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| Draper, Holmstrom give Red Wings 2-0 series lead DETROIT 4, NASHVILLE 2 |
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DETROIT (Ticker) -- Recognizing his team was in trouble, Detroit Red Wings coach Mike Babcock knew he had to do something to turn the tide. His decision proved to be the perfect one. Kris Draper snapped a tie five minutes into the second period as the Red Wings took control of their Western Conference quarterfinal series with the Nashville Predators by posting a 4-2 victory in Game Two on Saturday. Tomas Holmstrom added an insurance tally midway through the third for the Red Wings, who have a two-games-to-none lead in the series. Darren McCarty and captain Nicklas Lidstrom also scored and Holmstrom added an assist for the Red Wings, while Dominik Hasek made 24 saves - including 15 in the first period. "Dom, what can you say?" Detroit defenseman Chris Chelios asked. "He kept us in the game (early). We can't kid ourselves." "Dom is the story," Babcock added. "We turned the puck over in the first period, (gave up) more chances than we would give up in five games. Dom was fantastic." Alexander Radulov and Jordin Tootoo tallied for Nashville, which fell to 0-9 all time in road playoff games. Dan Ellis turned aside 34 shots for the Predators, who host Game Three on Monday. "We proved that we can play with them," Nashville's Radek Bonk said. "Now we have home-ice advantage and we have to take advantage of it." "It's going to be loud in there," Predators captain Jason Arnott said of the fans at the Sommet Center. "They've been loud all season long for us. They've been behind us when we were down. We're down again, and I'm sure it's going to be extra loud." After Nashville erased a 2-0 deficit with a pair of quick goals early in the second period and nearly moved ahead, Babcock called a timeout to rally his troops. The Red Wings responded positively, scoring shortly thereafter and never looking back. "'Let's settle down and play with poise,'" Babcock said in his speech during the timeout. "We've got a smart crew. We just thought it was time to get back on track. The game was in our control, and suddenly, it was in their control. When momentum doesn't go your way, win faceoffs, get the puck and get the momentum back." "It was a great decision because right after that, we scored the goal," Hasek said. "We scored the third one and they never came back." Just 14 seconds after the brief break, Draper made a pass attempt from the left faceoff circle that hit the skate of Predators blue-liner Greg Zanon and went into the net exactly five minutes into the period for a 3-2 edge. "Huds (Jiri Hudler) came across and I just kept coming," Draper said. "I kind of got crossed up and (passed) it, and it went in anyway." "It was just an unfortunate bounce," Ellis said. "You get the momentum back, you get two goals and then you get a fluke play. It goes off a guy's skate and trickles in. You can't do much about it. Z is doing all he can to stop the play." Holmstrom believed Draper's goal was the most important one of the game. "The biggest goal was the third one," Holmstrom said. "They got two fast goals, but we were able to come back with an even bigger goal. We needed to settle down a little bit, and that's what we did and came back with a huge, dirty goal." Babcock was pleased with the results after calling the timeout but wished he had used it sooner. "It worked out well," he said. "Why didn't I call it just before they had two pokes that went in the net? ... We settled down after that, but in retrospect, it was one shift late." Detroit remained in control and doubled its lead as Holmstrom netted his 33rd career playoff tally midway through the third. Ellis stopped Pavel Datsyuk's shot from the left circle and batted away the rebound. But the puck went right to Holmstrom, who fired it into a vacant net at 10:03 for a 4-2 bulge. McCarty opened the scoring just 2:26 into the first period, putting in the rebound of Dallas Drake's shot for his first postseason goal since April 25, 2006 with Calgary. "You just want to do what you can with the time you get and make it positive for the team," said McCarty, who returned to Detroit as a free agent on February 25. "That's what playoffs are all about - getting those timely goals from the guys you don't expect. I hadn't scored a goal in a (really) long time, since the playoffs in '06 with Calgary. It's nice to score a goal." "It was a thrill for him," Babcock said. "You can't help but cheer for people that are trying to get their life back on track, especially with a guy like that who has worked so hard and is one of the favorite sons of Detroit." Long-time teammate Draper also was happy for McCarty. "I had a huge smile on my face," Draper said. "The first thing he saw when he came back to the bench and was high-fiving everybody was all of my teeth." "It's funny because I think the first person I looked at in '97 when I scored that goal (to clinch the Stanley Cup championship) was Drapes on the bench," McCarty said. "He had this big smile. And coming to the bench (Saturday), he had the big smile, too. We had a little moment there. It was good." Hasek preserved the slim lead by making 15 saves in the period, including a stellar stop on J.P. Dumont from alone in the low slot midway through the session. "I guess that's what six Vezina (Trophies) can do for you," Draper said of Hasek's performance. "He was great. ... That's what you need - some composure and your goalie to make some good saves." Lidstrom doubled Detroit's lead 39 seconds into the second with some help from Holmstrom. During a power play, the five-time Norris Trophy winner one-timed a shot from the right point that sailed past Ellis, with Holmstrom stationed directly in front of the goaltender. Predators coach Barry Trotz believed Holmstrom should have been called for goaltender interference on the play, stating the Swede's skates were in the crease. "When I really watched it in review, his feet were in the blue, and according to the rules, you can't be in the blue," Trotz said. "He was conveniently in the blue. The explanation was, they were about to blow the whistle. That was a bail-out." However, the Red Wings were unable to protect the advantage as the Predators scored twice in an 11-second span to tie the contest. While on a man advantage, Martin Erat dumped the puck into the right corner, and Hasek went behind his net to make a play. However, the puck took an odd bounce and went in front, where Radulov deposited it into the vacant net at 2:19 for his fourth goal in six career playoff games. After the ensuing faceoff, Detroit coughed up the puck in the neutral zone and defenseman Andreas Lilja was unable to control it in the right circle. Tootoo gained possession and fired it between the pads of Hasek at 2:30 to forge a tie. "First one, it was my fault. I made the wrong decision," Hasek said. "I don't know why. I don't think I give up the same goal the whole season. I was very upset and, after a few seconds, they scored the second one. But it was a nice shot, through my five-hole." It was the second goal of the series for Tootoo, who entered the quarterfinals without a tally in 12 previous career playoff games. With momentum clearly on its side, Nashville nearly took its first lead of the series just over two minutes later. But in a span of less than five seconds, defenseman Ryan Suter and Bonk both hit the left goalpost. "We got a couple of quick goals to tie it up and the next shift, we hit two posts," Bonk said. "It was frustrating, but that's the way it goes sometimes." Chelios appeared in his 248th career postseason contest, passing Hall of Fame goaltender Patrick Roy for first place on the all-time list. |
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