Red Wings Halt the Storm, Take 2-1 Series Lead

I’ve been a little busy lately and didn’t have time to do write up after the game so I figured I’d just write down my thoughts as the game proceeds. Game 3 is always a turning point; with the Joe sure to be rocking this is a big opportunity for the Wings to take a step towards pulling the upset.

17:00 Wings are dominate early, a number of good chances but a big improvement in the team’s energy and offensive game.

15:00 I like Ferraro a lot, I don’t see any way that he stays with the team next season but some team will be lucky to have him.

14:30 Wings really need to do a better job on keeping the dump ins away from Bishop, his puck handling ability gives Tampa ‘s D an extra second on the breakout.

13:00 This game is a great example of why Babcock always mentions the team’s strength on the puck. Not only does O zone possession create opportunities, Tampa’s players are stuck in the defensive zone so they are forced to change as soon as they breakout.

11:14 RED WINGS SCORE. Datsyuk attacks the blue line with speed forcing the Tampa D back before dropping it to Tatar at the line. With acres of open space Tatar winds up a slap shot that hits Datsyuk and deflects by Bishop for a 1-0 lead.

8:20 After an Ericsson penalty the Wings do a solid job of staying in the shooting lanes. I still don’t understand Tampa’s struggles on the PP, there is no reason they should be this poor. Good to see the Wings have returned to their aggressive forecheck that made them one of the best PK units early in the year.

6:02 Wings had a short PP but Tampa’s aggressive play prevent the Wings from getting anything set up. After only about 30 seconds Zetterberg is called for pulling down Killorn on what looked like a soft call.

2:50 NBCSN talking about Helm and Abby becoming top 6 players. The biggest difference is the change in mindset from the defensive mindset they possessed early in their career to the offensive mindset you need to create chances in the NHL. This change only comes from confidence that occurs after they recognize they can make plays without fear.

0:00 Great period by the Wings. Tampa had their chances late but Detroit did a much better job of spending time in Tampa’ end. The Wings are never going to dominate Tampa but with more periods like that Detroit can swing the series.

1^st Intermission: NBCSN doing a good job of showing the aggressiveness of Tampa’s D. If the Wings are aware defensively they will have a number of opportunities going the other way, if not, Tampa will score goals by the bunches.

18:24 Zid sends on off the bar after Dastyuk beats his man out of the corner. Its incredible how good he is despite his age. We were prepared for his decline years ago and he keeps humming along.

16:38 Sheahan’s line has a big shift against Tampa’s third line. I think this matchup will decide the series. Both teams best players will get their chances, whichever team gets more out of their 3^rd unit will have the advantage

13:04 Dekeyser had a penalty for delay of game that forced the Wings to kill off a 5-3. This time Tampa’s systems were a huge help as they set up with 2 men behind the goal line. Without neither players a scoring threat the Wings were easily able to cover the other 3 players.

8:35 Wings get a couple chances off the rush although TB is still controlling possession time. Finally, a rush pays dividends as Coburn goes to the box for interference.

7:43 After a number of good looks by Tatar a bad pass gives Killorn a break and Kronwall is forced to haul him down to prevent a breakaway. Saw some questions of if it should be a penalty shot but in the playoffs it has to be pretty blatant for that to happen.

1:12 Wings just avoid disaster as a backdoor pass goes between Johnson’s feet. Its been a game of bounces so far, Wings got one and Tampa hasn’t gotten any so far.

2^nd Intermission: With so many PP it was hard for either team to get into a real flow as a result there was only 9 shots total at even strength. Detroit is playing a good game making it tough on the Bolts, something many people did not expect coming into the series. Hopefully they keep the pressure up and do not fall back into a defensive shell in the third.

15:23 Wings kill off another penalty as Tatar went to the box for holding. So far so good but they are really flirting with death giving these skilled players this many opportunities.

14:48 Wings get a chance on the PP they really need to put this game away now and not give Tampa a chance.

14:00 Tampa is quick to overload the puck carrier on the PK the Wings need to do a better job of supporting the puck and using a cross ice pass to take advantage of the open ice.

13:18 RED WINGS SCORE A great zone entry by the Wings and some nice passing beats Tampa’s overload and Sheahan is left alone in front to make it 2-0 Wings.

11:30 Brian Boyle gets a shorthanded breakaway after Kronwall stupidly pinches in on a loose puck but Mrazek is there to make the play. After the stop Paquette trips up Mrazek so Abby goes after him. Babcock is livid that Paquette didn’t get an extra penalty for the trip.

8:00 So far very impressed with the Wings aggressiveness. They are not content to sit back and let Tampa fire away they are still getting pucks in deep and getting in one the forecheck.

4:00 Incredibly smart play by Tatar. He exits the zone and sees his teammates changing so decides to cycle back into his own zone rather than dumping it in and giving Tampa the puck back without a forecheck.

2:00 With only minutes left in a close playoff game the 4^th line is generating shots on net. This is exactly what you want out of this unit. Tampa call timeout and they pull Bishop with 90 seconds remaining.

0:49 After the Wings get a little luck with some shots going wide and some great saves by Petr, Glendening scores in the empty net from his own blue and Journey plays at the Joe.

This was the blueprint of how the Red Wings need to play if they hope to win this series. The team got in on the forecheck and locked down the neutral zone to negate some of Tampa’s speed and skill. As a result they were able to play Tampa to a draw at even strength possession wise with a little luck giving them a 1-0 advantage. After keeping Tampa close at evens the Wings next goal is to dominate special teams and they did tonight going 1 for 4 on the PP and a perfect 6 for 6 on the PK. This was an excellent effort and two more games like that will punch the team's ticket for Montreal.