Game 1 Live Blog: Wings/Pens
Joe here. Join me back here at 8:00 P.M. ET for the live blog of the Pens/Wings game.
And if you’re debating, remember this: you still have one more round to watch the Pistons. There’s no more than seven more hockey games left.
Follow along after the jump.
The teams have just come out for the first warmup, and the crowd is already at a good throat.
The officials: Paul Devorski and Dan O’Halloran with the arm bands; Jay Sharrers and Shane Heyer on the lines.
Happy birthday to Kris Draper, one of the few Wings older than I.
The Wings have already posted their scratches, and there’s no change from Game 6 in Dallas: Franzen & Chelios are both still out. I’ll post the Pens scratches as soon as they post them.
The offensive lines for the Wings: Datsyuk/Zetterberg/Holmstrom, Hudler/Filppula/Cleary, Drake/Draper/Samuelsson, Maltby/Helm/McCarty. For the Pens: Dupuis/Crosby/Hossa, Malone/Maklkin/Sykora, Ruutu/Staal/Kennedy, Hall/Talbot/Laraque.
CBC just showed a clip of Chris Chelios swearing he’d never play for the Wings. 
Ya gotta love the past!
It’s not hockey related, but I wanted to share this fact with the world: if I wasn’t watching the Wings game, I would not be watching the Pistons game. Instead, I’d watch the replay of the ManU/Chelsea Champions League final. If ever you need proof that adding a shootout to the playoffs is the filthiest idea mankind has ever come up with, watch the shootout of the ManU/Chelsea final.
CBC is saying no changes to the Pens line up, though it’s still not posted on the NHL site.
It finally is, and they were correct.
The Wings come out to a thunderous ovation. It looks like a totally full house tonight.
HA! As the Pens were coming out, Fleury tripped over the freaking step and fell flat on his face! Welcome to Bad Omen Theater! The best part is the two on-ice guys for the Wings who were right at the bench and had this look of “We were 18 inches away from this, and our lives are now complete!”
Here are your starters: Lidstrom, Datsyuk, Rafalski, Zetterberg, Holmstorm, and Osgood; Dupuis, Hossa, Orpik, Gonchar, Crosby, and Fleury.
Al has flung the octopus from the Zamboni pit.
A very nice moment: they bring out both Mario Lemieux (who gets a very nice ovation) and Steve Yzerman (who gets both a thunderous ovation plus the “STE-VIE! STE-VIE!” chant) for the honorary faceoff.
20:00 - Start of Period 1: Let’s play some Stanley Cup hockey!
19:32 - Crosby went body first into the boards to the left of Osgood.
18:43 - A Wings turnover at center ice gives the Pens a 2-on-1, but they can’t get a decent shot off.
18:18 - Some chippiness: Laraque hits Maltby after the whistle, McCarty takes exception, and we have conversation against the boards. Laraque and McCarty are still talking as they drop the puck.
17:30 - Zetterberg with a long shot that goes to the left of the net.
16:43 - The puck was lying to the left of Osgood; fortunately none of the Pens could get their sticks on it.
16:09 - Penalty Pittsburgh: Letang (Interference). He put Hudler on the ground.
15:58 - Penalty Detroit: Holmstrom (High-sticking). And before I can finish putting the first penalty on the board, Tomas cancels it out, with his stick hitting Orpik on the tail end of a check.
15:32 - Gonchar with a shot that Osgood debates letting it play, but he decides to cover it up.
14:55 - Kronwall with a nice body check on Malkin.
14:13 - Filppula went right through the blue ice but couldn’t get the shot off. In the process, Fleury lost his mask, so play is halted.
13:48 - The penalties expires as we go to the first TV time out. Shots are 6-4 Wings.
13:28 - Datsuyk with a shot that Fleury stops, but it lies out. Unfortuately, Holmstrom was tied up as well. More chippiness after the whistle.
13:02 - Maltby with a one-timer from 25 feet that Fleury makes a very good save on.
