Gorilla Crouch

There’s something about two goal deficits that bring out the best in the Red Wings. And there’s something about those comebacks that makes Ron Wilson’s head explode. So it was pretty much good times all around last night when the Red Wings overcame a 2-0 deficit to knock off the San Jose Sharks 3-2 last night in overtime. The win evened the series at 2 wins apiece.

Tomas Holmstrom made an immediate impact upon his return, as he potted a power play goal at the 19:55 mark of the second period. Robert Lang scored another key goal in the playoffs when he knotted the score at 2 with 34 seconds remaining in regulation. But Mathieu Schneider, who has struggled to get his shot through from the point, got a good bounce on his shot that was redirected past Evgeni Nabakov at the 16:04 mark of overtime to give the Red Wings the win. The final tally was a power play goal with Craig Rivet in the penalty box.

The Red Wings were facing an improbable task if they were to drop the game and fall behind 3-1. They responded by playing like a desperate team. The breaks didn’t go their way early, but Dominik Hasek and his teammates kept the Sharks off the board over the final 47:57 of play, when allowing a goal would have in all likelihood put the game out of reach.

Mike Babcock expected to head back to Joe Louis with the series tied, but he thought the team would win Game 3. He also mentioned another key attribute Homer provides to the Red Wings:

Helene St. James - Detroit Free Press

“I actually expected to win the other night, but I thought we’d be coming home 2-2,” Wings coach Mike Babcock said. “They’re a real good team, we’re a real good team, and that’s why it’s so hard in the games to control the game.”
…
The Wings had their best chance to gain the early lead on a power play late in the first period. Nabokov had to be lightning quick, forced in quick succession to make saves on Schneider, Zetterberg, twice in a row on Lidstrom, and a short slap shot by Zetterberg.

“We had (the puck) the whole time and we shot it and shot it until our arms fell off,” Babcock said. “That’s Homer getting you the puck back. That was crucial for us.”

So the good sign for the Red Wings - well, besides the fact they’ve tied the series- is that two of their key contributors made major contributions last night. Homer was finally able to make his mark on this series and Schneider got off the schneid and broke through. Robert Lang has been up and down this season but he was also Detroit’s leading scorer in the previous two playoffs. So getting another key goal from him is another great sign for the Red Wings. Helene St. James reported in the article I linked above that Nick Lidstrom spoke with Lang briefly before the game and told him to stay positive and to work hard and things will turn his way.

Many Red Wings fans worried about playing San Jose in the playoffs, but after 4 games there is no reason to doubt that Detroit belongs on the same ice as San Jose. It’s been a highly competitive series and it is still any team’s series. When Detroit overcame a 2 goal deficit in Game 2 and then scored first in Game 3 it looked like the series might have tilted in their favor. Obviously San Jose went on to win Game 3. But with last night’s win, sparked by Detroit getting goals from several key players, and with 2 of the final 3 games set to be played in Detroit, perhaps last night’s win will prove to be a big momentum shift that turns the tide Detroit’s way.

Mathieu Schneider NHL Playoffs Red Wings Robert Lang San Jose Sharks Tomas Holmstrom

May 3rd, 2007
Categories: Red Wings . Author: Dave

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