Detroit looks to finish their season series against Carolina with a winning record but has to come away with a victory for that to happen, as they’re 4-3 so far. I have no idea what has made the Wings so effective against the Canes, but to this point I’m not going to question. I just hope this game lives up to this.
Hope is not a strategy.
Joe Veleno stole a puck and created a chance on his very first shift. On the first shift for Vrana and Rasmussen, they almost scored on a 2-on-1 created by Val Filppula losing his stick and kicking the puck. Despite the good start, the Wings go shorthanded first for Marc Staal high-sticking Vincent Trocheck at 4:30.
Detroit spends the entire two minutes in their own zone defending as the Canes create a number of good chances that either they mess up or Bernier stops. I’m glad it goes down like this because I think overall the PKers did a good job, despite the chances the Canes’ PP created.
Carolina comes out of the TV timeout by pinning our top line and then forcing a top-notch cross-crease save by Bernier off the line change.
The most-interesting thing to happen in the middle-portion of this period is the rink mics cutting out and making everything eerily silent except for Ken and Mick talking.
Joe Veleno gets a scoring chance by knocking an outlet saucer pass out of midair with the his stick blade while mid-stride, then forces Reimer to make a save on a well-placed low shot that was one of those shots that’s designed to go in or give a good chance for the goalie to kick the rebound to your teammate.
It didn’t work but I really liked the sequence.
The Score: 0-0
The Shots: 8-5 Wings
Standout Players: Veleno, Lindstrom, Filppula
Sit-in Players: Staal, Hronek, Namestnikov
The Period All Summed up: Detroit held their own but that shot count is misleading. Carolina controlled more of the play and if not for a series of near-misses would have the lead.
Detroit starts the period in Carolina’s crease trying to score, which I like except the not scoring part. Carolina counters, but Aho holds a pass long enough to let Bernier slide over and we stay scoreless.
Veleno gets into a scrap with a spice magnate’s heir but nobody sits for any amount of thyme.
4:40 in we get the tiebreaker goal with Brady Skjei late-manning in and receiving a pass from Aho with room to stop to the slot and pop it over Bernier’s glove to make it 1-0 Hurricanes.
Veleno feeds Lindstrom for a net-front try that the defenseman misses less than a minute later. Outside of that chance though, the ice is really tilted in Carolina’s favor, culminating in another Detroit penalty – Luke Glendening for holding Warren Foegele.
Carolina takes a minute to get dangerous on the PP but they do generate chances again. Bernier comes up big and Glendening escapes.
Detroit finally gets their first power play at 10:32 with Skjei heading to the box for tripping Joe Veleno in the Wings’ zone. Detroit’s power play struggles to pass around the Carolina pressure and loses the advantage two minutes later.
Carolina makes the Wings pay for a turnover from Marc Staal with Warren Foegele getting the puck at the side of Bernier and getting two chances to put it in before getting cleared. Stecher gets his stick in just enough to deflect the puck into the net to make it 2-0 Hurricanes.
Detroit looks a bit lost for a few minutes, but they get one back as Michael Rasmussen pokes a puck off a Cane’s stick and springs Jakub Vrana toward the net where he makes a nifty move to draw Reimer down and then backhands it over him. 2-1 Canes.
The Score: 2-1 Hurricanes
The Shots: 22-14 Hurricanes
Standout Players: Veleno, Rasmussen
Sit-in Players: Filppula, Staal, Stecher
The Period All Summed up: “Objects in mirror are farther away than they appear.”
Less than a minute into the third, Danny DeKeyser goes down in a heap in front of his own net and heads to the locker room after being kicked in the D—K by Cedric Paquette. To continue the thread, Dick Panik makes a good backcheck to tie up a stick and prevent a Carolina goal after Bernier mishandles a puck.
DeKeyser comes back just four minutes in and takes a shift.
Stecher makes a clever pass for a hook-and-ladder zone exit where Veleno feeds Panik for a good scoring opportunity that just misses. Just after, DeKeyser proves he’s back with two turnovers on pucks that should have been cleared.
After an icing with the same group out, the Wings try the same little pass that worked previously, but Rasmussen isn’t ready for the puck and gets stripped. Teuvo Teravainen slides it through the five hole to make it 3-1 Canes.
Carolina continues to put pressure on but aren’t reckless about it and the Wings can’t do a lot. Blashill pulls Bernier coming out of a TV timeout with 5:30 left. Jeff Blashill deciding that if the refs won’t give them a man advantage they’ll take on themselves.
Naturally Carolina has all of the early chances. Andrei Svechnikov somehow miraculously misses the empty net.
Vrana takes a penalty with 1:46 to go for a hold. This is his 2nd turnover on the sequence. Oh well.
The very last scoring chance of the game is off Marc Staal’s stick. lol
The Score: 3-1
The Shots: 32-17
Standout Players: Nah
Sit-in Players: Namestnikov, DeKeyser, Rasmussen, Vrana
The Period All Summed up: Nah
Danny DeKeyser was really no good and Filip Zadina looked off. I like Joe Veleno and Gustav Lindstrom.
We still won four games against Carolina this year. Can’t take that away from us.