12:15 - Worth noting: The Pens spent a lot of time in practice the last couple of days (according to the CBC) working on the bounces from the boards. We know those boards at the Joe are hard and fast.
11:09 - Ruutu and Kronwall almost collided at center ice.
10:59 - Ruutu goes to the bench after lying down to block a Wings shot.
10:32 - Datsuyk with a backhander that Fleury handles and holds.
10:04 - Hossa takes advantage of a Wings turnover, has the puck three feet in front of Osgood, but Osgood slides over to make the big save.
9:55 - Second TV time out. Shots 7-4 Detroit
9:45 - Penalty Detroit: Lidstrom (Hooking). And not a particularly strong call. He got his stick up, but not enough to really interfere with the Pens player.
9:02 - Zetterberg goes in with Gonchar draped all over him, and can’t get the shorthanded chance off.
8:33 - The Pens are 0/1 on the power play tonight (all of 11 seconds).
7:53 - Sykora took a shot that somehow got through everyone, and Osgood had to make a fast save.
7:40 - Penalty’s over, to a nice ovation.
7:22 - Penalty Detroit: Helm (Tripping). He takes down Talbot, and the Pens go back on the power play: 0/2 with 1 shot.
7:05 - Draper sets up Cleary, but it goes just wide of his stick on a great short handed chance.
6:44 - The Wings had a great penalty kill first time. Let’s see if they can keep it going.
6:33 - Crosby was on the doorstep, the puck went into the air, and somehow Osgood managed to grab it with his left hand with Crosby just waiting to swipe it in.
6:05 - Another good chance: Crosby from 15 feet out and Osgood makes another good save.
5:40 - The Wings can’t clear it to let them reset.
5:33 - Crosby takes another shot, and Osgood holds! This penalty kill is all about Chris Osgood, and the fans chant in appreciation.
5:22 - Penalty’s over (and not a moment too soon).
4:40 - GOAL DETROIT: LIDSTROM Penalty Detroit: Holmstrom (Goaltender Interference). What a wild swing. Devorski quickly waved off the goal and put Holmstrom in the box for putting his stick into Fleury. Exhibit A that they’re gonna be watching Tomas this entire series.
We hit the final TV time out. The shots: 10-7 Pens.
Babcock is furious. He’s screaming at the officials, saying his stick didn’t bother Fleury. The Pens 0/3 on the power play with 6 shots.
4:05 - The puck goes out of play, but the face off comes back in front of Fleury.
3:55 - Kronwall with a shoulder into Malone, and the crowd rises.
3:43 - Crosby with the shot that Osgood somehow covers. Then Hossa and Lebda are tangled in the corner, and Hossa whips his stick out, spinning Lebda. No call.
3:12 - Another solid penalty kill. A little less hanging on Osgood.
2:42 - Penalty’s over. The Wings can stop putting themselves in the box.
1:00 - Penalty Pittsburgh: Gill (High Sticking). He gets the stick up on Holmstrom, and we’ll get the second Detroit power play of the night.
:25 - Lidstrom’s shot has to be handled by Fleury as Holmstrom falls into him.
:00 - End of Period 1: And a great first period it was; the shots finish 12-11 Pittsburgh.
Don Cherry: “You don’t break up a winning combination.” That’s why no Roberts nor Chelios.
Hits are 15-7 Detroit. Faceoffs are 17-10 Detroit.
Time on ice: 8:37 for Lidstrom, 8:30 for Kronwall, 8:28 for Rafalski. For the Pens, 10:22 for Gonchar, 7:48 for Hossa, 7:48 for Crosby.
20:00 - Start of Period 2: The penalty continues for 60 more seconds.
19:00 - And just like that, the power play comes to an end.
18:25 - Drake’s shot is saved, but a fast rebound goes back to Zettereberg lets him get a shot that goes off both posts.
18:05 - Penalty Pittsburgh: Crosby (Slashing). Wait…they can call a penalty against Syd? I guess so! Wings 0/3 on the power play tonight.
