Sport-scan daily brief

2001-2013

767

255

11, Alexander Ovechkin

2005-2013

735

364

1992-2006

719

249

13, Igor Larionov

1989-2004

644

475

1997-2011

571

235

15, Evgeni Malkin

2006-2013

560

343

With the Stars

Defenseman Sergei Gonchar is the third all-time Russian great to play for the Stars. Defenseman Sergei Zubov played 12 seasons for the Stars between 1996-97 and 2008-09. Sergei Makarov, who was a member of Russia’s famed KLM line with Igor Larionov and Vladimir Krutov, played four games with Dallas in 1996-97.

Dallas Morning News LOADED: 10.05.2013

719512 Dallas Stars

GameDay: Washington Capitals at Stars

Posted Friday, Oct. 04, 2013

Staff

7 p.m. Saturday, American Airlines Center, Dallas

TV: KTXA/21 Radio: KTCK 1310/AM

Records: Stars 0-1-0, 0 points; Capitals 1-1-0, 2 pts.

About the Stars: Forward Rich Peverley, who has been sidelined with an irregular heartbeat, is expected to play against Washington. ... The Stars had 5:08 of power-play time in Thursday’s 4-2 home loss against Florida and had no power-play shots on goal. ... The Stars were 4-for-4 on the penalty kill. ... The loss to the Panthers spoiled the debut of Stars general manager Jim Nill, coach Lindy Ruff, prize acquisition Tyler Seguin and the new “Victory Green” uniforms.

About the Capitals: The Caps are 5-for-9 (55.6%) on the power play this season. ... Alex Ovechkin and Mikhail Grabovski share the team lead in scoring with 5 points. ... Washington claimed defenseman Alexander Urbom off waivers from New Jersey. ... The Capitals won Thursday’s home opener 5-4 in a shootout over Calgary despite trailing 3-0 and having goalie Braden Holtby pulled in the first period.

Star-Telegram LOADED: 10.05.2013

719513 Detroit Red Wings

Red Wings 3, Hurricanes 2 (OT): Why the Red Wings won on Friday night

October 5, 2013

By Helene St. James

At PNC Arena, Raleigh, N.C.

■ IN THE FIRST PERIOD: The Hurricanes, in their season opener, sprinted into Detroit’s zone off the opening face-off and nearly scored a minute in but Riley Nash’s backhander dinged off a goalpost. An early Wings power play had good puck possession but not much directed at Cam Ward. ... The Hurricanes converted on their third shot on net at 13:30. Streaking up the left boards, Jeff Skinner sent the puck cross-ice. Kyle Quincey missed intercepting it by an inch, and Radek Dvorak was able to get his stick on a redirect for a 1-0 lead. The Wings had eight shots on net to Carolina’s four.

■ IN THE SECOND: Todd Bertuzzi put a slap shot on Ward later in the period, but 16 shots in, the Wings still had nothing. Jimmy Howard made a big save on Patrick Dwyer with about 5 minutes left as Dwyer attempted to poke the puck in from just outside the crease. Brendan Smith was penalized for holding at 16:28 — at which point the ’Canes had 11 shots on net — but Pavel Datsyuk was the one with the offense, forcing a save from Ward on a breakaway. ... Nathan Gerbe converted on a power play with 1:49 left when Justin Faulk’s shot bounced off Danny DeKeyser and onto Gerbe’s stick, making it 2-0. The Wings had a 17-14 edge in shots.

■ IN THE THIRD: Justin Abdelkader scored at the 42-second mark after taking a pass from Henrik Zetterberg that careened through traffic. The Wings kept battling, breaking only to kill another power play. The Hurricanes showed good resilience, keeping up cycles in Detroit’s zone and making Howard work hard for his teammates. The Wings called a time-out with 1:17 to go, pulled Howard, and got rewarded. Zetterberg collected a puck last touched by Daniel Alfredsson, held the puck for a second, and made sure he got off a good shot. With 17 seconds left, the Wings had a 2-2 game. Shots after three periods were 34-24 for the Wings.

■ IN OVERTIME: Zetterberg was denied on a backhand, Alfredsson had one attempt turned away and Johan Franzen another. Stephen Weiss scored at 3:13, deflecting Franzen’s shot.

