Author’s note: solid yellow jerseys and socks are bad. solid yellow goalie gear is also bad.
First Period
Not much happening the first few minutes, Larkin and Raymond have both been pushed over. Rude. Shots are 4-1 Preds at the five minute mark but none of them were dangerous. Zadina took a shot on goal, good for him.
Last Night Refs would have called some penalties by now, but looks like this game will be more loosey-goosey on the rules as Sam Ganger also gets acquainted with the boards by the Wings bench.
We finally get a call at 11:21 and it’s time for a Rrrrrred Wings powerplay! Trenin in the Timeout Terrarium for interference, aka a late hit on Hronek. Larkin and Bert up to their usual mischief, unfortunately the goalie is a Big Boy and is able to block Bert’s favorite top shelf powerplay spot. The second powerplay unit…let’s not talk about them.
6 minutes left and shots are only 6-5 Preds, Wings are moving a big faster but they are getting easily pushed off the puck. Even Seider got pushed off the puck and that’s rare.
Zadina swing and a miss on a pass from Leddy who led a rush out of the Wings zone after intercepting a pass. Fil maybe got slashed a little bit, but the net was open for him.
2:45 left Hronek gets a stick blade to the face and is bleeding from the left cheek. Duchene to the Bad Boy Box and Wings have a four minute powerplay. They end the first with too many drop passes and not shots.
Shots 9-7 Wings and score 0-0. We’ll start the second with some powerplay time.
Second Period
Another minute and change of powerplay time and there was one good setup where Saros ended up far away from the net but nobody was there to find the puck. Another failed powerplay, neat!
That failed powerplay looks to have give the Preds a boost but the shot total has sat at 11-11 for quite some time. Although the crossbar made a save for Ned that apparently wasn’t counted as a shot, that’s about as dangerous as its gotten.
Zadina fans on another shot but the Wings are putting some real pressure around the halfway point. Some good looks by Rasmussen and co.
First penalty kill of the game for the Wings. Veleno to the Villain Villa and a little bit of a scrum breaks out. Wings were doing ok on the kill but with a few seconds left Cousins scores and it’s 1-0 Preds.
Uh-oh. 2-0 Preds. Duchene and Forsberg give-and-go play leaves Duchene open in front of Ned for the shot. Seider trying to cover everything while Leddy got caught puck-watching.
Wheels falling off now as the Preds get another powerplay. Erne to the Evil Enclosure and it’s time for the Red Wings to try another penalty kill with 3 minutes and a bit to go.
Erne redemption! Charges out of the box to the goal and it’s a one goal game. Just over a minute left in the period and that was a big goal to stop the collapse.
13 seconds to go and Bertuzzi and Benning have a proper fight. Sort of, there was a lot of holding on and waiting. They’ll both take two minute minors and five for fighting. So it’ll be a while until we see Bert in the third.
But it’s ok because we’re a third period team!!!!!
Shots 17-16 and score 2-1 favoring the Preds.
Third Period
A quick first five minutes and the Red Wings will get another chance for a powerplay goal. Preds enjoy a puck over the glass delay of game penalty. Red Wings powerplayyyyy! And the powerplay ends when Ras goes to the Crimes Cage (where Bert still is) for holding. 4v4 for 42 seconds and then the rest will be a Preds powerplay.
Penalty killed! Just under 12 minutes to go. We find out Lindstrom was injured has been gone for some time and I did not notice and if anybody else says they did they’re lying.
Halfway mark and Ned makes his first really important save, thank you Ned. Unfortunately, the Preds keep pouring it on and eventually get their goal. Forsberg makes it 3-1 Preds with 9 minutes to go. In at least Seider’s defense, he was on his last legs on a two minute shift.
3:52 left and Ned heads to the bench. Raymond immediately gets two shots right off the faceoff. Wings saved from an empty netter when the puck bounces off a glove on the Preds bench. Not Brendan Smith level, but in the same spirit.
Duchene gets the ENG with 1:48 to go. 4-1 Preds.
1:25 and Givani Smith finds himself in a fight with Borowiecki who is not happy with G’s timing on a hit.
49 seconds left and Wings end the game on a powerplay just for fun.
FINAL: Preds win 4-1.