17:09 - Kronwall tries to set up Cleary, but Cleary can’t put the lumber on the puck.
16:23 - A pass that bounces off the boards goes right on Fleury, who covers up to help the Pens get a line change.
15:58 - Penalty’s over. The Wings are doing a great job of keeping pressure on Fleury.
14:50 - Maltkin sets up Whitney, but his shot is blocked.
14:17 - Osgood with a nice save, after Fleury does a nice job blocking a shot that bounces off Cleary in front of him.
13:44 - Dupuis goes in alone, and Osgood tracks him smoothly and stops the shot.
12:55 - Draper’s shot is deflected up off the glass. We’re going back and forth.
12:27 - Osgood saves and holds the puck to get the first TV time out.
Hope you took the under on the goals scored tonight.
11:53 - Gill and Holmstrom exchange hip-checks.
11:25 - Shots are 17-14 Wings.
11:00 - Malkin pulls down a Wing, but no call.
10:20 - This has been a heckuva hockey game for no scoring.
9:29 - Talbot and Zetterberg tangling with each other along the side boards.
8:41 - Holmstrom with a quick shot that Fleury has to save.
7:00 - GOAL DETROIT: Samuelsson (3). A wrap around that catches Fleury way out of position, and he did a magnificent job of catching him off guard! And on the replay, it looks like that shot went off Fleury’s skate and in! It’s 1-0, and the building is rocking.
6:47 - Penalty Pittsburgh: Whitney (Holding). As we go to the second TV time out, we have a penalty, and it feels like the Wings have the upper hand. He wrapped up Helm, and we have another Wings power play: they’re 0/3 tonight.
The NHL computer is screwy: they’re currently showing Ruutu as the goal scorer. Wrong team, kids!
6:29 - Rafalski with a blueliner that Fleury has to deflect.
5:53 - The Pens finally clear it. It’s been another strong power play for Detroit, but they’re due to cash in.
5:30 - Fleury with a fine save off a blueliner.
5:19 - They mentioned it on the replay: that goal was the fault of a Pens line change that they desperately needed. It wasn’t Fleury’s fault.
4:47 - Penalty’s over.
4:29 - And we get our final TV time out. The goal was unassisted, and the NHL site still shows it being 1-0 Pittsburgh.
Shots are 22-16 Detroit, Hits are 21-11, face offs are 23-17 Detroit.
CBC is reporting that Franzen is cleared for a full practice tomorrow. We can use the extra hand!
3:57 - Lidstrom with a hard shot that Fleury gloves and holds! Big props to Fleury: he’s really keeping the Pens in this.
3:50 - The NHL computer has corrected itself. We can breathe happier again.
3:05 - Sloppy play by the Pens give the Wings the puck 20 feet in front of Fleury, but they can’t get the shot off.
2:37 - Helm streaks in and fires a shot that Fleury holds and saves.
2:03 - Hall in front of Osgood, but he can’t get the shot off.
1:48 - It almost looks like the Wings are in a different gear than Pittsburgh is in.
:32 - Penalty Pittsburgh: Malkin (Tripping). He trips Valtteri Filppula, and the Wings get their fifth power play of the night: 0/4 with 6 shots
:00 - End of Period 2. After a sluggish first 10 minutes, the Wings seem to find an extra gear to shift to, and they have a 1-0 lead at the intermission.
Shots were 16-4 Detroit in the second period, and 27-16 Detroit overall; Hits are 25-14 Detroit; Face offs are 26-20 Detroit.
I want to share an incident from the latter part of the period that I want to send to Versus/NBC. They showed a shot of Mario Lemieux and his wife. Bob Cole mentioned that we’re looking at two great golfers: Mario is a scratch golfer, and Cole asked her if she plays. She did, and shared her handicap: 8. A simple story, told in about 20 seconds. But here’s the kicker: once play started, the story didn’t come up again! Really, Versus/NBC, look into this!
