Red Wings win second in a row against Canadiens

Photo by: Dave Reginek/Getty Images

Jared Coreau got his second shutout of the season in another solid defeat of a powerhouse team. The Detroit netminder made 18 saves on the day to give the Red Wings a 1-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens at Joe Louis Arena Monday. The two-game winning streak over strong teams has Detroit in the positive with Tomas Vanek getting credit for the lone goal.

The Red Wings carry plenty of momentum to be at their best against Montreal. Their rush to win 6-3 against the Penguins on Friday got them back to victory with the hope of more to come. Jared Coreau got another win against the Penguins making big saves while his offense went to work on Marc Andre Fleury. They hope to do so against Price who has been a strong obstacle in their path to scoring. Montreal won the last two making this the last time that the Red Wings could get a win in their arena before the move.

Nick Jensen knew the mission at hand and nearly had one for his own on a quick attack to Price in net for Montreal. They gained a power play just a minute later that unfortunately did not produce a lead. They managed just one shot on goal that was a cause for concern. Montreal took their chances in the Detroit zone with Shea Weber launching a shot that broke the stick of Detroit’s Luke Glendening. Though they didn’t score on the Red Wings they were a force with plenty of momentum to change the game at any moment.

With eight minutes to go, Detroit’s PK was challenged on their fun mission of stopping the Canadiens. Going back on even strength wasn’t a bad thing for them as they almost had the lead by one of their rookies. The Red Wings gained a turnover just before entering the Montreal zone where Andreas Athanasiou went in all alone going in for a shot on Price’s left side. The Habs netminder made the dive blocking the shot in what could have been a strong statement. They finished 20 minutes outshooting Montreal 6-4 despite being outdone on the faceoff dot where they won less than 30 percent.

Their faceoff wins had to be improved and as they started the second, Detroit increased their shots but trailed the Canadiens. Three minutes in, the Red Wings got another two minutes to make a change in the score but the Habs denied them the opportunity. They used the time back on even strength leveling the playing field for more scoring chances. While they still trailed, Detroit spent plenty of time in the Montreal end looking for something to happen.

In the final two minutes, it was a drive by Danny DeKeyser who watched his shot go through traffic going off the leg of Vanek. Vanek turned to the net to see the puck go behind Price to get the 1-0 and his 12^th of the season. The Austrian increased his points streak to six games while giving the Red Wings an advantage going into the third.

It was a slow pace for the two teams as shots to the net were lessening as the period went along. The Red Wings had the Habs down to just one through eight minutes while they managed four at Price. Their third power play of the game allowed them time in the Montreal zone but their attempts were stopped by the Habs.

Detroit went 0-4 on the man advantage but still held the score in their favor with four minutes to go. Time became their support to holding the one goal lead and finding victory if they could hang on. Montreal is known to score in the late stages of the game but with three minutes to go, they remained out front. Montreal was running out of time to pull Price from the net and get six men on. Detroit controlled a large part of the ice pressuring the Canadiens until he found time. 55 seconds were left to go with Detroit careful to make their moves wisely. Coreau made the important saves that allowed them to clear the puck and guarantee the Red Wings another win at home.

For Coreau, his lucky streak for the team has worked out for yet another moment where the crowd more than left pleased after the game. The 25 year old third stringer made 16 saves during even strength and stopped two on the power play. “It feels good going up against a goalie like Carey Price and he’s fantastic and it was a good goalie battle,” Coreau said to Fox Sports Detroit reporter Trevor Thompson. “We made a lot of blocks all night and it helps me out and you need those if you’re going to get a shutout. The biggest thing is that we won 50/50 battles and we made it hard in front of both nets.”