Heart

Last night, the Red Wings showed why they remain the gold standard franchise in Detroit. After 4 Cups, countless trophies, and over 30 years of fandom, the team still finds a way to surprise me.

After falling behind 3-0 in the series, most fans, namely yours truly, wrote them off.

Friday night they jumped on the Sharks early, scoring 3 first period goals. The Sharks eventually tied it up, forcing a white-knuckle finish. Despite the gut-punch of allowing the Sharks back in the game, the Wings buckled down and forced the issue in the final five minutes. It was a tenacity we've rarely seen this season from the Wings. They attacked San Jose with reckless abandon, pummeling the goal with shots. They finally broke through with less than 2 minutes to go, thanks to great work from Patrick Eaves (assist) and Darren Helm (goal):

Despite the sheer excitement of the Game 4 win, I just wrote it off as a proud team not wanting to end the season in front of the home fans. This series was following the same script as last season. Why would Game 4 be any different? I figured San Jose would dismantle the Wings in Game 5, just like in 2010.

It certainly looked like they would do just that. The Sharks completely overwhelmed the Wings for 40 minutes. It reminded me of the US/Mexico soccer games in Mexico City. It doesn't matter who's on the field, Mexico plays with superior confidence, speed, and skill. The US just tries to hang on. That was the Wings last night. They were barely hanging on. The Sharks maintained possession for extended durations, wearing out the Wings' defense. Howard did the best he could, but Devin Setoguchi finally broke through late in the 1st period to take a 1 goal lead. San Jose then caught the Wings on a bad change in the 2nd period, leading to a 2-on-1. These Sharks showed again that they can match skill with any team in the league as Ryan Clowe fed a perfect pass to Joe Pavelski to take a 2-0 lead. The stars seemed to align and the fans relaxed, as the Sharks had a 2-goal cushion compliments of regular Red Wing killers Setoguchi and Pavelski. This was the script as written by Sharks' coach Todd McLellan.

But it was not to be.

The Red Wings were not quite ready to cede this series. They quickly struck back, as wizard Pavel Datsyuk found an open Niklas Kronwall pinching in. Kronwall whipped his one-timer into the back of the net to stun the Sharks and their fans.

With less than a minute gone in the final period, the Sharks broke through once again, this time on a goal by Logan Couture. This 3-1 lead must surely be the death-knell for the Wings, right? Down two goals, on the road, and trailing 3 games to 1 in the series. Surely this was enough to destroy the will of even George Patton. The Sharks were poised to move to the next round.

But it was not to be.

During that final intermission, Babcock sensed his team overwhelmed by the Sharks' puck possession. Babcock opted to mix up the lines. He reunited Datsyuk and Zetterberg. The move ignited the Wings' offense. Despite giving up that early goal to Couture, the Wings shot back three minutes later. After some good work by Datsyuk (again), Zetterberg found Red Wing whipping boy, Jonathan Ericsson, pinching in. Ericsson quickly shot the puck and easily beat Anti Niemi for the Wings' 2nd goal.

The Wings did not let up. They spent most of the next 90 seconds in the Sharks' zone. Wings' 2nd liners, Cleary and Bertuzzi, rushed up the ice with Kronwall, apparently auditioning for a forward spot next season. Kronwall, after a nifty move, whipped a shot that deflected behind the net. Cleary corralled the puck and... well... this happened:

That's a vintage "playoff goal." It ain't pretty, but it counts just as much as this one. That Cleary goal changed everything. The Sharks seemed stunned. I know I was. The Wings finally rattled a team that appeared to have unwavering confidence.

Perhaps this was a taste of the Sharks' own medicine. In Round 1, the Sharks came back from a 0-4 deficit to beat the LA Kings in Game 3. This was just a 2-goal comeback, but, with the Wings' on the brink, the pressure was greater.

Up to that point, the 3rd period was marked by end-to-end action. Yet, with the score tied, both teams went a bit conservative. The Wings opted for the dump-and-chase which is never their strong-suit. It did work for the game-winning goal, though. The Wings dumped the puck and never seemed to fully regain possession. The Sharks had plenty of opportunities to clear their zone, but Datsyuk and Zetterberg refused to give up. They pressured the defense into a turnover. Datsyuk fended off two Sharks and found a wide-open Lidstrom.

Vintage Pavel and vintage Homer causing a ruckus in front of the net.

Unlike previous games, the Wings maintained their slim 3rd period lead. San Jose was even granted a power-play late, thanks to a bone-headed elbow by Abdelkader. But the Sharks had difficulty getting just one quality chance. In the waning minutes, the Sharks did their usual cycling deep in the Red Wings' zone. Howard stood tall and didn't concede. All told, Howard made an impressive 39 saves and kept the Wings in shooting distance.

With the Wings still down 3 games to 2 in the series, they'll probably ultimately lose. As we've heard ad nauseum this week, only 3 teams in the history of the NHL ever recovered from a 0-3 series deficit. Yet, for one glorious game, the Red Wings stunned the hockey world and proved they still possess the heart of a champion.