Red Wings win home opener against Hawks
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| Blackhawks goalie Cristobal Huet, of France, (center) stops a shot Thursday night as the Detroit Red Wings' Dan Cleary (left) and Todd Bertuzzi look on during the first period in Detroit. The Red Wings won their home opener, 3-2. (AP photo) |
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DETROIT – Detroit still has the upper hand.
Red Wings goalie Chris Osgood made 32 save to help the Red Wings hold on for a 3-2 victory against the Blackhawks on Thursday at Joe Louis Arena, Detroit's home opener.
Kris Draper and Johan Franzen scored 1:34 apart late in the second period to put Detroit ahead in a rematch of Western Conference finalists.
"Ozzie had a heck of a game," Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "He played well against us in the playoffs, and he looked like the same goalie."
The Red Wings eliminated the Hawks from the playoffs last season in five games, then lost the Stanley Cup finals rematch to Pittsburgh.
The Hawks had a two-man advantage for 1:53 early in the second period and didn't score.
"The 5-on-3 turned the game for us," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. "It was a big win for our team to take some pressure off."
The Hawks controlled the game early, taking a 1-0 lead on Patrick Sharp's goal early in the second period, but Osgood prevented them from adding to the lead.
"Ozzie was real good," Babcock said. "I don't know if he played one game that well in the first half last year."
Quenneville, meanwhile, doesn't want his club to get down about its 1-1-1 start.
"If we keep playing like that, we'll find a way to win," Quenneville said. "We had puck-possession time, we had chances, we had zone time."
After Sharp scored, Nicklas Lidstrom tied it midway through the second on a shot that caromed off the Hawks' John Madden and past goalie Cristobal Huet.
"The turning point was the one that went off my skate into the net," Madden said. "Changed the momentum of the game. Before that, I thought we were in the driver's seat."
Kris Versteeg pulled the Hawks within a goal midway through the second period only to be denied a shot at overtime by Osgood.
Detroit opened the season by losing a pair of two-goal leads in losses to the St. Louis Blues in Sweden.
The Hawks seemed to improve their Stanley Cup chances with the signing of Hossa after his one-year shot at the Cup with the Red Wings didn't work out. Hossa, though, is out after having shoulder surgery.
"He's not skating yet," Quenneville said. "He's improving his range of motion and he's on schedule to return in late November."
