Game 2 in Boston didn’t quite go as well as Game 1. Detroit made mistakes in the first period that they couldn’t overcome and were all too willing to play Boston’s style of game. The series will head back to Detroit for a Tuesday night tiebreaker after Boston made the count 1-1 on the strength of a 4-1 win.
I don’t think the refs cost the Wings this game. I think a reffing standard like this one makes it slightly more difficult for the Wings, but I also think the Wings being all too happy to get themselves worried about extracurricular stuff makes it easier for the refs to hold that standard. Power plays were even for both sides, but Detroit put an 0-fer up with the man advantage while Boston scored two power play goals. Score-effect dictated shots were 35-29 in favor of Detroit.
CSSI Methodology Explanation here
Goaltending
Howard didn’t get a great deal of help by the people in front of him after gift-wrapping a goal for the Bruins in the first period. I think the implication that the first goal is what truly cost the Wings this game is an implication that the Wings are a mentally fragile team and I simply don’t believe that’s the case. Howard can’t give away goals though. That’s the big lesson here. They don’t need the Wings’ help.
The Goals
1st Period 07:28 – Boston Goal: Justin Florek (wrist shot) unassisted
Detroit makes a big mistake early and Florek gets a gimme on a turnover by Howard. After a long shift, Tatar barely gets it across the Bruins’ blue line to allow the Wings to start a change. Krejci gets to the puck and dumps it to center ice, where Riley Sheahan sees it as he’s going for a change and tries to help by passing it back to Smith. Unfortunately, Smith is playing at the puck as though Sheahan is going to ignore it (because he had his hands up going for a change). This leaves the puck to roll slowly into the Wings’ zone in on Howard as Smith goes to the boards to receive the pass under pressure from only Florek (Boston is also changing). Howard tries to get it around Smith and up the boards out of the zone, but instead hits his own D-man. The puck bounces straight down to Florek, who turns to the net and fires it in past Howard. This is a bad goal for Howard to give up. I’m going to clear the minuses for Smith, Miller, Tatar, Glendening, and Kronwall on this play. However, I’m going to give Sheahan a minus for crossing up his own D-man. I’m also going to give Tatar a half-minus for failing to get the puck deep. Finally, Smith is going to earn a half-minus. He gets crossed up two times on this play by mistakes from his teammates, but I’d like him to handle the buzz-bomb by Howard more effectively.
1st Period 10:35 – Boston Goal (PP): Reilly Smith (wrist shot) from Loui Eriksson and Patrice Bergeron
Detroit falls behind 2-0 early in the game on a power play net-front scramble goal that Reilly Smith finishes after the puck squeaks through Howard’s pads. Datsyuk loses the faceoff and Howard has to make a great recovery save on a rebound in front with the manpower still at 5-on-3. Chara then blows a cross-ice pass attempt over the net and Detroit gets a fourth man on the ice while Boston recovers just above the half-boards on the left side. Boston passes around the perimeter to get the defense moving (with Kindl now playing a forward position on the PK). Eventually, they set it up into the umbrella and Bergeron wrists it from the top-center of the zone through the box in on Howard with Eriksson on his doorstep. As Quincey and Lashoff collapse in to clear the crease, Eriksson gets a little chop on the puck that pushes it through Howard’s pads before he can get to it. Kindl crashes in too, but Reilly Smith has the inside position on him coming in from the net-side low spot. The wrong Smith gets his stick on the puck and sweeps it into the net. It’s a good power play goal utilizing the advantages where they’re best-set. However, Quincey and Lashoff are not crease-clearing effectively. Lashoff is too slow to get over and Quincey adjusts to this by leaving the back door open. Ideally, Lashoff destroys Eriksson before he gets his stick on the rebound and Quincey is in position to keep Reilly Smith from finding the puck. These mistakes will earn Quincey and Lashoff each a half-minus. I’m also going to give Datsyuk a half-minus on the lost faceoff. Gaining a clear on that gives the Wings a much better opportunity to have a full PK unit out their instead of relying on Kindl to play a forward position; it settles things down and reduces chaos in the Wings’ zone.
2nd Period 13:20 – Detroit Goal: Luke Glendening (tip-in) from Darren Helm and Drew Miller
The Wings get a bit of a lucky bounce through the neutral zone to get it in and then make the most of it with a smart play by Helm to wait for traffic to get to the net on his shot. This pays off at it bounces off Glendening and in. Quincey does a good job to prevent Iginla from turning into the middle of the ice and Smith is able to get it behind the net with some room. Smith’s pass to Glendening coming up through the middle hits off his skate, but bounces to Drew Miller coming up through center with Helm on the right wing side. Miller takes the middle lane and slows up enough to let Glendening come in on the left wing before dropping it to Helm and taking a lane to give Helm room to wait. This pays off as Helm turns, makes a quick move on Iginla to get to the dot, and fires the puck just as Glendening is going to the far post. The puck bounces off Rask, then off Glendening and in for the goal. I’m going to give Helm a plus for the good move and Quincey a plus for the good strip which drove this transition.
