Chicago Blackhawks resume rivalry with Detroit Red Wings in Western Conference semifinals

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  Chicago Blackhawks center Jonathan Toews celebrates a goal by Chicago Blackhawks right wing Marian Hossa in the first period as the Blackhawks defeated the Minnesota Wild 5-1 in Game 5 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series in Chicago, Thursday, May 9, 2013. (AP Photo/Daily Herald, George LeClaire)The Associated Press

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  The Detroit Red Wings celebrate their 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks in Game 7 of their first-round NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series in Anaheim, Calif., Sunday, May 12, 2013. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)The Associated Press

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CHICAGO –  Jonathan Toews and the Chicago Blackhawks got to watch all the action in the NHL playoffs while they waited for an opponent to emerge for the second round.

What they saw from the Detroit Red Wings looked very familiar.

"Just that same relaxed, patient experience that they've shown in the playoffs and makes them a tough team to beat," Toews said. "They got some veteran guys who have won Stanley Cups. They understand what it takes to win during playoff time and that's the reason they came out on top."

Yup, Chicago's next opponent is a very familiar one. Detroit's 3-2 victory in Anaheim in Game 7 on Sunday night set up one last matchup between the "Original Six" teams in the Western Conference semifinals.

Under the NHL's realignment plan, the Red Wings will move to the East next season, meaning they will not face the Blackhawks in the playoffs before the Stanley Cup. That adds another level of intrigue to a best-of-seven series that already features one of the NHL's biggest rivalries in the tense setting of the second round of the postseason.

"I think it's just fitting, final year of being in the Western Conference and we're facing the Hawks here in the playoffs," Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard. "It's going to be a lot of fun."

Detroit had to scramble to extend the longest active playoff streak in major professional sports to 22 straight seasons, winning the last four games of the regular season to secure the seventh spot in the West. Still, it's the lowest playoff seed for the Red Wings since the NHL moved to the 1 vs. 8 conference format in 1993.

That hardly mattered in the first round against Anaheim.

The Red Wings and Ducks alternated wins for the first six games of the playoffs. Anaheim got its first chance to close it out on Friday night, but Henrik Zetterberg scored in overtime to lift Detroit to a 4-3 victory after it blew a two-goal lead with 3½ minutes left in regulation.

Zetterberg then had a goal and an assist in the deciding game as the Red Wings emerged from a 3-2 series deficit for the first time they beat Colorado in the 2002 Western Conference finals. They went on to hoist the Stanley Cup.

"I think we believe in what we do," Zetterberg said. "Of course it's nice to win games and win games in the way we've done it, in overtime, those close games.

"That series is over now. It's a new team and new challenges."

Chicago has been quite the challenge of late. The Blackhawks have won seven in a row against the Red Wings dating to last season, including four games this year. But half of this year's games went to a shootout and another was decided in overtime.

"When we played them during the year, there was maybe one game where it kind of got out of hand," Chicago goalie Corey Crawford said. "But the other games were pretty tight games. We won a couple in shootouts.

"They're a team that can skate with us and obviously they have a lot of skill. It's going to be fun."

The Red Wings caught a break when the NHL scheduled the first game of the series against the Blackhawks for Wednesday night, giving them an extra day to rest following the grueling series against Anaheim and the trip back across the country. There also could be another extra day before Game 2, since the United Center has to stay clear on Friday night for a possible Game 6 between the Bulls and Heat in the NBA playoffs.

But Chicago gets the extra rest as well, and it's taking full advantage of its extended break since it beat Minnesota in five games in the first round. Center Michal Handzus missed practice Monday, but coach Joel Quenneville called it a maintenance day and said he expects him back on the ice on Tuesday. Center Dave Bolland and goalie Ray Emery will be available against Detroit after they missed the series against the Wild with lower body injuries.

"Certainly we've had a good history with them in the past and had some very intense games," Quenneville said. "Had a couple of great games with them this year. It helps with our travel as well, but certainly we're excited about getting into this round. We're going to have our hands full with this team, but we're excited about it."

