Red Wings even series with Hurricanes

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Posted 9:22AM on Friday, June 7, 2002

DETROIT - This wasn't how the Detroit Red Wings envisioned the Stanley Cup finals going, not at all. They lost Game 1 to the underdog Carolina Hurricanes, then found themselves trapped in a Carolina-style game late in the third period of Game 2. Their $65 million cast of superstars and certifiable Hall of Famers was strangely quiet. Even as they went on power play after power play, they couldn't convert. In a series many predicted them to sweep, there was an ever-growing possibility they would lose the first two games at home. Talk about being caught in the eye of a storm. So, desperate to avoid going into an extra period against a team that rarely loses in overtime, the Red Wings generated goals by All-Star defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom and Kris Draper 13 seconds apart to beat Carolina 3-1 Thursday night and even the best-of-seven finals. In a series that so far has been played at Carolina's pace, with the low-scoring games the Hurricanes prefer and a much-greater emphasis on skill-neutralizing defense than creative offense, it was an explosive reminder of how good the Red Wings can be. Remarkably, they don't have a goal from three of the game's all-time leading scorers - Brett Hull, Luc Robitaille and Steve Yzerman. Goalie Dominik Hasek was off his game in Game 1, and was barely challenged in Game 2. But they already have three goals from their so-called Grind Lind, with Kirk Maltby scoring for the second straight game and Kris Draper ending an 18-game streak without a goal by scoring. ``When we're rolling all four lines, I'm sure they're concentrating on some of our top two-line players,'' said Maltby, who scored short-handed in the first period. ``We try to take advantage of it when we can and we've been very fortunate to contribute a little bit offensively.'' Most of all, the Red Wings are fortunate to be tied in a series the Hurricanes might be leading 2-0 if they had converted even one of their eight power plays in Game 2. Carolina's only goal also came short-handed, by Rod Brind'Amour in the first period. ``We'll leave this game here - and our power play, too,'' said Carolina coach Paul Maurice, whose team is 1-for-14 with the man advantage. Game 3 will be Saturday night in Raleigh, N.C., where, for the first time, a region far more accustomed to watching the Winston Cup in June will get to see the Stanley Cup. Now, the question is whether Carolina can recapture the momentum it has held for much or the series - or whether the Red Wings' brief but pivotal flurry allowed them to regain control of a series they were widely expected to dominate. ``I wouldn't say we're over any hump,'' Yzerman said. ``We're pleased to get a win and get the series to 1-1. But it's difficult. Both teams are trying to win the Stanley Cup, so I think it's going to be a real struggle right to the end in every game.'' Sound familiar, Red Wings? ``We had a lot of these games against Colorado (in the Western Conference finals) where you are hanging on one goal,'' Detroit coach Scotty Bowman said. ``That's what the playoffs are all about. The edge seems to go to the goalies.'' In Game 2, that was Hasek, who had to make only 16 saves and once went 12 1/2 minutes without seeing a shot. Carolina goalie Arturs Irbe was far busier, facing 30 shots and giving up three goals on nearly identical shots - high and to his glove side. Lidstrom's game-winner was a power play one-timer of Sergei Fedorov's pass at 14:52 of the third. Draper scored 13 seconds later on a rush that developed from the ensuing faceoff. Now, after two nearly identically played games, the team that dictates its style - either Carolina's patient persistency or Detroit's faster-paced aggressiveness - is likely to win Game 3. The Hurricanes' biggest worry might be that they know they can't win playing Detroit's game, but the Red Wings have shown they can adapt to Carolina's style. ``I'm not sure there's a blueprint to beating that team,'' Maurice said. ``They have the ability to change, to become a different looking team at times. The other 29 coaches in the league have tried to come up with a plan against them. The 116 points they had this season gives you an idea of how successful we have been.'' NOTES: Carolina is 6-3 at home in the playoffs. ... The loss ended Carolina's six-game road winning streak. ... Detroit is 2-for-15 and Carolina is 1-for-14 on the power play. ... The Maltby, Draper and Darren McCarty line has eight goals in nine games. ... Bowman needs one more victory to tie Toe Blake's coaching record of 34 Stanley Cup finals victories.