Time on ice: 17:31/22 for Lidstrom, 16:08/22 Rafalski, 15:40/23 for Kronwall. Pittsburgh has 18:34/21 for Gonchar; 13:32/20 for Orpik; 13:03/20 for Staal.
Penalties: 5/10 for Pens, 4/8 for Detroit.
20:00 - Start of Period 3: With 1:38 left on the penalty.
18:45 - Wings doing a lot of passing, not much shooting.
18:32 - Penalty’s over. Holmstrom takes a push to the left of Franzen.
17:44 - GOAL DETROIT: Samuelsson 2 (4). The Pens coach looks disgusted. Fleury had an awful giveaway, and it went right onto Samuelsson’s stick, who had a quick shot. It’s unassisted, and it’s 2-0 Detroit!
17:09 - Hudler tries to put a shot in front of Fleury, that goes over the stick.
16:45 - Bob Cole called it a very close hockey game, and I’d agree: Osgood’s done very well tonight.
16:03 - Letang took a huge swing at a puck that wasn’t there.
15:21 - A strange set of collisions right at the center line involving five or six players, each trying to get to their bench, but being tangled by another. It took a linesman 10 seconds (while play continued) to get everyone separated.
14:30 - They showed the replay: it was Samuelsson and Crosby, with some help from Draper and he was going to the bench.
13:40 - Stuart had Sykora lined up behind Osgood, but didn’t do a great job of completing the hit.
12:51 - The Wings ice the puck, which brings up the first TV time out. And the Wings are doing a lot of dumping, and Pittsburgh looks frustrated. The shots: 30-16 Detroit.
A question from the wife: “I’ve gotta assume the keeper of the Cup ain’t married.” This, after seeing a bunch of Hockey Hall of Fame commercials with him. I think my wife is correct.
12:36 - My wife’s answer: “He’s married to the Cup.” We look forward to seeing him soon.
11:21 - They keep showing the press box, and I keep hoping to see Christy on the job, running around.
10:51 - Hossa and Holmstrom go hard into the boards to the left of Fleury.
9:47 - Whenever Pittsburgh tries to get anything sustained, the Wings do a fine job of breaking it up.
9:05 - Gill’s shot is blocked into the mesh. He ends up on Samuelsson, and we go to the next TV time out. Shots are 30-17 Detroit. Since the first period, the shots are 19-5.
8:54 - The Pens have an excellent chance off the face off, but the puck hits the post.
7:33 - Every time the Pens move the puck up, the Wings clear it back out. Boy, do the Pens have to figure some stuff out quickly.
6:22 - Zetterberg and Holmstrom each have great chances off a Pens turnover.
6:06 - Zetterberg drives in with two Pens on him, but can’t get the shot off.
4:48 - We hit the final TV time out. Shots are 33-18 Detroit. For the Pens, they’re feeling the same frustration the Preds, Avs, and Stars felt when the Wings had a lead late, where they clamp down.
4:34 - Penalty Detroit: Lidstrom (Interference). He tied up Hossa who was going to the net, and the Pens will try to do something with the man advantage. They’re 0/4 with 8 shots.
3:48 - Gonchar with a shot that Osgood saves. Then Stuart makes a diving block that send the puck out of the Pens zone.
3:10 - The Pens have only had the puck in their zone for about 20 out of 90 seconds.
2:42 - GOAL DETROIT: Cleary (2) from Stuart (SH). That was a fluky clearing pass off the face off, and the puck bounced hard off the boards to the left of Fleury, and Cleary won the race to the puck and simply put it past him. It’s 3-0, and that’s the dagger.
2:00 - The “OZ-ZIE!” chant goes up. They want the shutout for him.
1:52 - Penalty Pittsburgh: Ruutu (Slashing). Ruutu took a shot at Samuelsson.
1:12 - The “OZ-ZIE!” chant resumes. The crowd is on their feet.
:12 - GOAL DETROIT: Zetterberg (12) from Lidstrom and Holmstrom (PP). Lidstrom to Holmstrom to Zetterberg. Two pretty passes. 4-0 Detroit…and it was a dominating power play for Detroit.