■ QUOTABLE: Zetterberg said: “We just wanted to keep doing what we were doing. Nothing more than we can do than just go out and keep playing and keep putting the puck at their goalie.” ... Mike Babcock said: “I thought we started great, had an excellent first period. We really felt like we didn’t deserve to be down, 1-0, but that’s the way hockey is. They were better in the second. At the start of the third, we didn’t execute, but we found a way to dig in and get it done.”

■ UP NEXT: Tonight at Boston.

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 10.05.2013

719514 Detroit Red Wings

With roster makeover, Detroit Red Wings want power play to be 'spot on'

October 5, 2013

By Helene St. James

RALEIGH, N.C. — The Detroit Red Wings have shown what a good penalty kill can do for a team, and are frustrated their power play has yet to show equal improvement.

They dropped to 0-for-6 after falling short on three attempts in Friday’s 3-2 overtime victory against the Hurricanes at PNC Arena.

“Our power play wasn’t good enough,” coach Mike Babcock said. “I really liked it in game one, I didn’t like it tonight, so we’ll make a couple of changes there. Just, not enough, period.”

That might include personnel changes; Babcock said he’d look at it on the plane to Boston. Having a popping power play against a team like the Bruins would be a boon, because “when you are playing a good defensive team, it makes it even more important,” Johan Franzen said.

The Wings’ power play has been something of a sore point for two seasons now, despite having some incredibly skilled personnel. Hopes remain that this season will see a resurgence, thanks to some new faces. Daniel Alfredsson is new to the right point, as is, really, Mikael Samuelsson, who was with the team last season but injured start to finish.

Stephen Weiss is new to the second unit, where he’s with big wingers Todd Bertuzzi and Daniel Cleary. The top forward group has Pavel Datsyuk with Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen.

“You want your power play to be spot on,” Babcock said. “Obviously Alfredsson, the way he shoots the puck, really brings a dimension that way. We need Samuelsson to do the same. We need all five guys on there working hard and shooting the puck and getting pucks back.”

Of Weiss’ group, Babcock said, “I would like to see them get it to the top and just shoot the puck. We should have good retrievals and a lot of crowding at the net with those two guys.”

Niklas Kronwall and, most often, Jakub Kindl, man the left points.

“It’s a lot of skill and guys that can read off of the penalty kill and take what they give us,” Alfredsson said “My role is pretty simple - if I get a lane, I’m going to shoot the net. If you have me and Kronner shooting from the point, sooner or later, they are going to have to respect that and open things up down low.”

The Wings have gone 9-for-10 on penalty kills, including 7-for-7 in the season opener.

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 10.05.2013

719515 Detroit Red Wings

Detroit 3, Carolina 2 (OT): Henrik Zetterberg, Stephen Weiss rally Red Wings to victory

11:03 PM, October 4, 2013

By Helene St. James

RALEIGH, N.C. — The Detroit Red Wings showed what their coach likes to call stick-to-it-ness, patiently working away until they could party.

Stephen Weiss completed a well-deserved rally when he scored with 1:47 left in overtime at PNC Arena Friday night, capping a 3-2 victory for the Wings after a 2-0 deficit. Henrik Zetterberg got the Wings past regulation with a mad-scramble goal that stopped the clock with 16.4 seconds left, a minute after Jimmy Howard had left his station.

■ Box score

At the end of the night, the Wings had a 2-0 start to their season as they packed their bag, Detroit Tigers playoff game on in the background, and headed to Boston for Saturday's game against the Bruins.

"We did a lot of good things," Zetterberg said. "I thought we should be able to score more than three goals, but we'll take it."

Zetterberg set up Justin Abdelkader's goal in the opening minute of the third period, after Radek Dvorak and Nathan Gerbe had scored twice on Carolina's first 12 shots.

"I thought it was a real good win for us and it was a real good morale win," coach Mike Babcock said, "because you understand if you just do good things, good things happen."

Babcock cited pressure in the offensive zone as a continuing concern, saying, "we're not hanging onto the puck long enough, not getting inside enough, to make it hard enough on the goalie for 60 minutes."

The Wings, who finished with 38 shots, showed how it's done in overtime, swarming around Cam Ward. Zetterberg threw a backhand on net, Daniel Alfredsson, who earned his first assist setting up Zetterberg's goal, trie on a wrist shot and Johan Franzen kept Ward busy with a deflection attempt.

Weiss picked up his first goal as a Wing when he made good on Franzen's rebound.

