Red Wings Fall To Nashville
Injured Mike Dunham doesn't have to hurry back. Tomas Vokoun is doing a pretty good job in goal for the Nashville Predators these days.
The rookie goalie, subbing once again for Dunham, made 50 saves as the expansion Predators stunned the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings 5-3 Wednesday night.
"It was a good win, we really had bigger hearts than they did," said Vokoun.
|
Detroit has lost four in a row and been outscored 18-7 in that span. The defeat was also the Red Wings' ninth on the road. Last season, Detroit did not lose its ninth road game until March 5.
"Our team defense has been just awful lately," said Detroit's Brendan Shanahan, who scored the game's first goal. "We've always prided ourselves in our goals-against average, and in the last couple weeks it's just skyrocketed."
Vokoun gained his third victory for the Predators, who have won two consecutive games and are unbeaten in their last four at home (2-0-2).
Steve Yzerman beat him twice, but Vokoun stopped all seven of Sergei Fedorov's shots and all eight of Doug Brown's.
"We've had over 100 shots in two games (against Nashville)," Red Wings coach Scotty Bowman said. "Their save percentages are around 95 percent. That's the top of the league.
"Their goalie was great."
The Predators played without leading scorer Sergei Krivokrasov, but got two goals each from Cliff Ronning and Scott Walker. Krivokrasov missed his first game of the season with a leg injury.
"Sergei goes down, Scott Walker steps up," Predators coach Barry Trotz said. "It's good when players takthat opportunity."
Ronning's ninth goal, a wrist shot from the high slot, gave the Predators a 3-1 lead 17:36 into the second period. Walker crashed the net moments later, fighting through checks by Detroit's Jamie Macoun and Doug Brown to make it 4-1. Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman got his 13th on a wrist shot over Vokoun's glove with 10 seconds left in the period to trim the lead to 4-2.
Walker made it 5-2 5:30 into the third, firing his fifth into an empty net vacated when Detroit goaltender Norm Maracle came into the slot to glove a loose puck and lost it. Maracle had replaced Chris Osgood to begin the final period. Yzerman closed out the scoring with 1:03 left on a wrist shot from the right side.
The Predators' Jan Vopat snapped a 1-1 tie 8:19 into the second period with his fourth goal. Vopat's slap shot from the top of the left circle went off Osgood's stick. It was Vopat's first goal in 15 games.
The teams exchanged goals early in the first period. Shanahan got his 17th in the slot, and Ronning responded at the right post.
The Predators announced that fans who had tickets to the sold-out game, but were unable to attend due to a severe winter storm in Middle Tennessee, would be able to exchange them for tickets to one of three January home contests.
"This is an important hockey game for our young franchise, but nothing is more important than the safety of our fans in the community," team president Jack Diller said.
© 1998 SportsLine USA, Inc. All rights reserved