:00 - End of Period 3: That was an insane game. The Wings looked absolutely dominating after the first intermission.
The shots end up 9-3 in the third, and 36-19 for the game. Hits 31-25 Detroit, and face offs 35-31 Detroit.
And that last power play was as dominating for the Wings as the previous power play was impotent for the Pens.
Your three stars: #1 Samuelsson (2G), #2 Osgood (19 saves), #3 Cleary (G).
Worth remembering: Cleary is trying to become the first Newfie to put his name on the Cup.
Don Cherry is ripping into Malkin. Malkin did not have a good night tonight; neither did Crosby, for that matter. They better show up for Monday.
Babcock, in the post-game, didn’t want to talk much about the disallowed goal, but he really didn’t like the call.
“I think they’re an excellent, excellent hockey club…We scored first, and that seemed like a big thing…Maybe if they score first, it’s different for them.”
And we have, I believe, a Christy sighting on the wide shot after Babcock left the post-game interview room! She was running in front of the table. Good work, Christy!
Waiting for Terrien to come to the microphone
He walks to the microphone like a condemned man.
“Don’t know if it was the nerves, but that was the worst performance of the playoffs.”
On the first two goals: “Bad passes, bad changes. Those were mental mistakes.”
Unfortunately, the NHL.tv feed dropped out on me, so I missed the latter half of that interview. But Terrien looked like someone who had seen the future, and it was not pretty.
Osgood and Samuelsson on the podium now.
Question: is Holmstrom a marked man? Samuelsson: “It seems like it.”
Well, kids, the inaneness of this questioning (and the Internet delay) is making me sleepy. Tomorrow is a day to rest up. I’ll see you back her Monday at 8:00. Thanks as usual to Christy for the space, and thank you for reading. Have a great Sunday!
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15 Responses to “Game 1 Live Blog: Wings/Pens”
Leave a Reply
May 24th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
Looking forward to reading it later tonight when I get off work. Go Wings!
May 24th, 2008 at 6:20 pm
[…] Behind the Jersey […]
May 24th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
who’s joe
May 24th, 2008 at 9:15 pm
Feels good to be up one to zip!!! Oh wait Gary’s favorite team cant be scored on first, it against the rules.
May 24th, 2008 at 10:08 pm
Does anybody else think the ice looks very sluggish? Lots of bouncing passes and overskating of pucks.
May 24th, 2008 at 10:09 pm
Steve: I haven’t noticed it much. That being said, the weather today has been extremely cool for late May. I’ll watch in the 3rd for it.
May 24th, 2008 at 11:15 pm
The ice was slow. Not much tippy-tappy datsyuk magic, because of it.
May 25th, 2008 at 2:12 am
[…] Mike Ilitch’s other team did great, too. […]
May 25th, 2008 at 2:48 am
Joe- That was definitely me. Ahh, I can’t believe I got in the shot. My bad.
May 25th, 2008 at 3:31 am
[…] view the rest of my dad’s photos from the game at the BTJ Flickr account and read Joe’s live blog of the […]
May 25th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Great stuff both of you!! And thank you.
May 25th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Christy: Not your bad. It was between interviews, and the camera had pulled out to a wide shot. You didn’t block anything, and there wasn’t an interview going on. I’d have done the exact same thing.
May 25th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Joe, where did you see this video? The post-game with Babcock on nhl.tv ends right as he is standing up. I assume that is an edited version, and you were watching it live on TV?
May 25th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Steve, you’re correct. I was watching the live feed from the interview “room.” Babcock got up, and there was about two minutes between his departure and Michel Therrien’s interview. Christy ducked down and ran across in front of the podium during the break. I just knew it was her because, well, I knew it was her. It wasn’t in the middle of an interview, so unless they post the full raw feed, you won’t see it.
May 25th, 2008 at 10:25 pm
[…] the game at WIM. For a more thorough look at what exactly went on in the game, be sure to read the live blog on BTJ last night courtesy of […]