avs continued to improve throughout all of this, however, and gradually the balance of play evened out for the most part.
The Avs had a big scoring chance with 6:20 or so left when Paul Stastny found himself free to take a shot from the slot. On the flurry that followed, Ryan Smyth roughed up Nick Lidstrom and got away with it. In the shift following that, Zetterberg, Datsyuk, and Holmstrom put on another good performance. Darren Helm and Darren McCarty had a 2-on-1 nearly develop not long after that, but it fizzled out.
At 16:29, Milan Hejduk made things interesting by scoring the Avs’ third goal. The play began as a 3-on-2 with Ryan Smyth carrying and Brian Rafalski and Nick Lidstrom back. No big deal, right? Wrong. Smyth got the puck up to Stastny and rather than fall further back, Rafalski chose to stick with Smyth, creating a 2-on-1 down low. Stastny waited until he was virtually at the goalline and then slid the puck across to Hejduk, who tipped it in just inside the right post. Osgood couldn’t get across fast enough.
After that, the Avs swarmed a little. In the midst of this, Nik Kronwall laid on another big hit, this time on Jones at center. Andreas Lilja took an ill-timed holding penaly at 17:50 and put the Avs on the power play. Colorado had a few chances with the man-advantage and put the Wings on their heels a bit. Chris Osgood, however, came up big.
I missed the first 10:00 or so of the third because I had to run an errand, but from what I can tell from the BtJ liveblog, the Wings looked decent.
When I got back, one of the first things I saw was Jordan Leopold’s running of Valtteri Filppula into the endboards around the 10:30 mark.
The second half of the third period, at least, was mostly Colorado’s game. They were much more dangerous than they had been in the first and second and forced Chris Osgood to make a number of big saves. They beat him once, but the shot rang off the post. The Wings could get little going offensively.
Budaj was pulled for the extra skater with about 1:08 left and the Avs had some trouble getting set up. When they did, however, they came very close to scoring. The play began with Smyth behind the net. He sent a pass out front to Leopold, who was covered by Brian Rafalski and stood to Osgood’s left at the post. Rafalski lifted Leopold’s stick and the puck went through to the slot, where Liles had jumped up. Osgood somehow managed to get across and make the save on Liles, who should have had a goal. Save of the game, if not the playoffs to this point, for Chris Osgood.
That came with 8.4 seconds left. The remaining time wound down and the Wings finished on top, 4-3.
The Big Three obviously had a strong game. The second line looked good as well. The third line was physical and did its job. The fourth line also did its job, but ran into a couple matchup problems that should have been avoided. See the Stastny goal.
Defensively, the Wings were pretty strong with the obvious exception of the Rafalski brain cramp that led to Hejduk’s second goal.
Chris Osgood looked steady, though the Liles goal was a little weak. He came up big in the third period, however, and saved the Wings when the Avs were creating scoring chances.
In addition to the loss of Forsberg, the Avs saw Wojtek Wolski leave the ice in the first period with what is being described as an upper body injury. It could also be a knee issue, however. That’s a big loss as he was one of their top line wingers.
Scott Hannan took a shot off the inside of his foot and though he finished the game, he may not be able to go Saturday.
Ryan Smyth looked good for the Avs. Some of their best chances were generated by his passes.
The final score was the result of a combination of two things: 1) the Avs waking up and actually playing hockey, and 2) the Wings letting up a bit offensively. In Game 2, you can bet that Colorado will come out stronger, but you can also count on the Wings to press the attack for longer.
Links
*Say what you want about Dater, but his bluntness is at times refreshing. Not many beat writers are so quick to be critical of the players they talk to on a daily basis.
Update (12:25 PM): IwoCPO’s thoughts on the series are here and George Malik’s wrap-up is here. - Matt
The Detroit Red Wings advanced to the Western Conference Semifinals with yesterday’s 3-0 Game 6 win over the Nashville Predators. Their second-round opponent will be determined by the result of tomorrow night’s Game 7 between the San Jose Sharks and the Calgary Flames. If the Flames can win on the road, they’ll face the Wings next. If the Sharks pull out a win, they’ll face Dallas and Colorado will face Detroit.
The Wings put on a strong performance in the clinching game. They weathered a major first period storm put on by the Predators and gradually took control of the game. The opening frame was just about all action, with the teams trading chances up and down the ice. Both goalies looked very good. Detroit had a tendency to turn the puck over in their own zone during this period, which made things interesting for Chris Osgood.
The second period was more settled, but still had its moments excitement. One such moment that stuck out was the Predators exploitation of a bad line change around the 8:00 mark. A Brett Lebda turnover at center led to Rich Peverley outmuscling Darren Helm at the Detroit blueline and breaking in on Osgood alone. He lost control of the puck in open ice, however, which was more a demonstration of the poor quality of the ice surface than any knock against him.