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AP Sports Writer Larry Lage in Romulus, Mich., contributed to this report.

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Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap

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Nyquist's OT winner helps Red Wings even series with Ducks

Anaheim, CA –  Gustav Nyquist's first career playoff goal came 1:21 into overtime to help the Detroit Red Wings take a 5-4 win over the Anaheim Ducks in Game 2 of this Western Conference quarterfinal series.

Detroit had blown a three-goal lead in the third period, but went into overtime on the power play as Sheldon Souray was whistled for slashing with 38 seconds to play in regulation.

With time winding down on the man advantage, Daniel Cleary passed the puck from the right corner over to the right circle for Valtteri Filppula, who skated down low before sending it back to the left wing where Nyquist fired it in for the win.

Damien Brunner had a goal and two assists, Johan Franzen tallied twice while Justin Abdelkader also scored for the seventh-seeded Red Wings, who evened this best-of-seven series at 1-1. Jimmy Howard made 28 saves.

Teemu Selanne and Saku Koivu each posted a goal and an assist, while Bobby Ryan and Ryan Getzlaf scored for the second-seeded Ducks, who got 27 saves from Jonas Hiller -- including a game-saver late in the third period on Pavel Datsyuk.

This series heads back to Detroit for the next two games, with Game 3 set for Saturday night.

Detroit got off to a quick start as Abdelkader scored 48 seconds in when his wrister from the slot tipped off the stick of Francois Beauchemin and went in, and it was 2-0 less than four minutes later as a pass through the middle in his own zone by Selanne saw it tipped by Kyle Quincey over to the slot where Brunner one-timed it home.

The Red Wings made it a 3-0 game at 1:04 of the second on the power play as Brunner's shot from the low left side was stopped, but Franzen snuck in the rebound.

Anaheim, though, got back in it with a power-play goal at 10:53 of the second after Selanne's shot from the left circle was stopped, but the rebound kicked out to the right and Koivu snuck it in.

The Red Wings made it a three-goal game 20 seconds into the third on the power play as Franzen took a pass from Henrik Zetterberg in the right corner and wrapped it in from the right side.

Anaheim, though, rallied with the next three goals to send the game to overtime.

At the 7:50 mark, Getzlaf made it a 4-2 game when he brought the puck out from the left side of the net and from the slot he was able to get a backhand past Howard.

Less than five minutes later, the Ducks cut the margin to one as Nick Bonino sent a turnaround pass from the top of the left circle over to the right circle where Kyle Palmieri's shot was tipped by Selanne and past Howard.

The Ducks capped the comeback with 2:22 to play as Cam Fowler sent a short pass from the low left side to the circle where Ryan one-timed it home.

Game Notes

Datsyuk and Palmieri each posted two assists in the game ... This is the fifth time these two sides are meeting in the playoffs and each team has won two series ... Detroit was 3-for-6 on the man advantage while Anaheim went 1-for-5 ... Detroit took two of three in the regular season against Anaheim.

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Red Wings pick up big win over Predators

Detroit, MI –  Pavel Datsyuk posted a goal and an assist during a three-goal second period that propelled the Detroit Red Wings to a much-needed 5-2 victory over the Nashville Predators on Thursday at Joe Louis Arena.

Datsyuk added another assist in the third, while Johan Franzen, Valtteri Filppula, Patrick Eaves and Justin Abdelkader each scored once for the Red Wings, who have three straight to move into the seventh spot in the Western Conference with 54 points.

"We need to win here down the stretch so it's all about playing the way we do," Franzen said. "We keep it simple. We get pucks to the net and we get traffic."

Detroit, which hasn't missed the playoffs since 1990, sits one point ahead of both Minnesota and Columbus.

Jimmy Howard stopped 20 shots in the victory.

Mike Fisher and Craig Smith registered a goal and an assist apiece for the Predators, who have lost nine of their last 10 and will miss the playoffs for just the second time in the past nine seasons.

Chris Mason made 33 saves in defeat.

"Early you could tell there was a lot of rust," Nashville coach Barry Trotz said of Mason. "He's hasn't played a lot, but he's a battler and he battled tonight."