"First one is always big," Weiss said. "And especially being overtime, it's extra special. I'll remember that one for a long time."

The game was Carolina's long-awaited season opener, coming four nights after the some NHL teams got underway, but also against a crowd-drawing opponent. The Hurricanes had a good first shift but most of the period was dictated by the Wings, who got eight shots on Ward to the four seen by Howard.

Even so, the Wings fell behind when Dvorak scored after being left unattended to rush up the right side while Jeff Skinner carried the puck up the left boards, sending it across the ice, past Kyle Quincey's stick by a hair.

Gerbe doubled up Carolina's lead late in the second period. Justin Faulk sent a puck down low, where it bounced off Danny DeKeyser and straight to Gerbe, who dispatched it into Detroit's net.

The Wings finally saw something go in the opening minute of the third period. Zetterberg picked up a pass from Jonathan Ericsson in the neutral zone, maneuvered into Carolina's zone and up the left flank before firing a pass that shifted through traffic across the ice to Abdelkader, for a five-hole goal and a 2-1 score.

"Z was trying to find me," Abdelkader said. "I got the puck there and I just wanted to make sure I got it on net. It was bouncing a little bit, so I had to handle it for a second. Fortunate for it enough to go in.

"After that, we started to get some more chances, and we really came on. We did a lot of good things. We made a few mistakes, but it's early in the season. It was good to grind out a win."

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 10.05.2013

719516 Detroit Red Wings

Game thread: Zetterberg's heroics have Wings, Canes tied 2-2 in OT

By Posted by Brian Manzullo

9:30 PM, Oct. 4, 2013

The Detroit Red Wings look to start a winning streak tonight in Raleigh, N.C., as they play the Carolina Hurricanes (7 p.m., FSD).

The Wings are coming off a season-opening 2-1 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday at Joe Louis Arena. The Hurricanes, meanwhile, are making their season debut.

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 10.05.2013

719517 Detroit Red Wings

Detroit Red Wings learning about Carolina Hurricanes - but know all about Staals

3:57 PM, October 4, 2013

By Helene St. James

RALEIGH, N.C. — Years have passed since the Detroit Red Wings last played at Carolina, so tonight will need a bit of a primer.

The Wings take on the Hurricanes at PNC Arena (7 p.m., FSD), in what is the season opener for Carolina and the second game of the season for the Wings. The Wings are going with the same lineup that got them a 2-1 victory over Buffalo on Wednesday.

The Hurricanes are led by the Staal brothers, centers Eric and Jordan and goaltender Cam Ward. The defense is missing its biggest name, as Joni Pitkanen is sidelined by a broken heel.

Former Florida Panther Stephen Weiss said the key to the Staal brothers is that "you've got to work to earn your ice against them and be aware of them defensively."

The Wings haven't been here since April 6, 2011, thanks to formerly being in the Western Conference. So until there's more familiarity, there's outsourcing.

"You go through exhibition games and tendencies we know from the past, and then we go to our pro scouts, who know the players real well," coach Mike Babcock said after the morning skate. "We think we've got a pretty good handle on them. But until you've gone head-to-head, you don't really know. So you watch the morning skate and see who they're playing with and get prepared."

The Wings have Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg and Justin Abdelkader as their answer to Carolina's top grouping of Eric Staal centering Jiri Tlusty and Alexander Semin. "Semin is a world-class talent," Babcock said. "He can really pass the puck and shoot the puck, and he's a big body. It's a good group."

Jimmy Howard is starting in goal for Detroit. The Wings’ lineup shapes up as follows:

Forwards

Henrik Zetterberg - Pavel Datsyuk - Justin Abdelkader

Johan Franzen - Stephen Weiss - Daniel Alfredsson

Todd Bertuzzi - Joakim Andersson - Daniel Cleary

Drew Miller - Cory Emmerton - Mikael Samuelsson

Defense

Kyle Quincey - Brendan Smith

Danny DeKeyser - Jakub Kindl

Cam Ward gets the start in goal for Carolina, with the rest of the Hurricanes’ lineup expected to be:

Forwards

Jiri Tlusty - Eric Staal - Alexander Semin

Nathan Gerbe - Jordan Staal - Patrick Dwyer

Jeff Skinner - Riley Nash - Radek Dvorak

Drayson Bowman - Brett Sutter - Elias Lindholm

Defense

Jay Harrison - Ryan Murphy

Ron Hainsey - Brett Bellemore

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 10.05.2013

719518 Detroit Red Wings

Detroit Red Wings took too many penalties: 'We've got to clean that up'

8:45 AM, October 4, 2013

By Helene St. James

As encouraging as it is to know their penalty killers are primed, the Detroit Red Wings have a goal for their upcoming games: Spend less time shorthanded.