The Wings went on the penalty kill at 13:37. Seven seconds later, they scored a shorthanded goal to make it 1-0. The goal came just after a faceoff at center. Nick Lidstrom received the puck from Henrik Zetterberg behind the red line and sent in a medium-strength shot that bounced in front of Dan Ellis in the slot and went in over his shoulder. It was definitely a tough break for the rookie goaltender, but a great one of the Wings. They went on to kill off a critical 5-on-3 following Kris Draper penalty at 14:43.
To the Predators credit, their play only dropped a little after that. They certainly didn’t give up after what could have been a backbreaking sequence of events.
Toward the end of the period, Pavel Datsyuk carried the puck into the zone and drove to the net like a much larger man. He got off a backhand shot and ended up barreling into Ellis as he lost an edge, knocking the net off. It seemed like a pretty straightforward play, but there was a bit of a delay as it was reviewed to make sure the puck didn’t go into the net. In the end, they made the right call: no goal.
The Wings extended their lead at 3:52 of the third with a goal from Jiri Hudler. The play began with Darren Helm carrying it into the zone on the left wing. Darren McCarty went up the middle toward the net, drawing David Legwand into Ryan Suter and leaving Hudler free as the trailer. Helm slid the puck across and Hudler unleashed a rocket that beat Ellis from 43 feet out. It was a well-deserved reward for the fourth line’s hard work throughout the game. Unfortunately, they hardly saw the ice for the rest of the game after that.
Detroit didn’t let off the gas, but had a definite defensive mindset after that. The Predators continued to come at them until the very end of the game, but the Wings limited them to just seven shots for all that. Nashville would gain the zone and set up a play that would only be broken up by a well-placed Detroit stick or skate, even if only at the last second. If a shot did get through, Chris Osgood made the save.
Late in the period, Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, and Tomas Holmstrom wrought havoc in the Nashville zone, culminating in Datsyuk ringing a shot off the crossbar after forcing Ellis down and out.
Ellis was pulled with about a minute and a half remaining and Nashville put on a good amount of pressure, but as time wound down, it was evident that a comeback was not going to happen. Brian Rafalski finished it off when he pulled down a shoot-in attempt up the middle and put in the empty net from 134 feet.
The Nashville crowd cheered the Predators all through the period, down to the buzzer, and through the handshake. Regardless of the reality of the lack of support for the Predators state-wide, there is no doubt that the folks at the Sommet Center are high on their team.
Darren Helm and Dallas Drake both had strong games. Helm will be pushed out when Kirk Maltby (hamstring) returns, but he’s a great guy to have waiting on the sidelines in case of injury. Drake, as the NBC crew says, just needs to fine-tune his radar and he’ll be laying people out left and right.
The usual suspects, Holmstrom, Datsyuk, and Zetterberg, looked good. I thought Brad Stuart looked as good as he has since returning from his injury. Brian Rafalski finally looks like a playoff veteran. Niklas Kronwall had another big open ice hit. His reputation is developing as he starts playing like he did in Grand Rapids.
The Wings escaped the first round in good shape: no major injuries, no massive travel miles, and no Game 7. They also seem to be hitting their stride and should be ready to handle whoever gets thrown at them.
Links
Update (12:17 PM): Here’s the game winner:
Look for Filppula’s reaction to the goal on the long view replay. - Matt
The Wings got something of the statement game they were looking for last night, though you wouldn’t know it by the score. By a rough estimation, they controled the puck for 50 minutes of regulation in Game 5 and peppered Dan Ellis with 54 shots.
The game wasn’t perfect, however.
Some thoughts:
… The Wings had the strong start we were looking for, though they only managed to put one of 17 first period shots past Ellis.
… Valtteri Filppula’s goal at 4:20 of the first kicked off a strong game for the young Finn. He was one of the three heroes of the overtime period with his great backchecking leading to the turnover that started Johan Franzen’s breakaway.
… The Wings needed composure last night and they had it. They could have easily been devastated after Radek Bonk scored at 19:16 of the third, but they kept their heads up and looked determined to pull out a win, though there was no hiding the disappointment in Henrik Zetterberg’s voice during the third intermission.
… Speaking of disappointment, it was also evident in Ken Daniels’ voice when he made the call on the Bonk goal. I obviously can’t blame him. That came as a shock, though there was little the Wings could do about it. The Predators saw their moment and pounced. It was exactly what I was afraid of all game.
… I give Nashville credit for keeping their celebration low-key on the tying goal. They obviously realized how fortunate they were to be in that position at all, having had their rear ends handed to them up and down the ice all night.
… Chris Osgood only faced 21 shots. A number of them were quality scoring chances, however, and he really came up big. For all the criticisms leveled at him over the years, you can see how Wings fans have embraced him like they’ve never come to embrace Dominik Hasek. The “Ozzie! Ozzie!” chant went up more than a few times last night.
As a fan who spent most of the game in a state of high tension, seeing Osgood’s calm confidence as he turned aside the puck definitely helped.
… I hope this round is enough to quiet the Pavel Datsyuk doubters out there. He’s was great again last night, even though he was kept off the scoreboard. Henrik Zetterberg has been less so, but still solid.
… Niklas Kronwall is going to be a real force for years to come if he can stay healthy.
