Every game is not different. If not exactly the same, most are predictable, many at least uniform in mood ... I see patterns now where I once saw mostly details: in games and seasons, in several seasons, in goals, in saves, in words I hear, in others, in me, everything like something from before ...
- Ken Dryden, The Game
I am still in disbelief. I thought Detroit might have a chance against Chicago, at no point did I think they would be up three games to one. But I have to say this series has fallen into a familiar pattern. The high powered offense is being stifled and frustrated. The underdog team has been able to withstand the early onslaught, long enough to capitalize on an opportunity. The besieged goalie is taking care of the first shot, his desperate defensemen are there to clear away the rebound. And when the clock winds down to zero, the lower seed has come away with an unlikely win.
I've watched Detroit go through this experience again and again. Against San Jose in 1994, Los Angeles in 2001, Anaheim in 2003, Calgary in 2004, Edmonton in 2006 and just last year against Nashville. But Detroit has always been the favorite. Now they're in the role of spoiler.
I'm sure this series is falling into a familiar pattern for Joel Quenneville as well. During time behind the bench in St. Louis, Colorado and Chicago, he's never solved the Detroit puzzle. One more loss and he'll be the first coach in NHL history to have an 0-6 playoff series record against one team. I imagine Detroit can't move to the Eastern Conference fast enough for him.
In game four, down by only a goal to start the final period, Chicago showed few signs of desperation. There was very little urgency. Chicago refused to shift strategy, repeatedly having their offense disrupted and turned back in the neutral zone. Meanwhile, time continued to tick away as Detroit morphed into an efficient defense machine, grinding out the last 20 minutes. I was stunned. Where was Chicago's passion and fire? Didn't they see the peril of going down three games to one? It did not look like it. In fact, I think Chicago still feels confident they are going to pull this off. Confidence is important, but it can also lead to complacence. And the young Wings are now feeling some confidence of their own.
When this series started, I was simply hoping Detroit could make things competitive. Now, I think it would be an all-time collapse if Detroit failed to advance. The Red Wings still may not be as skilled or deep as the Blackhawks, but Detroit is proving to be the better team.
After the Red Wings won their second of the series I felt confident they could get at least one more. The law of averages meant they'd break through on the power play at some point. And the Blackhawks had left themselves vulnerable for the classic underdog goalie shutout game. Both of those things came together for the game four win. Again, I like the averages for Detroit. You never want to give players like Datsyuk and Zetterberg three chances to eliminate you. Coming into this series Zetterberg had scored at least one goal in every single one of the 20 playoff series in which he's played. He has yet to score a goal against Chicago.
No comments:
Post a Comment