With Nashville holding a 2-1 lead after 20 minutes, Detroit erupted for three goals in the middle stanza, with the first two coming in a 2:40 span early in the frame.

Franzen's tap-in from the low left side knotted the game at 2-2 just over a minute in before Eaves netted the go-ahead goal with a one-timer from the left circle at 3:41.

Datsyuk doubled Detroit's edge with under a minute left in the frame when he rifled a wrister from the slot past Mason to make it 4-2 with 46.5 ticks left.

Abdelkader added his 10th of the season with 3:59 remaining in the contest to account for the final margin.

Nashville netted the game's first goal just 1:46 in when Fisher buried a one- timer off a 2-on-1 rush with Rich Clune, but Filppula answered just over five minutes later with a one-timer past the far side of Mason at the 6:53 mark.

Smith restored Nashville's one-goal lead by potting a power-play marker with 7 1/2 minutes left in the opening period.

Game Notes

Detroit wrapped up its home slate at 13-7-4 ... Filppula's goal was the 100th of his career ... Franzen also added an assist ... Nashville center Joonas Rask made his NHL debut and didn't record a shot in 6:36 of ice time ... Detroit's regular-season schedule concludes Saturday in Dallas, while Nashville will finish the season in Columbus on Saturday.

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Antti Niemi posts 2nd shutout in two nights as Sharks beat Red Wings 2-0

Published March 29, 2013

Associated Press

SAN JOSE, Calif. –  Antii Niemi made 27 saves for his second shutout in two nights and the San Jose Sharks won their third straight game in regulation, beating the Detroit Red Wings 2-0 on Thursday.

Joe Pavelski and Brent Burns each scored for the third consecutive game for the Sharks, who are on their longest winning streak since starting the season with seven straight wins.

San Jose had won just three of its previous 25 games in regulation before this current streak that started with a home-and-home sweep of first-place Anaheim and ended with a shutout of the rival Red Wings.

The Sharks have moved from ninth place to seventh in the Western Conference with the three wins this week, all coming after bruising defender Douglas Murray was dealt to Pittsburgh for two draft picks.

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Blue Jackets stay hot, down Red Wings in SO

Detroit, MI –  Matt Calvert and Ryan Johansen each scored in the shootout, enabling the surging Columbus Blue Jackets to continue their season success against the Detroit Red Wings with a 3-2 decision at Joe Louis Arena.

Derick Brassard and R.J. Umberger had the regulation goals to help Columbus complete a home-and-home weekend sweep of the Red Wings and earn their fifth consecutive victory -- the club's longest winning streak since a five-game run from Nov. 17-24, 2010.

Sergei Bobrovsky, fresh off a 30-save performance in Saturday's 3-0 triumph over the Wings in Columbus, stopped 21 shots through overtime before turning back two of Detroit's three skaters in the deciding phase.

Jakub Kindl and Johan Franzen both potted goals in the loss, the Red Wings' fourth in five meetings with the Blue Jackets this season (1-3-1). Jimmy Howard recorded 19 saves for Detroit, but failed to come up with one in the shootout.

Bobrovsky came up with a big save on Brendan Smith in the final minute of OT to send the contest to the shootout stage, and Johansen beat Howard with a nifty right-to-left move to even things up in the final portion after the Red Wings' Pavel Datsyuk began the opening round with a shot that got through Bobrovsky's pads.

Detroit's Damien Brunner was then denied by Bobrovsky, with Calvert putting the Jackets ahead by deking Howard to the left and placing the puck through an open right side.

Henrik Zetterberg had a chance to extend the game for the Red Wings, but Bobrovsky got a piece of the attempt and it caromed wide of the net to give Columbus the victory.

An uneventful first period failed to produce any scoring, but the teams combined for three goals over a 75-second span in the second.

Brassard began the scoring blitz by sending a screamer from the right circle over Howard's glove 3:10 into the frame. Columbus' lead lasted all of 30 seconds, however, after Kindl rifled home a slap shot off a Datsyuk feed to knot the score at 1-1.

