[Game Recap] Wings defeat Stars 6-1

The Detroit Red Wings (28-7-5) easily defeated the Dallas Stars (17-17-5) for their fifth straight win in a 6-1 contest. During this winning streak, Detroit has only allowed a total of seven goals.

With the dominating win, I wanted to highlight the key notes from the game:

• The Red Wings home shutout streak of 179:24 minutes was broken tonight when Loui Eriksson deflected a puck past Chris Osgood 38 seconds into the third period. The streak dated back to December 30th when the Wings defeated Chicago 4-0 and included Tuesday's 3-0 win over Columbus.
• WIM favorite Niklas Kronwall earned a playmaker (3 assists) in tonight's game. As a result, he was named second star of the game.
  
• The Wings now have 11 players with 20 or more offensive points. Kronwall and Dan Cleary joined that group tonight against Dallas. That stat is one of my favorites as it shows just how much depth the Wings have and that they don't have to rely on two or three key players for most of their offensive output, but expect and get contributions from a variety of players.
• All six Detroit goals were scored by different forwards. Three of Detroit's four forward lines scored at least one goal tonight including Kirk Maltby, who represented the fourth liners when he scored on a rebound from linemate Tomas Kopecky's shot.
• With Detroit's first goal of the game, Marian Hossa snapped an eight game scoring drought. He also finished the night with an assist on Tomas Holmstrom's goal. I don't know why I wrote that, it was actually his second goal in as many games. He did get two points against the Stars with a goal and an assist.
• University of Michigan alum Marty Turco remains winless at Joe Louis Arena in regular season games (0-8-2). I just don't get why he's had such a rough time at the Joe over his career when he was so successful in college. Turco made 14 saves before being replaced by Tobias Stephan during the second intermission.
  
• Pavel Datsyuk continues to dazzle with a goal and an assist tonight. He now has at least a point in 11 of the last 12 games. Impressive.
• Goaltender Chris Osgood seems to be bouncing back nicely after missing seven games with a groin injury. In the two games since his return, he has stopped 54 shots. He has faced 57.

I thought Mike Babcock made a great point when he spoke to the media after the game. He believes that the Wings have actually been a bit sharper of late and playing 60-minute hockey because the Winter Classic appeared to give them some more energy and passion. The Associated Press quoted him saying, "The emotional engagement has been much greater." It's hard to argue with that and it certainly has been great to see the team play hockey like this - reminds me of the Wings of the 2008 postseason. Earlier this season, we seemed to play a full game against the strong teams, but against the opponents that were struggling this season we didn't seem to be ourselves. I think the Wings have turned the corner in that regard.

Christy's Red Wing of the Game: Niklas Kronwall

Yes, I'm a little biased when it comes to Kronner but I thought he played a great game. He tallied three assists tonight and had at least three big hits that I can remember. My kind of players are the ones that can contribute offensively, play great defense, AND dish out the hits. Kronner hit all three Thursday night.

Niklas Kronwall

#55 / Defenseman / Detroit Red Wings

Height: 6-0

Weight: 189

Born: Jan 12, 1981

The Wings face off against the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday evening at 7 p.m. at Joe Louis Arena before embarking on a six-game, 15-day road trip.