Red Wings Take 2-0 Series Lead Over Flames
Posted April 15, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
If the Calgary Flames are making the next round of the NHL playoffs, they need to start work immediately.
Calgary found themselves in a 2-0 series hole Sunday afternoon, after the Detroit Red Wings jumped all over them in what ended as a 3-1 win for the boys from Motown.
Pavel Datsyuk and Nicklas Lidstrom scored within the first four minutes and they never looked back against a Calgary team that has struggled scoring at many points during the season.
It didn’t help that Calgary took five penalties in the first eight minutes.
That will be the first thing they’ll have to change when Game 3 goes Tuesday night in Calgary, and the Flames can only hope that returning home where they won an NHL-leading 30 games this year will help them slow the team with the best record in the Western Conference.
Calgary ‘s lone goal came from prized defenceman Dion Phaneuf, who scored early in the second period on a shot that was deflected and fluttered past Dominik Hasek’s glove.
Flames goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff did his best to keep the margin at one goal and give his team a chance to win by making 33 saves through two periods, but in the end Calgary simply couldn’t close the gap before Detroit opened it wider. Kiprusoff finished with 48 saves, but needed to make at least two more.
Six minutes into the final period Detroit rookie Valtteri Filppula followed up his goal-scoring debut in the playoffs with a shot off a rebound and Hasek needed to make only 14 saves to get them the rest of the way.
In other NHL playoffs action:
The Ottawa Senators beat the Pittsburgh Penguins by a score of 4-2.
The Anaheim Ducks beat Minnesota Wild by a score of 2-1.
Vancouver Canucks beat the Dallas Stars by a score of 2-1.
