Heating Up: Red Wings 2, Flames 1

Feelin’ like the playoffs yet?

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Last night’s game was perfect. The Wings didn’t play perfect hockey, but the game was still perfect. It was perfect in the fact that the Wings found a way to gut one out, found a way to punch back against a team that is right on their heels, found a way to silence the red clad crowd in Calgary. Mistakes? Sure. Sloppy play early? Yep.

Perfect? Believe it.

Dare I say it, but the Red Wings look like they’ve finally embraced the fact that they aren’t going to just coast into the playoffs this year and are playing like each game means something. Funny thing is that each game DOES mean something and it’s about time that this team flipped the proverbial switch and got it together. We talked about how the Wings needed to channel their inner Vlad Konstantinov before the game, and this one was one ol’ Vlad would have loved to have played in. Back and forth. Physical. Tenacious. It had all the marks of a playoff game, and the Wings dug deep and got gritty and made it happen.

If there’s such a thing as a signature win, I’d say this was it. These types of games are the one the Wings have coughed up all season, coming close but never putting the opponent away. But when the final horn sounded in the Saddledome last night, it was the Wings with their arms up and the Flames looking at a three point deficit in the race for eighth. Add to it that the Wings have finally strung together a winning streak of more than two games for the first time in a few months, and it’s not hard to see why this one was so important to this team.

Signature games are made through signature plays, and there were plenty to choose from. Three acts, if you will. Act One was the stonewall from Jimmah on Curtis Glencross’ penalty shot, a sure dagger if it goes in. That fist pump will stay in my memory from some time, and even the Douche Canoe felt it coming, commenting on the TSN broadcast about how the Wings were re-energized and ready to threaten. Except there was no threatening, just execution. Pavel Datsyuk left no doubt about it, tying the game on a neat wrister from the slot, and the chase was back on.

Act Two may surprise you, as it quickly led into Act Three, but deserves it’s credit. Brad Stuart’s keep in the Calgary offensive zone late in the game didn’t look like much at the time, but it was easily the most underrated play of the game. Without that zone hold, Johan Franzen doesn’t uncork a blast that gets tipped in by Tomas Holmstrom and our heroes run the risk of being vanquished late in the production. But Stuart did his job and held the zone and made the most of his Act, setting the stage for the grand finale, although it’s one we are intimately familiar with.

Say what you will about Holmstrom, but there’s something comforting about seeing him parked in front of the net. It’s a constant, something unchanged that each of us can latch on to and embrace. Those deflections are a work of art in their own right, and none was as masterful as the one that got by Mikka Kiprusoff with just over a minute to play in the game. If the five feet in front of the goal are the orchestra, then Holmstrom is their maestro: crafting beautiful music in a way that nobody else can. And to set the record straight, nobody else can. Homer is the model and the master in front of goaltenders. Tipping pucks or presence alone, there is nobody better at doing what he does. And with a flourish, Holmstrom brought his teammates to their feet last night, capping a forceful comeback with a swift flick of his baton. Act Three conducted by Tomas Holmstrom. A masterpiece indeed.

Three in a row. Three point lead. 13 games to go. It’s only going to get tougher, and the Wings know it. But for one night, there was magic mixed in with the sweat and blood from a hard fought game, and the Wings found a way to grab it and make it their own.

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Production Charts

*The season totals are updated here and here.

Line Production

Special Teams Production

Tags: Brad Stuart, Calgary Flames, Curtis Glencross, Johan Franzen, Mikka Kiprusoff, Pavel Datsyuk, The Jimmah Howard Experiment, Tomas Holmstrom, Vladimir Konstantinov