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The Red Wings got standout performances from defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom and forwards Henrik Zetterberg and Dan Cleary. All three registered a goal and three assists on the night.
Detroit scored the only goal of the first period when Zetterberg got his 28th of the season when he finished a fantastic blind backhand pass from Pavel Datsyuk for a tap-in goal at 6:53. The Red Wings were outstanding defensively in the opening frame and held the Sharks to just one shot on goal.
The second period was a wild one, with the Red Wings taking a 2-0 lead when Kris Drape scored just 54 seconds into the period while on shorthanded. Draper, after gobbling up a loose puck in the neutral zone, skated down the left side of the ice and blasted a hard shot from the left faceoff circle that beat Evgeni Nabokov high to the glove side.
The lead, however, was short-lived as the Sharks capitalized on the same power play when rookie Devin Setoguchi scored on a perfect redirection of a Sandis Ozolinsh point shot. San Jose made it 2-2 on another power play when Jonathon Cheechoo was able to deflect the puck into the net off the back of Dominik Hasek's skate at 7:26.
Detroit regained the lead at the halfway point of the game when defenseman Niklas Kronwall's centering attempt went off the stick of a Sharks defender and into the net for his fifth goal of the season.
The Red Wings piled it on from there as San Jose paraded players to the penalty box. Nicklas Lidstrom connected on a blast at 13:15 and Tomas Holmstrom's deflection of a Brian Rafalski point shot just over two minutes later pushed the lead to 5-2 heading into the third period.
Steve Bernier scored a power play goal just 47 seconds into the third period to close the deficit to 5-3, but that was as close as the Sharks would get. Dan Cleary closed out the scoring at the 8:50 mark with his 19 goal on the season.
Rafalski finished with a game-high three assists.
Hasek, a surprise start in goal that usurped the every-other-game schedule that head coach Mike Babcock has stuck to in recent weeks, stopped 15 of 18 shots for the victory. Nabokov, victimized regularly by the Red Wings this season, stopped just 22 of 28 shots as the Sharks lost their fourth game in a row.
The Red Wings' penalty kill surrendered all three Sharks goals as San Jose went an impressive 3-for-5 with the extra man. Detroit closed out with a 2-for-6 effort -- a marked improvement over the club's recent struggles with the extra man.
LGW.com's 3 Stars
1. Nicklas Lidstrom (DET) - PP Goal, 2 Assists, +3 Red Wings Lines
Filppula - Datsyuk - Holmstrom |
NHL.com Stats Pack
· Game Summary |