… Obviously, the big concern coming out of this game is the fact that the Wings couldn’t get a better scoring average, despite the fact that the Predators were without three of their top centers (Jason Arnott, David Legwand, and Scott Nichol).
A good 20 of those 54 shots (if not more) were long and unscreened. Obviously, a long shot is better than no shot, but I’d definitely like to see in increase in the quality of scoring chances in Game 6.
… The Predators deserve credit for keeping the Wings away from the net as much as they did. Ellis, however, is the real hero of the game for Nashville. His tendency to give up juicy rebounds was not nearly as evident last night as it has been in other games. Had it been, the result may have been different. As it was, however, he made the first save and generally held onto the puck.
… The Wings will need to find a way to get the puck in the net more often Sunday. It’s not going to be an easy game. The Predators, though they took a thrashing so far as puck possession and shots are concerned, have plenty of confidence in their ability to steal a game, even with the Wings playing their style to a “t.”
They are in the driver’s seat again, but if anything, this series has shown that having the wheel doesn’t mean much if you don’t fight to keep it. Game 6 will be interesting.
Links
Update (4:30 PM): The answer to my question below about the pairings, via MacLeod:
Babcock said that he split Rafalski and Lidstrom on the road. He wanted a puck-moving defenseman — Rafalski — to play when Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg were on the ice and a stopper — Lidstrom — on the ice whenever Nashville’s top line of Jason Arnott, Martin Erat and Alexander Radulov were on the ice.
Ah.
Well, with the Wings having the last change tomorrow night, Nick and Rafi will be reunited. - Matt
Update (1:22 PM): The Forchecker analyzes the faceoff statistics in this series. - Matt
Update (11:40 AM): One other thing I wanted to say: why did Babcock screw with the top four defensemen?
I see no reason to disrupt the two top units given the chemistry that has developed between Nick Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski and between Niklas Kronwall and Brad Stuart. I have to wonder if that wasn’t a major contributing factor in the Wings’ horrible start last night.
The insertion of Brett Lebda in the lineup should have changed nothing but the third pairing. - Matt
Update (11:29 AM): George Malik looks at the question of the Game 5 starter here. His conclusion: start Osgood, but that’s not the solution to the problem. This is a team-wide issue (with the exception of Pavel Datsyuk, Nick Lidstrom, and Tomas Holmstrom). - Matt
The Nashville Predators tied up “Series E” with the Detroit Red Wings last night as they skated to a 3-2 win at home.
Some thoughts on the game:
… I’m going to be hyperbolic and say that the first period and first half or so of the second period were among the biggest letdowns I remember as a fan. Nothing I saw this season prepared me for that. The slump in February at least could be attributed to injuries. Last night, all the power of the Red Wings roster was assembled and they couldn’t get it done. Instead, they looked like a bunch of guys in a pre-season game.
Even with their improved play toward the end of the period, I went into the third with my confidence in the team at a low point. They looked nothing like the team that ripped apart the League in the regular season.
… Pulling Dominik Hasek was absolutely the right decision. He wasn’t outright awful, but it’s clear that things are not going his way. That third Nashville goal was a backbreaker and the responsibility for that one rests on his Dom’s shoulders. It just clean beat him.
Osgood came in and slowly restored my confidence in the goaltending. You could see the team develop confidence as well. Without Osgood, that third period never would have happened and the Wings would have nothing to build on going into Game 5.
I don’t know who I’d like to see Friday night. Dom has a history of rebounding strong from bad games, but that may just be beyond him now. Osgood’s calm and poise, on the other hand, seemed to spread through the team on some level, so it wouldn’t surprise me if he got the nod.
… I have to say that Trotz and Poile’s lobbying has paid off in spades for the Predators. The officials pretty much gave them free rein last night. How many times was a Red Wing hauled to the ice, boarded, or tied up with no call?
Bill McCreary officiated with a chip on his shoulder, as evidenced by his ridiculous spazz-out on Tomas Holmstrom at the end of the first period: a whistle and “GET THE F— IN THERE!!!” when Holmstrom dared to ask about the call. He and the linesmen also micromanaged the face-off circle to the point where it seemed like nary a faceoff went by that a center wasn’t thrown out.
So the officiating sucked and has since Trotz and Poile whined about it, but that’s not the reason the Wings lost. The blown calls could have been overcome, but they couldn’t find a way to do it.
… One thing I hope we hear about again happened just before Chelios’ 15:31 interference penalty. With the two sides grinding the puck out along the boards, Kris Draper fell down. Jordin Tootoo then saw fit to step on Draper’s back in order to get to his other side. It seems to me that something’s wrong with that.
… I’m cautiously hopeful about Game 5. The Wings showed in the third period last night that they aren’t collapsing completely. Make no mistake about it, however, the Predators are now in the driver’s seat.
This happened in 2004 and the Wings pulled out wins in Games 5 and 6 to eliminated the Predators. They have it in them to do that again. It’s just a question of whether or not they will dig deep enough to take the wheel back from Nashville.
… For a better description of the game’s events, see Christy’s liveblog. Dave also has a look at the game.
