Looking Back at Game 6

It's hard to really be that upset with how the Red Wings played last night. They played great hockey but were just edged out by the Penguins. Marc-Andre Fleury got a little help from his teammates and the pipes in a great effort in net to force a 7th and decisive game.

Game 6 Analysis

• Rob Scuderi played the game of his life for the Pens last night and probably saved their season. There was the stick save in the crease turned kick save. It's hard to take anything away from him on that play so I won't. Another play he made that was just as good came in 3rd period robbing either Hudler or Lidstrom on a rebound given up by Fleury on a Zetterberg shot. Scuderi blocked 4 shots on the night and Brooks Orpik added 6 for an incredible defensive performance from the Penguins
• Not to be outdone, the Wings played great defensively all night long too but the two biggest mistakes cost them the game. Osgood was great in net but was let down by the defense at times. The first goal resulted from Lebda jumping too far up in the attack and a quick pass to Jordan Staal in the neutral zone left Ericsson alone (for the second time in the series). We all know what happened next
• The second goal came off of another defensive lapse. Tyler Kennedy took the puck behind the net and Mikael Samuelsson came up to pressure him as Kennedy came from behind the goalline, but decided to peel off towards the boards in anticipation of Kennedy doing the same. Kennedy instead headed towards the goalmouth and banged home a rebound for a 2-0 lead for the Pens. Bad play by Sammy and it ultimately cost the Wings the game.
• Kris Draper's goal was somewhat relieving to see. After dropping Abdelkader out of the lineup in favor of the red-bearded veteran, it was good to see it payoff on the scoreboard instead of just the face-off column. 
• It's hard to deny that Henrik Zetterberg is one of the best players in the league. He's not really broadcast as such compared to Crosby, Ovechkin, or Eric Staal, but Hank is a dominant player no doubt. Zetterberg played great defensively--that's redundant I think--but also was force in the offensive zone. The shot that rang off the post came while Hal Gill's stick was over top of his, and he still almost scored. I have a feeling Zetterberg could be the decisive factor in Game 7, just like he was in Game 6 of last year.
• Pavel Datsyuk continues to prove his worth to the team. Datsyuk showed last night how he can be factor in the game even when he's not in the boxscore. He played great defensively and in the offensive zone was a stickhandling monster, making Penguins defenders look clueless. In my opinion, if Datsyuk was in the whole series (and the whole playoffs) this thing would be over already and there would be another parade in Hockeytown. But he hasn't been in, and there's a Game 7 to worry about before a parade can be planned.