Posted by E.J. Hradek
DETROIT -- Here are some quick notes from the Detroit Red Wings' 3-1 Game 1 victory over the Penguins at the Joe Louis Arena on Saturday night:
• Well, you just knew Wings rookie fourth-line center Justin Abdelkader would be a difference-maker in this game, right? Um, no, I didn't think so, either. After all, he had just two shifts in the first period. But there was Abdelkader, scoring a monster insurance goal at the 2:26 mark of the third period to give the Wings a 3-1 lead.
The former Michigan State star was able to bat his own rebound to the ice with his glove, then flip a shot into the far corner over Marc-Andre Fleury's blocker side. On the play, Pens center Jordan Staal, who was checking Abdelkader, lost the puck when the original shot caromed off Fleury's pads and up into the air. Abdelkader never lost sight of it and didn't make a mistake with the second chance.
If the Wings are going to get goals out of fourth-line kids who are playing only because of injuries elsewhere, this could be a shorter series than most expect.
• Late in the second period, after his team iced the puck and his guys on the ice (Sidney Crosby, Bill Guerin, Chris Kunitz, Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill) seemed a bit tired, Penguins coach Dan Bylsma made a smart move to call a timeout. At the time, the score was tied at 1. However, the best-laid plans of mice and coaches sometimes don't work out.
Off the defensive-zone draw on the right-wing side, Bill Guerin couldn't clear the puck after being pressured by Wings forward Johan Franzen. Detroit linemate Henrik Zetterberg picked off the errant clearing attempt and moved the puck back to Franzen, who fired a shot just wide off Fleury. Franzen followed the play to the net, grabbed up a loose puck behind the cage and flipped it back toward Fleury. The puck hit the goalie and trickled behind him to give the Wings a 2-1 lead with just 58 seconds left in the period. The Wings took the lead to the third period. In these playoffs, they're a perfect 10-0 in such circumstances.
• The teams exchanged dicey goals in the first period. The Wings opened the scoring at the 13:38 mark when defenseman Brad Stuart's shot from the left point caromed off the lively Joe Louis Arena dasher, hit Fleury in the leg and somehow slithered into the net. Stuart made a nice play at the point to keep the puck in the zone. It paid off for him with the fluky goal. Nearly five minutes later with 1:23 left in the period, Pens forward Ruslan Fedotenko tied the game by slipping an Evgeni Malkin rebound past Chris Osgood. On the play, Malkin rifled a slap shot right into Osgood, who seemed to have the puck, but he didn't. By the time he figured out where it was, Fedotenko was able to get to it and tie the game.
• The battle between superstars Henrik Zetterberg and Sidney Crosby is going to be a great one. The two ultra-competitors really dug in during a mid-first-period shift in the Wings' end. This is an area where last season's experience should really help No. 87. This go-round, Crosby knows all about Zetterberg's dogged nature.
When the puck came to the front of the net, the two men took a moment to get reacquainted physically. Later in the second period, Crosby and Zetterberg went stride-for-stride up the middle of the ice together. The Pens were on the rush. Crosby was looking to burst to an open spot to receive a pass. Against the Caps or Canes, he would have enjoyed plenty of room. In this case, Zetterberg was having none of it.
While Crosby can handle himself against anyone in the league, I'd look to get him away from Zetterberg when the series goes to Pittsburgh and the Pens have the last change. In Game 2, Bylsma might want to shuffle his lines a bit to get a little more support for Crosby, who is also dealing with the Wings' defensive pair of Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski.
• Osgood made a monster glove stop on a clean breakaway chance from Malkin early in the second period. Malkin picked up a loose puck at the far blue line and made a beeline toward Osgood. The Russian sniper looked to pick the top corner with a quick snap. He made a good shot, but Osgood managed to get a piece of it with his glove. If Malkin scores, the Pens have a 2-1 lead. Instead, the game remained tied. In this case, justice might have been served. Malkin created the terrific scoring chance by tripping Wings defenseman Niklas Kronwall at the blue line. There was no call on the play.
• Red Wings legends Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay received a huge ovation when they came out to drop the ceremonial first puck. For the record, Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom picked up the puck dropped by Lindsay, while Crosby grabbed the one dropped by Howe.
• The Red Wings have history on their side. Teams that win Game 1 of the Cup finals have gone on to capture the Cup in 54 of the 69 seasons since the league introduced the best-of-seven format in 1939. For the mathematically challenged (like me), that's a 78 percent success rate. That's a pretty significant number, but all is not lost for the Penguins. In 1991, the Pens dropped Game 1 to the Minnesota North Stars before rallying to win the series.
• If it's about Cup-winning experience, big advantage to the Red Wings. On their current roster, the Wings have 21 players with a combined 40 Cup rings. That's a lot of champagne. In the other dressing room, the Penguins have five players who have been part of a championship experience. Current Penguins forwards Craig Adams, Ruslan Fedotenko, Bill Guerin, Chris Kunitz and Petr Sykora each have earned one Cup.
• Referee Dennis LaRue and linesman Derek Amell each worked their first Stanley Cup finals game. LaRue was paired with veteran ref Paul Devorski, who brought 15 games of Cup finals experience to Game 1. Linesman Pierre Racicot called the lines with Amell. Racicot is working his third finals series in the past four years.
ESPN.com Stanley Cup playoffs blog
