I have been a Detroit Red Wings fan since 1993. For the 1st time in my life as a fan they are in danger of getting swept at home.
I have only seen Detroit get swept in the playoffs twice in my lifetime. In 1995 thew were swept in the Stanley Cup Finals against New Jersey & in 2003 they were swept in the 1st round by Anaheim. Both sweeps were finished away from Joe Louis Arena.
Honestly, neither one felt good to watch and I'm guessing if they get swept tonight on home ice this one won't feel too good either.
But I'm not thinking about Detroit getting swept at home. I'm thinking of the Red Wings winning tonight to force a Game 5 at the Shark tank on Saturday night. For that to happen here is what they need to do.
1. Jimmy Howard has to play better than he did in Game three.
Howard played well in goal in Games one & two but he gave up two bad goals in Game three. The 1st goal Howard gave up came with only four seconds left in the period when Sharks forward Devin Setoguchi found the back of the net.
Then with under seven minutes to play in the 3rd period Logan Couture threw a puck at Howard that found a little space between his legs and ended up in the back of the net to tie the game at 3-3.
After that the Red Wings looked a little tentative the rest of the way and the Sharks outplayed them the rest of the game eventually getting the game winner from Patrick Marleau in overtime.
Howard has played as well as Sharks goalie Evgeni Nabokov. Tonight he has to be better.
2. They have to stay out of the penalty box.
The penalty kill for the Red Wings has been less than spectacular this post-season. They gave up three goals which cost them game one against Phoenix and it hasn't gotten any better since then.
They gave up two power play goals in games one & two which cost them at least a split against the Sharks in San Jose.
The Red Wings did a better job staying out of the penalty box in game three. With the way the Sharks have been playing, they better steer clear of the penalty box in Game four.
3. Detroit's best players have to be their best players.
This series the Sharks best players (Marleau, Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton & Dany Heatley) have all managed to find the back of the net and have been involved in the scoring for San Jose.
Detroit's best forwards (Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetteberg, & Johan Franzen) have only found the back of the net once this series. It seems like when one of them steps up the other two disappear.
Franzen has been the hardest to figure out these playoffs. He has two goals & eight assists but if you have watched Detroit this post-season you would have figured he was invisible. He hasn't been as good has he has been in previous post-seasons.
If Detroit is winning this isn't a problem. The Red Wings are down three games to none & facing elimination. Needless to say it is a problem.
The Sharks have been just a little bit better in everything they have done this series. Detroit has to be better than them tonight if they are to force a game five.
What do I expect tonight? The Red Wings are a veteran team that knows how to win in the playoffs. While they haven't done it yet this series they have been close enough where they could easily be up two games to one.
I have a hard time believing a team with this much talent can be swept away at home. They may not win this series but I think they will find a way to win Game four tonight at the Joe.
The game will be joined in progress on Versus right after the end of Game four between Pittsburgh & Montreal which starts at 6:00 PM.
Thanks for reading & enjoy the hockey.
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