DETROIT — Patrick Kane, whose pivotal exploits earned him the nickname “Showtime,” is accustomed to playing the hero, but after scoring the game-winning goal in overtime in Tuesday night’s 3-2 win over the Senators, Ottawa, he relied on the stars of the evening. .
Anton Forsberg had been excellent in the Senators’ bullpen, and the Red Wings hadn’t shown their best for most of the night, but when Jake Sanderson went to the box for hanging two minutes and 10 Seconds into the extra session, Detroit’s path to victory was clear and Kane strutted his stuff as only he could.
Dylan Larkin won the tie. Kane paused for a moment, dusted the puck, then flicked the puck past Forsberg’s blocker. To celebrate, he got down on his knees to perform a celebratory pinwheel punch, before crossing himself and pointing to the sky. It was not a sudden profession of devotion but rather a tribute to a coterie of nuns who had made the Jumbotron famous during the evening.
“I mean, it’s always fun to play overtime, right?” said a smiling Kane, about 20 minutes after his winning goal, and it’s not hard to see how he arrived at that perspective. Kane hardly needed the sign of the cross to mark himself as blessed: the shot, the hands, the composure and the embrace of the biggest moments of the match already made it clear.
Rick Osentoski, Imagn Images
“It’s hard to score in this league,” said forward Joe Veleno when asked about his own exuberant celebration after equalizing in the third period (which Kane described as the second best of the night, probably behind his), before nodding to Kane. , sitting next to him on the podium. “Maybe not for him.”
“I’m honored to be his coach to tell you the truth,” Kane’s Todd McLellan added. “You watch him all these years and try to figure it out all these years. I’m glad I don’t have to do that. His balance with the puck is uncanny – how he can slow things down, speed them up. Probably an under shot -estimated I never gave him enough credit for a shot like that, he leads quietly, goes about his business, and everyone follows, so yeah, it’s good to have him there, that’s it. is sure.
Of course, overtime is fun for blessed Kane, for whom three-on-three is little more than a playground and an almost unfair four-on-three power play. “No matter what happens, you have a chance to get the puck and create with so much ice,” he said. “And then when it’s four-on-three, especially in that situation where we’re winning a faceoff, you’re looking to create from the toss… It’s nice to see him come in.”
As a collective, Detroit wanted to show verve for most of the evening, and the team shorthanded struggles– trending in the right direction under McLellan’s guidance – rallied, Ottawa scoring on one of its two power plays and moments after the other expired to build a 2-1 lead over two periods. The Red Wings also had to deal with the loss of starting goaltender Alex Lyon to injury after the first period. Ultimately, though, none of that was enough to dim Showtime’s spotlight.
“I didn’t think we skated as well tonight as we did in some other games, and that’s going to happen here,” McLellan said. “Maybe you don’t have your legs. Maybe the team is hanging on, holding on – your opponent is hanging on, holding on a little more, there’s more to fight for. I didn’t think we had climbed the ice in units of five, but we still found a way to win a game when we were down by one point going into the third.”
With the win, Detroit improved to 18-18-4 for the season, a measure of mediocrity that is actually invigorating for a group that spent its season below even that modest mark.
“I think it’s a really good thing, but .500 is just .500, it doesn’t really get you anything in the league,” McLellan said of his team’s record. “But it’s important to go back like we did. I told the players, ‘Stop worrying about wins, losses, streaks and playoffs and just play the game. Make mistakes.’ Play well. We’ll fix it the next day.” And later we’ll see the standings. So I’m aware that we’re at .500, but I’m not too worried or too excited about it.”
Kane, meanwhile, expressed pride in the Red Wings’ rapid rise and optimism for what comes next, saying, “It’s great to see how we’ve kind of gotten back to that position. . I think a month ago, if you wanted.” I told us that we would be in this position, that everyone on the team would have accepted it and… (we) have half a season to continue.”
If McLellan is to be believed, Detroit will continue to follow Kane for more Showtime over the next 42 games.
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