2nd Period 18:16 – Boston Goal: Milan Lucic (wrist shot) from Jarome Iginla and Torey Krug
Lucic recovers the two-goal lead for the Bruins on a nice bit of zone-entry passing that frees Lucic up for a shot that he powers past Howard. A Krug outlet pass to Lucic at his own blue line gets broken up by Helm coming back, but Campbell is there to body off Miller before he can get the puck deeper into the zone. Krug follows up and gets it to center, patiently waiting at the boards for things to develop before throwing it to Lucic on the opposite wing to move it into the zone. The defense backs off as Iginla joins Lucic across the blue line, receiving a drop pass from him above the right circle. Lucic crosses over after leaving this pass and gets the pass back from Iginla between the hash marks. Howard gets over to make a desperation save and even gets his stick on it, but not enough to keep the puck out of the net. Miller is the only player fully cleared here, as he’s moving the right direction. Glendening will keep only a half-minus on the Krug outlet, but he’s generally doing his job to pressure the puck. Quincey’s minus will be halved. This play develops a 2-on-1 against him and he’s doing his job positionally. He maybe gets away with taking a crazy risk to either go after the pass to Lucic or to attack Iginla at the drop pass point, but both of those choices turn this rush into something much uglier much earlier if he doesn’t do it perfectly. Smith is in no-man’s land on this play and will get a minus for covering nobody. Helm will earn an extra half-minus for not covering effectively. He’s supposed to be in this soft area just behind, but he should read that Miller has that man covered and Smith has already moved too far over to effectively cover Lucic.
3rd Period 02:27 – Boston Goal (PP): Zdeno Chara (wrist shot) from Jarome Iginla and Torey Krug
Chara gets a Holmstrom goal early in the third to salt it away. The faceoff takes a bounce to the side where Lucic steps through to get to it first and get the power play set up immediately. Krejci, Krug, and Lucic move it from point-to-point-to-wing and eventually back up to the right point (opposite side of the faceoff circle that started the play). Krug freezes at the top of the right circle with a windup for a slapper that he brings down before going to Iginla in the lower outside quadrant of the circle. Kronwall releases Chara at the front of the net to go square to Iginla, leaving the big man to be covered by Lashoff while Glendening watches Lucic between the hash marks. Iginla lets Kronwall coast near him and then simply saucers the puck into the net-front area. Howard gets his paddle down, by Chara is able to immediately pop the puck underneath him for the game’s last goal. This simple play is way too easy for the Bruins and it’s because Lashoff tries a traditional crease-clearing shove on Chara instead of a better play to get leverage on his stick. When Chara is turning to put this puck in, Lashoff has his stick in the air. This is going to earn Lashoff a minus.
Penalty Adjustments
1st Period 01:32 – Shawn Thornton (holding): The Bruins’ fourth line is trying to attack the puck behind the Detroit net when Thornton gets too excited about hauling down Kindl, going to the box for his trouble. This one isn’t well-drawn by Kindl as much as it’s a mistake by Thornton, But Lashoff takes a good body position to to help create this. Lashoff will get a half-plus.
1st Period 03:21 – Tomas Tatar (hooking): The Bruins rush 3 men up on a shorthanded chance. While Marchand carries, Chara goes to the far post covered by Tatar. Chara gets good position and Tatar gets his stick parallel to slow him down. Chara flops a bit and Tatar sits. Yeah it’s a guy going down too easy, but Tatar has no business having his stick there. Tatar will get a minus.
1st Period 08:15 – Jakub Kindl (interference): Boston starts a rush out of their own zone that looks like it’s going to develop quickly. Kindl decides to slow things down by pushing over a guy in the neutral zone nowhere near the puck. This is a batshit stupid play. Kindl will get a minus.
1st Period 09:54 – Danny DeKeyser (slashing): The Boston PP creates a lane from the low side to the net-front that creates a big scoring chance which is ended by a Danny DeKeyser stick slash. They don’t get any more obvious than this. DeKeyser will get a minus.
1st Period 18:48 – Tomas Tatar, Brad Marchand, Danny DeKeyser, and Torey Krug (roughing): Four guys get offsetting penalties on a post-whistle scrum as the Bruins crash into Howard’s crease. No adjustment. I expect the Wings to defend their netminder.
1st Period 20:00 – Brendan Smith and Zdeno Chara (roughing): Another post-whistle scrum sees Smith and Chara facing off for a potential fight that doesn’t happen and probably saves Brendan Smith’s life. No adjustment. I wish Smith had been able to get Chara to drop ’em and then skated away, but I think Chara was trying to do the same thing and, let’s face it, Chara is more a wily veteran than Brendan Smith is.
2nd Period 05:11 – Loui Eriksson (tripping): The third line puts up pressure in the offensive zone and threatens to get a scoring chance. Eriksson brings him down and sits for it. Alfredsson gets a plus for earning this one.
2nd Period 10:55 – Kevan Miller (cross-checking): The Wings’ fourth line gets a bit of a goofy chance on a net-front scramble that gets cleared out. However, in the confusion, Miller knocks down Legwand in front of the net and sits. I’m going to give Legwand a plus.
2nd Period 15:22 – Dougie Hamilton (tripping): Another period of good offensive pressure brings another power play. This time, Datsyuk strips Hamilton of the puck and gets a chance to bring it out front. Hamilton trips him to stop this and Datsyuk gets a plus.
3rd Period 02:09 – Kyle Quincey (roughing): Krejci elbows Quincey a few minutes after Boychuk violently interferes and Q sits for touching Krejci near the face. No adjustment. This isn’t a good call.
Bonus Ratings
-1 to Kyle Quincey: For as well as the D corps played in game 1, they weren’t good enough in this one. This adjustment will bring Quincey down from what I felt was not a deserved overall adjustment.
-1 to Johan Franzen: He’s going to have to show up in this series pretty soon and he deferred far too much in this game for what his job is supposed to be (and yes, Johan, you’re job is to score goals)
Honorable Mentions:
I thought Abdelkader and Legwand both did a good job on the forecheck while the Kid Line struggled with their assignments. Jurco looks close to breaking out too.
Current Game Chart
Playoffs Totals Chart
Screener’s Assist Totals
| Player Name | Screener’s Assists Totals |
