There are myriad of reasons why the Detroit Red Wings are on the brink of eliminating the Tampa Bay Lightning from the Stanley Cup playoffs, but at the top of the list is the reality that Tampa Bay sniper Steven Stamkos, author of 43 regular-season goals, is without a tally through five games.
As they seek to end the Lightning’s season Monday at Joe Louis Arena, carrying a 3-2 series edge into Game 6 of the best-of-seven series, the Wings know it is essentially that they remain on point when it comes to keeping the stymie on Stamkos.
“We obviously recognize him and respect him and know how dangerous he is,… Detroit defenseman Kyle Quincey said. “He’s kind of target No. 1 with knowing where he is and taking away time and space, not just on him but the other two guys trying to get the puck to him as well.
“We’re happy that we’ve kept him off the goal-scoring sheet. If he gets going, we know we don’t want that. We’ll stick with our gameplan of making sure we know where he is.…
The notorious Stamkos one-timer, among the league’s biggest scoring threats, has proven a non-factor so far in the series, as the Wings continue to prevent Stamkos from setting up shop in the prime scoring areas.
“We see it on the highlights all the time,… Quincey said. “(Detroit goalie) Petr (Mrazek) knows it’s coming and we know it’s coming. We just try to force him to the outer sides of the rink.
“We give him the outside. When he’s shooting on the power play we try to keep him out of the middle so he’s less dangerous.…
When Stamkos does corral the puck, the Wings do their best to ensure that he doesn’t have time and space to tee one up and let it fly.
“You pretty much can’t let him shoot,… Detroit defenseman Danny DeKeyser said. “I think the biggest thing is if he’s got the puck on his backhand or if he’s leaning towards his backhand side, you’ve got to try to force him to that side because you know that he wants to get just a second to get it over to his forehand and shoot or wind up and take a slapper.
“We know where he’s at on the ice. On the power play he’s on that off side on the dot there waiting for the one-timer. It’s just something that you’ve got to recognize when you’re out there and pay the price to block shots.…
As pleased as they are with their performance, even the Wings admit that in their wildest dreams they never thought they could shut him down completely.
“I think we have a very good team defense that starts in the offensive zone,… Quincey said. “We have a lot of respect for him and that line (with Ryan Callahan and Alex Killorn).
“We know we can’t turn the puck over even in the offensive zone when he’s out there. We know he’s a good player. We’re not taking it for granted. We know tonight going in he’s still our No. 1 target. He’s going to shoot. We’ve got to make sure we just make him shoot from the outside.…
Pronovost Dead Hall of Fame defenseman Marcel Pronovost, who won four Stanley Cups with the Red Wings, died Sunday in Windsor, Ont. after a brief illness. He was 84.
Pronovost is one of a select group of players who won a Stanley Cup prior to playing an NHL regular-season game when he was called up by the Wings for the 1950 playoffs. He also won titles with Detroit in 1952, 1954, and 1955.
After a 1965 trade to Toronto, Pronovost was part of the Maple Leafs’ most recent Cup winner in 1967. As a scout, he earned three Stanley Cup rings with the New Jersey Devils and holds the record for the longest tenure between first and last Stanley Cup inscriptions – 53 years between 1950 and his 2003 win with New Jersey.
Pronovost was an unwitting part of Detroit’s most famous post-season tradition. In the 1952 Stanley Cup final against Montreal, it was Pronovost who removed the first octopus ever tossed on the ice during a Red Wings playoff games.
“Linesman George Hayes went over to see what it was and you should have seen him jump back,… Pronovost recalled in his book A Life In Hockey. “So I decided to take a look. I smacked it with my stick.
“Right away, I knew what it was, and I knew that it was dead. It was an octopus. I scooped it up and skated over to the penalty box with it, but nobody there wanted to touch it, either. I didn’t think about it, I just picked it up.
“Oh yeah, you better believe I wondered why they were throwing the octopus on the ice.…
Pronovost played in 1,206 NHL games, was a four-time NHL All-Star Team selection and performed in 11 NHL All-Star Games.
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