yep, killed the mojo the Wings had. BEAUTIFUL delay by young Staal, once Raflaksi overcommitted to the middle he blew by him. That only made it 2-2, tho. Penguins kept uniting Malkin and Crosby, Bylsma wouldn't relent--it paid off 2 minutes later wth the game winner
Malkin is dominating out there. He was sick Vs Carolina and has carried that over Vs the Red Wings. Sure is a different Malkin from a year ago,
2 straight well coached games by Bylsma. Zetterberg had a whopping 31 shifts in game 3 and nearly 25 minutes--- less tonight, but by far he's worst performance, perhaps fatigue getting to him (especially with Malkin out there as well). Red Wings get the last shift for game 5, tho
I don't think Z played bad at all. He didn't stand out offensively like he has most games but defensively he played as good as expected. He and Osgood were the Conn Smythe leaders after game 2. He simply played his ass off out there tonight and misses Datsyuk tremendously. He's being asked to do much more than usual over the last 2-3 weeks. You can't expect anyone to play both ends of the ice at the pace he's been on. A home ice crowd like that does wonders for your confidence.
i think you're right here. He's the best two-way player on the planet, imo (i'm sure top 3 on anyone's list). However, Bylsma had a strategy for games 3 and 4, and it played out, near perfectly--. Now what does Babcock do for game 5? can they afford to lose Zetterberg's offensive gifts with Pavel out? change tactics? leave all as is, as Det has the last shift? does Bylsma continue to unite Corsby and Malkin on and off, wear Z down?
damn, game 5 should be sweet,
after game 3
"I think the one advantage we had tonight was they were trying to get Zetterberg out there so much, there were times when he got out there tired," Bylsma said. "I think when they're going after the matchup that hard, it causes situations where they are going to be out there and be tired against our players."
personally, I think Babcock should be less worried about the match-ups
http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news...slug=ap-stanleycup-redwings&prov=ap&type=lgns
"The Detroit Red Wings ask Henrik Zetterberg to do it all.
It seems to be taking a toll.
The superstar simply looked tired at times Thursday night, getting beat to loose pucks and not skating as hard or fast as usual, and the Pittsburgh Penguins took advantage with a 4-2 series-evening win in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup finals."
Babcock, you're up
"The Detroit Red Wings ask Henrik Zetterberg to do it all.
It seems to be taking a toll.
The superstar simply looked tired at times Thursday night, getting beat to loose pucks and not skating as hard or fast as usual, and the Pittsburgh Penguins took advantage with a 4-2 series-evening win in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup finals."
Babcock, you're up
watching the post game interviews I saw Stall, fluerry and Crosby all smiling like a butchers dog up there. This series is tied and Detroit still hold home ice advantage. This is still a very young team and the 4th game is always the toughest to win. I'm not trying to take anything away from Pitt as they played a great game but I think except for about a 10 minute span in the 2nd, Detroit controlled that game. They out shot them by 8 in the 1st and again in the 3rd where they controlled the puck the entire period. They just couldn't get any 2nd shots at or by Fluerry. And I want to say Detroit's defence will be better when Datsyuk comes back but it's also not going to be that simple. They will get a charge when he plays Saturday in front of our home crowd, so you have to like Detroit's chances Saturday at least. That flurry of goals by the Pens is something that's not uncommon to the Wings when they lose. They often can't stop the momentum of an opponent once they get on a roll in their own building especially. Downtown Detroit will be rockin, I promise you come Saturday night. And their hard to beat with their own crowd behind them in these situations. I've witnessed it too many times.
Your tone has changed it seems my friend........I smell some slight worry on your part. LOL.....
Should be a great 3 games. I'm really interested to see if the Pens can elevate their play Saturday even further, b/c I know Detorit will take it to them and be all business Saturday night at home. Winner of this game will take the series IMO.
By the way, I think Babcock is one hell of a coach and I love watching his pressers!
Helluva game to watch 2nite. You have to remember that the 3rd dominated by Detroit is just the same kind of game Pitt dominated when they were down 2 goals in the 3rd. The team down usually has more chances in the 3rd period like that.
Big story for sure will be seeing the fatigue in Detroits team. Everyone asked if Byslma should be trying to avoid the Zetterberg matchup. But you can see that just playing Crosby against him is actually wearing him down b/c Crosby plays so many shifts. Zetterberg on the ice for 24+ minutes is startig to take its toll. It payed off in Game 4. We'll see if Babcock elects to use Zetterberg on other shifts for offensive pressure next game.
I also wonder about how Detroit has a history of being very bad in Game 5's. Gonna be a great game saturday nite
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Of course my tone has changed. But I am not worried yet. They still have to lose 2 more and 2 of the 3 are at the Joe. Lose one more and I'm concerned. Depends on where they lose it at as well. I'm realistic. We still have the edge here. I also don't believe the winner of game 5 wins this series. The Pens are very young. It showed in the presser last night. Stall and Fluerry laughing and joking like this is already in the bag. LOL. The 4th game is THE hardest game to win. I don't believe they realize that yet. We do.
I also hope Datsyuk sits out game 5. They can win without him at home in game 5. He's close now. If he sits game 5 he'll have an extra 5 days to rest. This is far from over and again..I'm not worried now. Evidently my tone got under your skin. Wasn't intended to. Just rooting on my team.
Helluva game to watch 2nite. You have to remember that the 3rd dominated by Detroit is just the same kind of game Pitt dominated when they were down 2 goals in the 3rd. The team down usually has more chances in the 3rd period like that.
Big story for sure will be seeing the fatigue in Detroits team. Everyone asked if Byslma should be trying to avoid the Zetterberg matchup. But you can see that just playing Crosby against him is actually wearing him down b/c Crosby plays so many shifts. Zetterberg on the ice for 24+ minutes is startig to take its toll. It payed off in Game 4. We'll see if Babcock elects to use Zetterberg on other shifts for offensive pressure next game.
I also wonder about how Detroit has a history of being very bad in Game 5's. Gonna be a great game saturday nite
I believe what has hurt the Wings the most in this series is the quick start Bettman implemented to try and generate more interest in the sport. He successfully did that. But at the Wings expense. Wings had some injuries and needed that "normal" down time to rest and heal. Where the Pens were relatively healthy to start this series. Not making excuses, just explaining why were in this position right now. A team still has to win through the injuries. That's not an excuse.
Bettman knew what he was doing.... Would of they started early if Crobsy was dinged up ?
5 Stanley Cup games in 8 nights.... Teams don,t even go through that during the regular season....
Bettman is welcomed with open arms in Pittsburgh..... We will see if he even shows up in Detroit next game....I could see Wing fans throwing octupus at him...
