Samuelsson sends Red Wings to finals
SAN JOSE: The Detroit Red Wings beat the San Jose Sharks 2-0 with two early goals by Mikael Samuelsson to advance to the Western Conference finals on Monday.
San Jose outshot the Red Wings and outplayed them for stretches, but Detroit goaltender Dominik Hasek made a number of good saves to help his team wrap up the series 4-2.
Detroit will rest for a few days before hosting the Anaheim Duck in the finals. The Buffalo Sabres face the Ottawa Senators in the Eastern Conference.
San Jose Coach Ron Wilson said he was disappointed the Sharks' season ended, especially after his team led 2-1 going into Game Four when Detroit scored late in the third period to tie the scores before winning in overtime.
"I'm shocked where we had put ourselves in the series and how we let it get away," Wilson told reporters. "That is where the series went right out the window."
Samuelsson started the scoring in Game Six with about four minutes left in the first period on an assist from fellow Swede Johan Franzen.
The Sharks had a chance to tie the game shortly afterwards when San Jose's Mike Grier scooped up the puck after Hasek mis-played it. He had an open goal until Detroit captain Nicklas Lidstrom lunged across the ice and knocked it away with his stick.
Hasek said the play came at the end of a long shift for Lidstrom but he credited the Detroit captain with finding the energy to hustle back and stretch far enough to prevent the Sharks from tying the game.
"He made a great save and saved a goal," Hasek said. "That made a huge difference."
The Sharks kept up the pressure but Detroit beat San Jose goalie Evgeni Nabokov again with about eight seconds left in the opening period when Samuelsson found the net after keeping the puck on a breakaway set up by a nifty pass from Pavel Datsyuk.
Red Wings coach Mike Babcock credited his team with killing off a number of penalties and withstanding a furious first period rush from a Sharks team eager to avoid another disappointing playoff result.
"They threw everything at us and we knew that was going to happen," Babcock said.
Agencies
(China Daily 05/09/2007 page24)