The Wings head into Carolina tonight with a penalty kill of 100% after debuting at 7-for-7. Niklas Kronwall and Jonathan Ericsson each logged nearly 6 minutes killing penalties Wednesday while dispatching Buffalo, 2-1, and three other Wings topped 4 minutes.

The worst stretches — or finest — were after Ericsson was called for closing his hand on the puck and Cory Emmerton for shooting the puck over the glass, which set up lengthy 5-on-3s. The Sabres got just two shots on net during their total of 2:22 of two-man power plays.

“We should put these guys away right away,” Johan Franzen said Thursday. “There’s no reason giving them life — well, they didn’t get any life, but they could have gotten some.”

Other Detroit calls included goaltender interference on Daniel Cleary for bumping Ryan Miller after he had come out of his crease. The call came as the puck went into Buffalo’s net. By the end of the second period, the Wings had been shorthanded for 11:36.

“We were in the box way too much,” coach Mike Babcock said. “You know at the start of the year they’re going to call it tight. Covering the puck with the hand, shooting it out are two for sure. I thought Danny Cleary’s penalty for bumping the goalie was no goal, but no penalty. We’ve got to clean that up.”

The first 5-on-3 against the Wings, which lasted 91 seconds, came while Henrik Zetterberg was in the box, and he’s normally the go-to forward for such stretches. But Joakim Andersson looked at home getting into lanes and blocking shots.

Still, there are less strenuous ways to win games, and a better path lies through five-on-five play — or power plays.

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 10.05.2013

719519 Detroit Red Wings

Red Wings rally late, win in overtime

Ted Kulfan

Raleigh, N.C. — There really wasn’t a better time for Stephen Weiss to score his first goal as a Red Wing.

Weiss scored at 3 minutes 13 seconds of overtime, tapping in a rebound goal past goalie Cam Ward, capping a dramatic comeback in the Red Wings 3-2 victory over Carolina.

“The first one is always big, and especially it being overtime, that makes it extra special,” Weiss said. “I’ll remember that for a long time.”

Before Weiss, it was Henrik Zetterberg who got the Red Wings into overtime.

Zetterberg set up Justin Abdelkader early in the third period, then scored with 16.8 seconds left in regulation, forcing overtime.

Zetterberg’s shot through a maze of players in front of Ward found the back of the net and sucked the air of a sellout crowd at PNC Arena.

“I just wanted to take a little extra time and get a good shot away,” Zetterberg said of his tying goal. “The first two (shots) I didn’t do that. I just tried to aim for the corner but it went through.”

Goalie Jimmy Howard made 23 saves to earn the victory.

The victory was the Red Wings’ second consecutive to open the season. More importantly, though, might have been the way they won, showing character and persistence on a night in which a loss seemed imminent.

“Ton of character,” Weiss said. “When you’re down 2-0 and there’s no panic in the dressing room, you know you have guys who’ve been there before and trust the system, trust the process it’s going to take to come back in a game like this.”

“Sometimes it won’t happen and sometimes it is and tonight was one of those games where it was good enough.”

Radek Dvorak and Oxford native Nathan Gerbe (power play) scored for the Hurricanes (0-0-1), both scoring in their first games with their new team.

“It was a real good win for us, good morale win,” coach Mike Babcock said. “If you keep doing good things, good things will happen, the game is 60 minutes long.

“We started great, had an excellent first period. We felt like we didn’t deserve to be down 1-0. But that’s the way hockey is. I didn’t think we were as good in the second.”

Abdelkader’s goal 42 seconds into the third period got the Red Wings to within 2-1 and put pressure on the Hurricanes

Zetterberg carried the puck into the Hurricanes’ zone, and found Abdelkader alone near the hashmarks.

Abdelkader shot a puck that appeared to be rolling past Ward, quickly getting the Red Wings back in the game.

