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It's games like this that cost playoff spots |
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When the Detroit Red Wings miss the Stanley Cup playoffs again this spring, it will be because of games like this one.
Up 3-1 on the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday with seven minutes left in the third period, the Wings blew it, losing 4-3 in overtime.
Yes, Wings coach Jeff Blashill was right. The bottom line is they didn’t deserve to win.
“We didn’t play good enough from the start, so we got in my opinion one more point than we deserved,” Blashill said. “I thought they outskated us the whole game. Eventually over the course of 60 minutes it caught up to us and they were able to tie it.
“It’s magnified when you’re up by two with that little time to play. You want to get it home and steal that game. We were in position to steal the game but in the end if you don’t play well enough for 60 minutes you leave yourself subject to that and really we were lucky to get a point.”
Colorado’s advantage on the shot clock (37-24) was also indicative of the Avalanche’s edge in zone time and puck possession.
Yes, they were the better team, but that ultimately is immaterial. Just as the top pitchers in baseball find a way to be successful when they don’t have their best stuff at their disposal, the good teams find a way to nail the lid tight on nights where they get ahead minus their A game.
You think the Wings of a decade ago would have allowed this one to slip from their grasp? Not a chance. But teams like the current Wings, for whom every point is vital to survival, this was one they absolutely will regret letting get away from them.
“It’s not a good feeling,” forward Justin Abdelkader said. “We’ve got to find a way to close these games out.”
What’s even more inexcusable is that the Avalanche were playing their second game in as many nights, and were 1-3 in that scenario coming into this one. They should have proven to be easy pickings, but the Wings got away from the speed game that’s proven so effective for them of late.
“We should be fresh coming in the first period and have a lot of jump,” Abdelkader said. “That’s what our game plan was, to try to get on them.
“We just spent a lot of time in our D-zone and weren’t quick enough on pucks and they started grinding us there and getting pucks to the points and on net. We just didn’t play quick enough.”
DeKeyser Back
Defenseman Danny DeKeyser (ankle) returned to action for the first time since Oct. 10 and gave a decent accounting considering he’d missed 17 games.
“I thought DK played pretty good,” Blashill said. “He’d been off for a long time now. I think he’ll keep getting better and better, but I thought he played pretty good.”
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