Magic Man Drops the Magic Number to 2

Despite the recent struggled the Red Wings entered Tuesday with a chance to clinch a playoff spot for the 24th consecutive season. A Red Wings win combined with a Pittsburgh regulation win would seal the deal. The chances looked good as both teams jumped out to leads. However both Detroit and Pittsburgh saw some turmoil as Pittsburgh would surrender 4 unanswered goals to eventually lose in OT, 4-3. Meanwhile in the motor city the Red Wings fell behind 2-1 entering the third period. Thankfully the Wings' stars came to play and did just enough to earn the victory and drop the magic number to only 2.

The Hurricanes started strong as they looked to make up for a poor effort in Buffalo, however Detroit’s defending was excellent early on. After surviving the initial surge by Carolina the Red Wings began to take over and dictate the play. With a little over 5 minutes left Sheahan got a great chance in front but Khudobin stood tall and as a result, the teams headed into the 1^st scoreless.

Big opportunity to start the 2nd as Michael Jordan takes a delay of game penalty just a minute in. With the pressure mounting the Red Wings’ captain took control. After a battle in the corner Weiss threw a cross ice pass to Zetterberg who broke his slump with a beautiful move to the backhand. It was Hank’s first goal since March 15^th  and it gave the Wings a huge 1-0 lead. Just 3 minutes later Carolina would get their chance on the man advantage but the Wings upped the aggressiveness to maintain their advantage. Despite the Wings’ domination a bad turnover created a scramble in front that left Howard helpless as Gerbe tied the score at 1-1. The goal seemed to jump start the Canes and just three minutes later it paid dividends. A rebound off a deflected shot came right out into the slot to an uncovered Chris Terry who gave the Canes a 2-1 lead heading into the final frame.

Just two minutes in the Wings got the break we were all looking for. Nyquist took the pass after trailing the rush and fired one through Khudobin to tie the score at 2-2. After 10 minutes of playoff level stress the Euro twins once again came to our rescue. Zetterberg’s puck protection allowed him to throw a pass to Datsyuk who quickly kicked the puck up to his blade to put it in and give the Wings a 3-2 lead with 8:35 left to play. The Canes put the full court press on to try and tie the game, pulling the goalie with 1:45 left to play. Despite a few frightful moments, Jimmy Howard closed the door and the Red Wings escaped with a massive victory.

Pittsburgh's collapses was devastating but the Red Wings still find themselves in very solid ground with two games left to play. With New York's win tonight it looks more likely that Ottawa may be able to run the table and finish with wins in New York and Philadelphia. However the Wings still control their future. Any combination of two points will get the Wings into the playoffs. The team did what they needed to tonight, lets hope they can finish the job.