“I wanted to make sure I got the puck, and it was bouncing a bit, but fortunately I got enough to have it go in,” Abdelkader said. “We wanted to get that first one to get things going. We started to get more chances, really came on, and huge goal there at the end.”

Not all was positive.

The Red Wings were scoreless on the power play for the second consecutive game, matching Wednesday’s 0-for-3 effort.

“Our power play wasn’t good enough,” Babcock said. “I like it in the first game, I didn’t like in this game. Just not enough (retrieval, shots), period.”

Babcock also feels the Red Wings still need to be harder on the puck, carry the puck deeper into the zone, and weren’t as crisp coming out of their zone against Carolina.

But a victory is a victory, especially a hard-earned one as this one was.

“That was a big win, a good character win,” Weiss said.

Extra scouting

Babcock was up against three potential Team Canada players he could be coaching in February at the Sochi Games — Carolina goaltender Ward and forwards Eric and Jordan Staal.

For Babcock, there isn’t much difference between scouting opponents or Team Canada candidates.

“You just do your job,” Babcock said.

Weather the storm

It could be a tired group of Red Wings who arrive in Boston for a third game in four nights Saturday, so Abdelkader feels the early part of the game will be crucial.

"We just have the weather the storm early," Abdelkader said. "Anytime you're on the road early, you want to get off to a good start and minimize the crowd and the loudness the arena as much as you can."

Friday's dramatic win will help, though.

"This was a good win," Abdelkader said. "A come from behind win, it'll help us as we move forward."

Red Wings at Bruins

Faceoff: 7 p.m. Saturday, TD Band Garden, Boston

TV/radio: FSD/1270

Outlook: The first of two games within a nine-day span between the Red Wings and defending Eastern Conference champion Bruins. ... Boston beat Tampa Bay, 3-1, in its opener. ... D Zdeno Chara, C Patrice Bergeron and G Tuukka Rask lead a powerful Bruins lineup.

Detroit News LOADED: 10.05.2013

719520 Detroit Red Wings

Healthy Samuelsson is no joke for Red Wings

Ted Kulfan

Raleigh, N.C. —The way Mikael Samuelsson fell flat onto the ice, it couldn’t been scripted any better.

As the Red Wings were walking onto the ice at PNC Arena for their Friday morning skate, Samuelsson forgot to take off his soakers and as he stepped, fell onto the ice to the thunderous catcalls and cheers of teammates.

"Just wanted to get a laugh out of them," said Samuelsson, unconvincingly. "At least that's my story and I'm sticking to it."

There was a smile and laughter to his answer, something Samuelsson was missing last season because of numerous injuries.

The fact Samuelsson made it through

training

camp without any injuries, then scored the Red Wings' first goal of the season on opening night gives him optimism going forward.

"So far, so good," Samuelsson said. "But it's only one game. You need to be healthy in this game. You need to be healthy, or you have no business in this league.

"You have to play. It's a long season but it's good to be healthy.

"It feels good to be part of the team."

The Red Wings feel Samuelsson can be an asset if he stays healthy. He still has one of the hardest shots on the team, he has size and plays with a bit of an edge to his game, along with a veteran's presence, that can be of help.

But Samuelsson has to find a way to stay in the lineup.

"The reality is he didn't play last year," coach Mike Babcock said, noting Samuelsson's four games in the regular season and five in the playoffs. "He's been away for a couple of years prior to that (having left via free agency). We need him to be an impact player."

Samuelsson is in a battle for playing time with several forwards who could be forced out once Darren Helm (back) and Patrick Eaves (knee, ankle sprain) return from the long-term injured list.

"They're battling for jobs," Babcock said. "Getting off to a good start is important for those guys."

As long as he's healthy, Samuelsson feels he can earn himself a job.

"If I don't believe in myself, nobody else is," Samuelsson said. "People can say what they want, but I haven't forgotten how to play hockey. I couldn't do what I normally do last season but I had reasons (injuries). You can't contribute the way you want when you're not healthy.

"But I feel good now when I wake up in the morning and that's a good feeling."

Alfredsson a go

Forward Daniel Alfredsson (groin) took part in the morning skate and pronounced himself ready to play against Carolina.

Alfredsson didn't practice Thursday back in Detroit because of a tender groin.

"I feel good, ready to go," Alfredsson said.

One of the reasons the Red Wings are optimistic the power play will thrive more so than last season is because of Alfredsson's powerful shot from the point.