WINGS POST-GAME: Red Wings shutout 2-0 in an old school hockey game
By Nick Seguin
5 years agoThe Wings and the Avs seemed to channel their ’90s selves tonight as they put on a heck of a show! It was fun back-and-forth hockey all night that ultimately ended up in a 2-0 Avalanche victory.
WORTH MENTIONING
- Like the days of yore, this was a really tough game. With 46 total hits and two fights, it felt like the old time hockey that these teams used to play.
- Oh, and we got to see somebody get Kronwalled!
- The Wings did an admirable job of shutting down Colorado’s top line. They held them to 7 shots at 5-on-5, with their only goals coming on the power play and on an empty net.
- The Wings played a great first period, but their game deteriorated from there. By the third, they looked like a tired team who had played the night before. They didn’t get their first shot on goal in the last frame until the 10 minute mark.
- Jonathan Bernier played a good game, posting a .964 save percentage on 28 total shots. He was perfect at 5-on-5 and didn’t stand a chance on Nathan MacKinnon’s power play goal. I don’t put this one on him.
- We saw some real camaraderie between the young players on the roster tonight. After a high hit on Andreas Athanasiou, Tyler Bertuzzi dropped the gloves in his defense. After a crushing blow against the boards on Dylan Larkin, Anthony Mantha took a stand for his line mate. This is the kind of rapport that you want teammates to have. The future is bright.
FINAL THOUGHT
The big open ice hits. The crushing, borderline illegal, battles against the boards. The bad blood around the benches. Tonight’s game had all the makings of a classic Red Wings/Avalanche match-up.
Despite the loss, this was a really fun game to watch. It was low-scoring, but there was lots of back-and-forth. The Wings did an amazing job of shutting down the Avs best players. They just couldn’t get into the shooting lanes that they needed for clean shots on net.
And, of course, there were the hits, the fights, and coming to each other’s defense. I’m not too disappointed with this loss.
The nostalgia was strong tonight.
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