Detroit Red Wings Let Game 3 Slip Through Their Fingers

The NHL’s version of Nyquil, the Detroit Red Wings, had the Nashville Predators and their fans asleep for nearly 60 minutes of hockey last night, but failed to put them, and this series, to bed.

For the second straight game, Detroit squandered a 2-0 cushion as the visiting regular season champs watched two leads evaporate in a 5-3 game three loss.

What should be even more alarming for the Wings and their fans is watching Dominik Hasek continue to allow one questionable goal in each of the first three games.

With Detroit leading 3-2, Ryan Suter fired a low forty-foot slap-shot into the far corner past an unscreened Hasek. Seconds later, Nashville captain Jason Arnott, who was on the verge of being reported missing, ripped a howitzer from the top of the right circle to put the Preds on top, before Martin Erat sealed the game with an empty-net goal.

History has a habit of repeating itself, but it’s strange to watch it rewrite the same story in less than 24 hours.

On Monday night, the San Jose Sharks built a 3-0 lead in the first five minutes of game three against the Calgary Flames only to watch that seemingly insurmountable lead slowly evaporate en route to a 4-3 loss.

Detroit coach Mike Babcock had mentioned this collapse prior to last night’s game, so it’s any wonder how or why he allowed his team to sit on a lead instead of pushing his squad to drive in the final nail, which would have given his team a three-games-to-none series lead.

Another point that should give Wings fans reason to worry is how their team appears to have no answer for a team riding a wave of emotion.

After Nashville winger Alexander Radulov redirected Suter's point-shot to get his team on the board, the Predators responded by jumping all over the more seasoned and experienced Detroit club.

Energized by the now-awakened crowd, the Preds hit everything that moved and gave Detroit fits in their own end, working the cycle to crazed perfection.

Less than three minutes after the Radulov goal, J.P. Dumont pounced on a Wings giveaway in the neutral zone, and fed Michigan native David Legwand for a perfect one-timer to even the score at two goals apiece.

With five minutes left in the middle stanza, Detroit was able to hold off the surging Predators and regroup during the intermission.

Saved by the bell, the Wings were given a chance to catch their breath and steady themselves, similar to when Babcock was forced in calling a timeout during game two after the Wings watched Nashville wipe a 2-0 lead from the scoreboard. This tactic was more effective in icing the surging Predators than it was in resurrecting his own club.

The third period began with the Predators forcing the action from the opening faceoff. Detroit kept their composure and Pavel Datsyuk forced a turnover at his own blueline creating a two-on-one break.

Using Zetterberg as a decoy, the Wings leading scorer fired the puck past Dan Ellis to put his team back on top. The sold-out crowd at the Sommet Center fell silent, with the Predators bench looking visibly deflated.

Detroit continued to apply their highly effective puck-possession strategy while sending in only one forechecker, hoping to bottle the Preds in the neutral zone. For nearly 15 minutes of the final period, it would seem this approach was a wise one, until Suter scored his timely goal.

With a rejuvenated crowd behind them, Nashville burst from the coffin they were being sealed in, while the Wings stood idly by, content in watching a game they once had in control slip through their fingers.

The good news for Detroit is the production they’re receiving from their third and fourth lines. Kris Draper notched his second goal of the postseason, while Jiri Hudler continues to rack up points, scoring on a first period power-play.

Nevertheless, if Hasek continues to allow questionable goals and the team in front of him maintains a clinical approach devoid of emotion, Detroit will find it far more difficult to finish off teams that bring a full sixty minutes of work to the rink, instead of the ten that, evidently, were all Nashville required.