Datsyuk’s Point Streak Snapped as Wings Beat Wild

Detroit Red Wings center Pavel Datsyuk was held without a point for the first time in eleven games but the Red Wings were still able to defeat the Minnesota Wild, 3-1.

After a scoreless first period, Detroit got two goals in the second period to take the lead.

At 7:28, Brendan Shanahan put in the rebound from a Jiri Fischer shot. After the shot from the blue line, Shanahan picked up the puck in the left circle and whipped it through Minnesota goalie Manny Fernandez’s pads.

Just 1:58 later, with Detroit on the power play, Jason Williams gave the Red Wings a two-goal lead. Henrik Zetterberg got the puck in the left circle and Williams pinched in from the point, getting open for Zetterberg to send a cross-ice pass to the right circle. Williams lifted a shot over Fernandez’s left shoulder for his sixth goal of the season.

The Wild, after being outshot 31-10 in the first two periods, came out strong in the third and pulled within one on a power play goal at 8:26. Randy Robitaille sent a shot along the goal line that bounced off Detroit netminder Manny Legace’s pads and into the net.

The Red Wings regained their two-goal lead just 3:16 later, when Johan Franzen scored after a string of tape-to-tape passes got the puck into the Minnesota zone.

Chris Chelios started with the puck behind the Detroit net and sent it to Franzen. Franzen sent it back to Chelios who sent it up to Kirk Maltby in the neutral zone. Maltby got it to Mikael Samuelsson, who broke into the Minnesota zone and sent a long shot on Fernandez. The puck was kicked aside but Franzen skated in alone to pick it up and whip it into the goal.

Both teams finished the game 1-for-3 on the power play. Legace faced only 17 shots, making 16 saves. Fernandez stopped 34 of the 37 shots he faced.

Detroit will be back in action on Sunday night, when they start a Western Canada road trip in Vancouver.