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Swedish contingent leads Red Wings to 10th straight home win

Feb 3, 2007 - 5:29 AM DETROIT (Ticker) -- The St. Louis Blues did all they could to extend their road winning streak. But the Detroit Red Wings had a trio of Swedes that were singing a different tune.

Tomas Holmstrom, Henrik Zetterberg and All-Star defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom combined for three goals and seven assists and Kris Draper netted the winning tally while shorthanded as the Red Wings posted their 10th straight home win, a 5-3 triumph over the Blues.

Entering having won three straight road games and five of its last six away from home, St. Louis answered goals by Detroit in each period, resulting in a 3-3 tie midway through the third. However, Lidstrom - whose next tally will be the 200th of his career - set up Draper for a shorthander with 6 1/2 minutes left in the period, sparing the Red Wings their first loss at Joe Louis Arena since December 12 against Ottawa.

"Sure, we've got to pick it up on the road, but we're comfortable at home," Holmstrom said. "Usually on the road, you can play more relaxed, but it seems like at home we get it going."

The assist was the Detroit captain's third of the game. The four-time Norris Trophy winner also set up both goals by Holmstrom, who recorded his third multi-tally performance of the season in extending his goal-scoring streak to three contests.

"I don't think too much about it," Holmstrom said of his streak. "I just go out there and play."

Countryman Zetterberg added a tally and three assists and Daniel Cleary reached the 20-goal mark for the first time in his career with an empty-netter for Detroit, which improved to 4-0-2 against St. Louis and a league-best 24-3-1 when scoring the game's first goal.

Despite the win, the Red Wings were not pleased with their performance.

"Tonight was one of those nights where, as a team, for whatever reason, we just weren't in sync," Detroit coach Mike Babcock said. "We didn't have everyone going, but we had enough going to get a win. That's what being a team is."

"In the end, we won the game. It's most important," Detroit goaltender Dominik Hasek said. "However, I feel like we made many mistakes and many turnovers. Sometimes it looked like everyone was on a different page."

Lee Stempniak, Keith Tkachuk and Ryan Johnson tallied for the Blues, who have dropped three straight overall and fell to 7-3-3 on the road under coach Andy Murray.

"This was a winnable game for us," Tkachuk said. "Anytime you go into the third period with this team tied, you're in a good position. We know how tough it is to win here."

St. Louis, which went 0-for-6 on the power play, is scoreless in 31 man-advantage opportunities against Detroit this season.

"Special teams, that was the difference," Tkachuk said. "Our power play didn't get it done at the end of the game."

When asked about his team's success killing penalties against the Blues, Babcock brought up the Red Wings' inability to deny the San Jose Sharks with the man advantage.

"Two extremes," said Babcock, whose team has yielded 11 power-play goals in 22 opportunities at San Jose. "Every time we go there to San Jose, we give up a touchdown, and these guys can't get one. It's just the way it's been. I like to think the penalty kill has really gotten better and better, our special teams have gotten better and better as the year's gone on. But I do believe our best work is yet to come."

Zetterberg opened the scoring 33 seconds into the contest, carrying the puck down the left wing and lifting a backhander into the top right corner of the net for his 21st goal. But Stempniak drew the Blues even just 33 seconds later, beating Hasek to the stick side with a wrist shot from the right circle.

St. Louis thought it took the lead at 7:43 of the second as captain Dallas Drake poked a loose puck into a vacant net at the right goalpost. But the goal was waved off as Johnson was given an interference penalty for barrelling into Hasek and knocking him out of the play.

Holmstrom gave Detroit a 2-1 edge at 8:29, deflecting Lidstrom's blast from the left point past former Red Wings netminder Manny Legace as Johnson sat in the penalty box. However, the veteran center atoned for his miscue with 5:16 to go in the session, sliding the puck under a sprawled Hasek for a shorthanded tally.

Having also scored twice against the Blues on October 28, Holmstrom netted his second of this contest on a partial breakaway at 7:42 of the third, putting the Red Wings ahead, 3-2.

"I saw Hank (Zetterberg) had the puck and I saw an opening," Holmstrom said. "He passed it to me and I used my speed on the right side, and it went in. Manny poke-checked and I got it high up."

The lead lasted just 2:14 as Tkachuk tipped in defenseman Dennis Wideman's shot while standing in the low slot for his 16th of the season.

With blue-liner Danny Markov serving a tripping penalty later in the period, Draper and Lidstrom broke out on a 2-on-1 rush. After receiving a pass, Lidstrom fired the puck toward the net from the left circle, and Draper batted it in at the right post for the decisive tally.

"We played a great game from top to bottom," Legace said. "A couple unlucky goals."

It originally appeared Lidstrom's shot went in off the post for his 200th career tally, but replays proved Draper knocked in the puck.

"I was kidding with Nick on the bench, asking if he thought it was going in if I didn't touch it," Draper said. "He said, 'It doesn't matter, you have to make 100 percent sure it's going in.'"