• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Zetterberg, Osgood propel Red Wings past Blues

Nov 22, 2007 - 4:03 AM DETROIT (Ticker) -- It didn't take the Detroit Red Wings long to solve the St. Louis Blues' NHL-leading penalty kill.

Henrik Zetterberg scored the first of two Detroit power-play goals just 22 seconds into the game and Chris Osgood stopped 12 shots to lead the Red Wings to a 3-0 victory over the Blues on Wednesday in a battle of Central Division rivals.

St. Louis came into the game leading the league by killing off 91.2 percent of its penalties.

Zetterberg, who leads the NHL in shots, wasted no time getting one away - and scoring - against St. Louis.

That was all Osgood would need en route to recording his first shutout of the season and 44th of his career.

Osgood did have a few difficult saves, however.

He stopped Ryan Johnson on a shorthanded breakaway early in the second period and made a slick glove save on Eric Brewer's slap shot midway through the session.

"I've played on this team long enough. I've had a lot of nightS where I didn't get many shots," Osgood said. "I'm under the assumption that I won't get many shots, so I just stay focused on the puck."

Detroit dominated the first period, outshooting St. Louis, 10-4, but the only goal was Zetterberg's, which came six seconds after Brewer was sent off for delay of game.

St. Louis had killed off 19 consecutive power plays before Zetterberg's goal.

Zetterberg won a faceoff in the Detroit end, broke to the net, took a pass from Tomas Holmstrom and beat goalie Manny Legace with a quick wrist shot.

"After that first goal, it all went downhill from there," Legace said. "We've been playing great defensive hockey, but tonight, we came up against a great team."

Legace noted that the Red Wings had 10 power-play chances to the Blues' three.

"That's a potent power play that they have," he said.

Legace prevented the Red Wings from adding to their lead in the first period with several good saves, including a glove save on Brian Rafalski's shot from the point during a power play late in the period.

The Red Wings added two more goals in the second period while outshooting the Blues, 14-6.

Mikael Samuelsson gave the Red Wings a 2-0 advantage with a power play goal 5:16 into the session.

Samuelsson's wrist shot from the right faceoff circle deflected off Brewer's glove and beat Legace on the short side.

Dan Cleary, who assisted on Samuelsson's goal, skated in alone on Legace and flipped a wrist shot over his stick at 14:13.

Cleary and Samuelsson are on the Red Wings' second power-play unit, along with Johan Franzen.

"We have some good players on that second power-play unit," Cleary said. "We have confidence in ourselves to shoot the puck at the net. And we've played together long enough to know what everybody likes to do and where they want the puck."

Legace finished with 35 saves.

Detroit's total domination annoyed Blues coach Andy Murray.

"That's what happens when you don't skate and you don't play hard against a good team," Murray said. "I didn't think we had much game at all tonight.

"It starts with me when we don't play as hard as we can."

Detroit coach Mike Babcock was as pleased with his team's play as Murray was disappointed with his.

"We managed the puck well and didn't get into trouble," Babcock said. "And they got into a lot of trouble with the puck."