Now that was a homecoming.
It wasn’t perfect, at times it wasn’t pretty, but in the end, it was a pretty good outcome for the Detroit Red Wings - a solid 6-3 victory over the reigning Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins Saturday at Joe Louis in the opener of a three-game homestand.
For a team that was a disappointing 1-3-2 in their previous six home games, it was a promising beginning.
“Yeah it’s a big win,… Detroit captain Henrik Zetterberg said. “I thought overall we played good. Once again it was a little sloppy at times.
“We’ve still got to get that better but overall it was a good win.…
With division rivals Montreal (Monday) and Boston (Wednesday) due in town later this week, the Wings know these will be key games if they entertain any hope at all of re-entering the playoff chase.
“I thought there was parts of the game we played really well,… Detroit coach Jeff Blashill said. “I thought for large parts of the first we played really well but I thought we gave them chances that we don’t need to give. Against those types of transition teams - we face three in a row now - you’ve just got to be ultra smart. You’ve got to take what’s given and you can’t force plays.
“Now with that said, some of the plays that we made tonight resulted in goals so there’s always a give and take to making plays. I’d say the No. 1 thing, I thought our compete level was real high.…
There was a lot for Detroit to like about this game. The Wings rallied from 2-0 and 3-2 deficits, outscoring Pittsburgh 3-0 in the third period. Gustav Nyquist scored for the second straight game. With Detroit ahead 4-3, the team’s much-maligned power play tallied the key insurance marker.
“We battled hard,… Nyquist said. “That was a huge goal at the end of the second for us, tying it up, (Frans) Nielsen there, 3-3. And the PP comes through and gets the extra goal. I think that was a big moment, too. But there’s still lots of things we can work on.…
That was a factor all of the Wings seemed to be emphasizing after the win, that its value can only be measured by how they proceed beyond this game. Since a six-game winning streak from Oct. 17-27, the Wings have only managed to win back-to-back games three times.
“The puck went in but we can’t we can’t get ahead of ourselves, either,… Zetterberg said. “It was one game. It was two points. We’ve got to do it again Monday.
“So we’re happy that we won but we’ve got to get back to work tomorrow and keep doing it.…
Blashill was another who hammered away at this point of order.
“It’s big, but it’s only big if we make it big on Monday and it’s only big if we make it big moving forward,… Blashill said. “We need wins at home, we need wins on the road. And to get that we need great process but we need wins. It’s a good win, but let’s learn from it, let’s get better tomorrow and let’s come Monday ready to win a hockey game.
“I think we’ve got to come Monday and play excellent against a team that’s been one of the better teams in the league most of the year. We’re going to have to play excellent and we’re going to have to try to find a way to win, and as you build wins, then you can build momentum.…
Highlight Reel Tally Andreas Athanasiou tallied what proved to be the game winner less than two minutes into the third period, corralling the puck behind his own net and literally going end to end to register an unassisted goal.
“He has that skill and he has that speed,… Zetterberg said. “He’s been close before and it was a really nice finish on this one.…
Athanasiou seemed to take a matter of fact approach to his highlight reel tally.
“I picked up the puck and saw some open ice, so I just took the open ice and coming over the blue line I saw it was a one-on-one,… Athanasiou said. “I made a move and it worked out.…
Home Cooking Seeing his first home-ice action of his NHL career, Detroit rookie goalie Jared Coreau blocked 28 shots and rebounded from allowing a Kris Letang goal 27 seconds after the opening faceoff.
“Yeah, it feels good,… Coreau said. “Also playing at home it was really nice. I waited a long time to play here and I’m glad I got a chance before we move rinks next year.
“You can definitely tell the rivalry with those two Stanley Cup Finals that they had back-to-back (in 2007-08 and 2008-09). The crowd was crazy.
“It was good energy and it was exciting to play here.…
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