Posted by E.J. Hradek
In Game 1 of the Western Conference finals/Original Six matchup between Detroit and Chicago, experience triumphed over youth. In sports, that seems to happen. If the Hawks are smart (and they seem to be), they'll be looking to apply any lessons learned in Game 2. We'll see.
For now, here are five things that caught my eye in the series opener:
1. The Blackhawks had to be thrilled with their Game 1 start. In the first several minutes, the Hawks' speed really had the Wings on their heels. "They were way quicker than us early," Wings coach Mike Babcock admitted during a first-period interview with NBC rink-side reporter Pierre McGuire.
A minute into the game, Chicago rookie Kris Versteeg carried the puck from one end of the rink to the other, firing a high wrist shot off the cross bar behind Detroit goalie Chris Osgood. Usually, the Wings don't allow that much time and space. On subsequent shifts, the Hawks had the usually calm Wings defenders bobbling the puck. Detroit rookie defenseman Jonathan Ericsson seemed particularly rattled in the opening moments. Chicago's speed and quickness paid off at the 5:25 mark, when Adam Burish tapped a loose puck through the legs of an unsuspecting Osgood. The Hawks really couldn't have asked for more.
Then, just three minutes later, when the Blackhawks needed a timely stop to preserve the early lead, they didn't get it.
Detroit forward Daniel Cleary, a former first-round pick of the Hawks (13th overall, 1997), fired a wrist shot over the catching glove of Chicago goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin from just outside the left-wing circle. Khabibulin didn't seem to position himself well on the play, leaving a little too much room on the glove side. The tying goal definitely woke up the Wings. They followed up Cleary's tally with back-to-back strong shifts from their third and fourth lines. After a slow start, they were now engaged with their new task.
Khabibulin went on to make several big stops -- particularly on second period power-play chances by Johan Franzen and Henrik Zetterberg. The Russian-born stopper finished with 38 saves. Still, if he'd denied Cleary on that stoppable chance, the Hawks might have been able to build on their lead. As a playoff veteran and Cup winner, Khabibulin knows the importance of the timely save. I am sure he wants that one back.
2. The defending champs definitely weren't thrilled with an unusually messy game. "Too many turnovers," Osgood said in a postgame interview.
"We turned it over too much," Cleary added. "The team that turns it over the most is going to lose."
The Wings were tagged with 11 turnovers to only one for the visitors. Defensemen Niklas Kronwall and Ericsson were each ticketed with a pair of giveaways. Chicago's stretch game (having wider gaps between their defensemen and forwards) might have caused some of the problems. That kind of attack will afford an opponent some chances in transition. The Wings might have been a bit too eager in their counterattack. Also, I think the Hawks' speed had a bit to do with it. They have the ability to make the Wings rush. When you rush, you make mistakes.
3. In Game 1, Detroit's marquee players had the decided edge over Chicago's stars. Zetterberg had a goal and an assist, running his consecutive point-scoring streak to eight games, to go along with a plus-3 rating in 24 shifts (19:29 minutes). Datsyuk didn't score, but he continued to compete hard in all three zones, finishing a plus-1 in 20:21 minutes.
Meanwhile, the club's playoff monster, Franzen, continued to maul opponents. He had a goal, two assists and two hits, finishing a plus-3 in just 16:50 minutes. How smart were the Wings to re-sign the "Mule" before the playoffs? With a second straight impressive spring, Franzen would have been able to name his own price on the free-agent market. There isn't much I can add about GM Ken Holland and his management group. They are the best in the business.
On the flip side, the Hawks' stars had a day to forget. Babcock opted to match Zetterberg's line and top defensive pairing of Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski against Chicago's Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. In Game 1, it was advantage Red Wings.
For most of the game, Hawks coach Joel Quenneville had Toews between right winger Kane and left winger Troy Brouwer. The trio finished a combined minus-8. Apparently, Quenneville wasn't thrilled by the work of his dynamic duo. How else can you explain the fact that six Hawks forwards finished with more minutes played than either Toews or Kane?
In Game 2, the two sophomore stars have to play more and play better. Quenneville might opt to split them up. He has done that at different times throughout the season. I figure it makes sense to get at least one of them away from Zetterberg and Lidstrom. Your move, Coach Q.
4. Babcock must enjoy having veteran center Kris Draper back on his bench. The 37-year-old pivot missed the club's first 10 playoff games due to injury before returning for Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals against Anaheim. Even for an experienced hand like Draper, I imagine it had to be tough to jump into such an intense situation against the hardened Ducks.
On Sunday afternoon, Draper showed his versatility, playing both center and wing. Babcock didn't hesitate to throw him over the boards with different combinations as he looked to preserve the lead in the final minutes of regulation. Draper was particularly sharp in the faceoff circle, winning nine of 11 draws and seven of nine faceoffs against Dave Bolland and Burish.
In a somewhat related faceoff note, Datsyuk had an interesting afternoon in the circle. In the defensive zone, where you never want to get beat, he was a perfect 5-for-5. At the other end, in the offensive zone, where you'd really like to win them, he was a surprisingly bad 0-for-6, losing five to Bolland. I have to figure he's happy the numbers weren't reversed; a good center never wants to lose a defensive-zone draw.
5. If you were watching the broadcast, you probably gasped like I did when you saw the replay of Ben Eager's skate flash across teammate Burish's neck midway through the second period. The play was scarily reminiscent of the incident that occurred last season when Panthers winger Richard Zednik had his throat accidently slashed by the skate of then-teammate Olli Jokinen. On that occasion, Zednik suffered a significant gash that could have cost him his life had it not been for the timely work of the medical staff in Buffalo.
In Sunday's case, Burish appeared to receive a slight cut, but never missed a shift. Still, it was truly frightening to watch. I can't help but think that one day somebody won't be so fortunate. I really hope I'm wrong about that.
ESPN.com Stanley Cup playoffs blog