The Blue Jackets regained the upper hand just 45 seconds afterward. Zetterberg overplayed the puck in his own end, with Umberger quickly firing the loose disc into the upper right corner of the net for his fifth goal of the season.

Detroit drew even once again just 25 seconds into the third period, taking advantage of a full 5-on-3 power play created by a slashing call on Johansen and Umberger being sent off for delay of game after covering the puck on the resulting faceoff.

The Red Wings worked the puck in front to Franzen, who ripped off a one-timer by Bobrovsky to produce a 2-2 deadlock.

Game Notes

Datsyuk's successful shootout try was the 32nd of his career, breaking a tie he held with Minnesota's Zach Parise for the most in NHL history ... Columbus defenseman Fedor Tyutin tied a franchise record for career points by a blueliner (134) with an assist on Brassard's goal, sharing the spot with Rostislav Klesla ... Franzen's tally was Detroit's first in 25 power-play chances in its five season meetings with Columbus. The goal also ended a franchise-record string of 24 consecutive penalty kills by the Blue Jackets over a 10-game span ... Bobrovsky made his 100th career NHL appearance.

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Weber's goal in OT lifts Predators over Red Wings

Nashville, TN –  Shea Weber scored 44 seconds into overtime to give the Nashville Predators a 4-3 victory over the slumping Detroit Red Wings in a Central Division clash from Bridgestone Arena.

Weber added an assist on Craig Smith's first-period tally, while Colin Wilson recorded a pair of helpers to aid in the Predators halting a two-game skid. Gabriel Bourque and Roman Josi also had goals for Nashville, which received 26 saves out of goaltender Pekka Rinne as well.

Pavel Datsyuk and Dan Cleary both had a goal and an assist for Detroit, with Datsyuk's marker tying the contest at 3-3 with 6:30 remaining in the third period. Former Predator Jordin Tootoo also lit the lamp in the loss, the Red Wings' fourth in a row.

Detroit's Jonas Gustavsson made 16 saves in relief of Jimmy Howard, who exited with an upper-body injury in the first period after letting in two goals on only seven shots.

Josi gave Nashville a 3-2 edge by firing a perfectly-placed shot from far out near the left boards that whistled past Gustavsson's glove with 7:06 left in regulation. The lead would be short-lived, however.

Just 36 seconds later, Datsyuk rushed up the center of the ice with a head of steam and bulled through two Nashville defenders before sending a wrister by Rinne for his eighth goal of the season.

The Predators couldn't convert on a power-play opportunity prior to OT, but cashed in less than a minute into extra time.

Wilson shot wide on an attempt after skating aggressively up the ice, but the puck caromed around the net and right to a trailing Weber, who found an opening along the right corner for the game-winning score.

Nashville started out the first period strongly as well, getting goals from Smith and Bourque to build a 2-0 advantage just past the midway stage of the session.

With Detroit's Jakub Kindl in the box for interference, Wilson set up Smith with an on-point centering pass across the crease just 5:01 in. Bourque made it a two-goal margin at 10:41 by re-directing Scott Hannan's blast from the left point past Howard.

Datsyuk and Cleary began to turn the momentum around by teaming up for a critical shorthanded score just under five minutes prior to the first intermission. Datsyuk stole the puck from behind the net and sent it out to Cleary, who snapped a wrister into the net to put the Red Wings on the board.

It remained a 2-1 game until the third period, when Tootoo scored from the right circle after cradling in Henrik Zetterberg's pass on a Detroit rush with 8:27 left in the frame.

Game Notes

Tootoo played eight seasons for the Predators before joining the Red Wings as a free agent over the summer, and was appearing at Bridgestone Arena for the first time in a visiting uniform ... Weber extended his point streak to four games and has notched three goals and three assists during that stretch ... Nashville went 1-of-6 on the power play and Detroit ended 0-of-2 with the man advantage ... Nashville center Paul Gastad missed the contest with an upper- body injury he suffered in Monday's loss to Colorado ... Nashville acquired minor league defenseman Scott Ford from St. Louis in exchange for forward Jani Lajunen on Tuesday.

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