The Detroit Red Wings split their weekend, winning a 5-4 OT decision over the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday, but dropping a 4-3 OT decision the Minnesota Wild on Saturday.
Those results earned the Red Wings 3 points out of 4 this past weekend, but the Free Press’s Helene St. James notes that the Red Wings were particularly disappointed with having surrendered a pair of 3rd period leads–and 3 goals in total–due to opposition goals scored with their goaltenders sitting on the bench:
“It’s pretty evident we have to do a better job,” coach Todd McLellan said. “All six guys — the three forwards, the two defensemen and the goaltender — have to do a better job 6-on-5. It’s not something you’re able to work on a lot. So maybe we’ll spend a little more time on that.”
Patrick Kane saved the day against the Anaheim Ducks when he scored in overtime Sunday, delivering a 5-4 victory. The Wings were up by two goals as late as 17:44 of the third period. The Ducks had pulled their goaltender for an extra attacker with about four minutes to play, and the Wings learned they have to handle that better.
“I think just continue playing the way we’re supposed to,” Kane said. “It seems we get a little bit of trouble when we sit back a little bit. But we had plenty of chances to make it 5-2. So maybe that’s something we can look at — bearing down on those opportunities. We can be a little bit harder in those 5-on-6 situations with the goalie pulled, whether it’s rimming it hard or winning the battle to get the puck out. It’s happened two games in a row, but we can learn from it and I think we’ll definitely be better in those situations going forward.”
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“We just have to find a way to eliminate those empty-net chances,” Moritz Seider said. “Just a little more composure, try to get the puck out as quick as possible, be in the shooting lanes at all times. We will definitely learn, analyze and get better. “
It’s a hard thing to practice: No matter what, the intensity just isn’t the same in a scrimmage. Video can help, instruction can help — and the best teacher of all is the experience gained from this weekend: The Wings need more poise, or as McLellan put it: “Don’t get overexcited.”
Coach McLellan made a simple and succinct conclusion regarding the Red Wings’ inability to earn the kinds of goals that put opponents away for good–and the Wings’ ability to surrender the kinds of goals that earn opponents points:
“Both games we couldn’t find the dagger,” McLellan said. “We threw a lot of darts but we couldn’t hit the target. We have work to do.”
Continued; learning is a painful process in the NHL, and most teams learn by making mistakes.
The Wings got away with “learning experiences” on Saturday and Sunday while still accumulating essential points, but the regular season is going to get harder from here on out, so they can’t play as fast and loose as they have over the past two games.
