For one period Saturday night at the Pepsi Center, when Colorado got power-play goals from Ruslan Salei, Ryan Smyth and John- Michael Liles to take a three-goal lead, it seemed as if the Detroit Red Wings might have expended too much time and energy assembling their kids’ Christmas toys before heading out on the road to Nashville and Denver.
But on what was a highly entertaining night of hockey in front of the Avalanche’s sixth sellout of the season, the Red Wings roared back to tie the game with three goals in a span of 3:57 late in the second period — before the Avalanche ultimately skated away with a 4-3 shootout victory.
Avalanche goalie Peter Budaj, who stopped 41 of the 44 shots he faced in regulation and the five-minute overtime, didn’t let the puck in the net in the shootout. For the Wings, Pavel Datsyuk opened with a shot that caromed off the post before Budaj made saves on Henrik Zetterberg and Jiri Hudler, allowing Wojtek Wol-ski’s shootout-opening success against Detroit goalie Ty Conklin to stand up for the win and the second point that came with it.
“Thank God we were able to hold the game to 3-3 and get it to the shootout,” Budaj said. “And then ‘Wolie’ scored a big goal, and I made some saves, so it feels great.”
After the Wings won all four games between the rivals in the 2007-08 regular season and then swept the overmatched Avs in the Western Conference semifinals, Colorado has won both of the games against the Stanley Cup champions so far this season, including a 3-2 victory at Detroit on Dec. 15. Detroit also lost at Nashville on Friday night, but the Wings had won three straight going into the Christmas break.
“They’re a good measuring stick for us,” said Smyth, who had an assist to go with his goal and now has two goals and four assists in the past two games. “Specialty teams is obviously a big part, for both sides.”
Some things in life are predictable. It will snow in the Rockies in December. Thousands of red-clad former Michigan residents, none of whom plan to move back soon, will show up for Red Wings games in Denver — as they did Saturday night. And when one NHL team gets a flurry of power plays, as the Avalanche did in the first period, the skate will be on the other foot soon.
So when the Wings drew the first four and seven of the first eight minors from referees Dennis LaRue and Brad Watson on Saturday night as Colorado took the 3-0 lead, it wasn’t much of a shock when the Wings had all four of the power plays the rest of the game.
“We knew they were coming,” Avalanche defenseman Adam Foote, who drew hooking and slashing calls, said of the penalties. “It’s just the way it is. They have a great power play and we didn’t fold.
“You know momentum. We had all of it, and then they got a couple of quick ones and it changed the momentum, but we were able to stay in it.”
Said Colorado coach Tony Granato: “I thought the entertainment, no matter which two teams were playing, it was a heck of a hockey game to watch. We knew it wouldn’t be easy, but we stayed at it. They threw a lot at us as the game moved on, but Peter was solid.”
Terry Frei: 303-954-1895 or tfrei@denverpost.com
Three stars
1. Tomas Holmstrom.
Pesky Detroit winger had a goal and two assists.
2. Peter Budaj.
Avalanche goalie stopped 41-of-44 shots in 65 minutes, then put up a goose egg in the shootout.
3. Ryan Smyth.
Avs winger had a goal and an assist.
What you might have missed
The sold-out Pepsi Center crowd seemed to include the most red-clad Detroit fans ever to get into an Avalanche- Wings game in Denver.
Up next
Vs. Nashville, the Pepsi Center, Monday, 7:30 p.m.
Terry Frei, The Denver Post
