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Red Wings edge the Sharks in a defensive battle |
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The Detroit Red Wings came away with two points and have to feel pretty good about the 2-1 shootout win in San Jose. Although this was a low scoring affair the game didn’t lack chances.
“It was really big coming back after we were down, we were happy to get the extra point” commented Damien Brunner afterwards.
Jonas Gustavsson got his first start as a Red Wing tonight and did enough to get the job done. He let out some big rebounds and got some help from the posts but at the end of the night he was the victor.
Damien Brunner scored the only goal in the shootout for either team making the difference in this one goal game.
There were two golden chances that the Sharks weren’t able to capitalize on and they both were opportunities where the team captain Joe Thornton had the puck on his stick. Joe tried to pass on both odd man rushes and he wishes he had them back.
Thornton had little to say when asked if he felt if he missed an opportunity after the game.
“Yeah it’s going to happen. I’m a passer.”
Ryane Clowe suited up after serving a two game suspension. He went to the net hard and parked himself in front of the blue paint every chance he could but his first goal of the season still eludes him.
Clowe had a partial break away in the first period and got a decent shot off.
“The first period I had a partial break and I just missed. I think I pushed it (the puck) too far ahead. Either way that’s a move I like to do” was how Clowe described his best scoring chance of the game.
The rivalry between the Sharks and the Red Wings has grown over the years and become a fan favorite in San Jose, and around the NHL. From Jamie Baker’s historic goal to eliminate Detroit in the spring of 1994 to the recent series victories the Sharks have enjoyed on their way to the Conference finals; this clash is in jeopardy of becoming less relevant.
Nothing is final, but if the NHL re-aligns the conferences the Red Wings will be in the east. It is where they belong and they want to be there for all the right reasons, but from a selfish point of view it will be unfortunate to only see Motown once a year here at the Tank.
The biggest issue for Detroit playing in the west is their television ratings. The ratings suffer dramatically when the Red Wings start time is 10 pm in the east. This affects the team on many levels and their desire to play the majority of games in their own time zone is certainly justified.
Like many of the Sharks games recently there was a lack of goals scored. However, unlike recent battles this game was still pretty exciting with near misses and some good scoring opportunities. The Sharks had a number of two on one breaks that they weren’t able to capitalize on before Logan Couture lit the lamp in the third period.
It seems that whenever these two teams get together they put on a show. It is as close to a guarantee as you can get in pro sports that when the Red Wings come to town the fans at HP Pavilion will be treated to a great hockey game.
The Red Wings played, and lost last night in LA by the score of 2-1. For the first half of the third period the Sharks carried the play and it looked as though playing two nights in a row was going to catch up to Detroit. They though found another wind and created a number of scoring chances in the dying minutes and were the better team in overtime.
Scoring details
1st period
No scoring
2nd period
No scoring
3rd period
SJ – 4:49 –EV – 39 L.Couture(8) – assists – 19 J.Thornton(16), 3 D.Murray(2)
DET – 6:21 –EV – 17 P.Eaves(1) – assists – 55 N.Kronwall(15), 52 J.Ericsson(7)
Overtime
No scoring
Shootout
Damien Brunner
Turning point
The turning point in this game was the failed two on one in the third period. They didn’t even get a shot on net out of it and everybody in the rink knew that from center ice on that the Shark’s captain was passing the puck.
Contenders & Pretenders
Contenders
Antti Niemi – was clutch in this game especially in the dying minutes of the third period where Detroit picked some pockets and had some golden chances to get the go ahead goal. He has been the Sharks most consistent player in this shortened season.
“There was a couple in the end, I kind of saw those coming” (referring to the chances at the end of the third period) said Niemi in the post-game interview.
“I anticipated them, I was yelling to our D so I was expecting them. They have the guys who can do it over there, Datsyuk and Zetterberg.”
Jonas Gustavsson – makes the list for getting a win in his first start as a Red Wing.
The Red Wings discipline – was great tonight by only taking one penalty and keeping the Sharks power play off the ice.
Pretenders
Joe Thornton – makes the list for…you guessed it not shooting the puck. Jumbo tried to feather a pass over to Havlat on a two on one in the second period and Havlat wasn’t able to connect so to try it a second time in the third period when he had all the time he needed to pick a corner; means a spot on the pretender’s list.
Martin Havlat – makes the list again for more missed scoring chances.
The Sharks prepare for the Nashville Predators on Saturday night and generating offense should be the focal point. The big guns aren’t firing for San Jose. It is time to shake things up and make one of them a healthy scratch. Let one of them watch the game from the press box. This tactic almost always affects the mentality of all the high paid talent and starts a fire under all their butts.
Keep your sticks on the ice,
Cam Gore
San Jose Sharks Blogger • 
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