Wings Conquer Avalanche
Just how hot are the Red Wings? Hot enough that they're just two points behind the 32-game pace of the 1995-96 Detroit team that went on to set an NHL record with 131 points.
The Red Wings ran their winning streak to five Friday night, scoring four times in the final 5:45 of the second period to rout the Colorado Avalanche 5-2.
Detroit has the NHL's best home record (15-3-1), most wins (21) and points (46). The 1995-96 Red Wings had 48 points after 32 games.
"It's a long way off from where we are now, so we can't think about that," Detroit coach Scotty Bowman said.
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Patrick Roy faced 31 shots in just two periods and gave up all five Detroit goals before before he was replaced by Mark Denis, who stopped all nine shots he faced in the third.
Detroit outshot Colorado 40-15.
"They deserved what happened," Roy said. "The score maybe doesn't show what it should be."
Patrick Verbeek had a goal and an assist and Sergei Fedorov and Vyacheslav Kozlov also had goals for Detroit. Ken Wregget made 13 saves in his second straight win.
Chris Drury and Brian Rolston scored for the Avalanche, who have lost two straight after winning four of their previous five.
"We didn't play well at all tonight," Clorado's Peter Forsberg said. "They were much hungrier than we were tonight. That's what happens when you work hard."
Colorado took a 2-1 lead when Forsberg passed out of a crowd to Rolston in the left circle, who beat Wregget at 4:46 of the second.
The Red Wings' assault began when Verbeek, distracting Roy near the crease, managed to nudge a pass across the goal mouth that Fedorov converted at 14:15.
"We were making good plays and eventually something's going to go your way," said Fedorov, who misfired on a couple of good chances earlier.
Roy left a rebound of Larry Murphy's shot rebound loose near the net, and Kozlov knocked it in at 18:11.
Then, with Detroit's Darryl Laplante off for elbowing Adam Deadmarsh, Shanahan picked up a Colorado giveaway and broke in on Roy. He drew the goalie to the right of the net before skating across and tucking a backhander into the left side with 38 seconds remaining in the period.
"Patty saved us (earlier)," Forsberg said, "but even he can't save everything."
Just 11 seconds later, with Laplante still in the penalty box, Brown took the puck from Adam Foote in the left circle and beat Roy with another backhander.
"We had a lot of shots and weren't able to score, so we felt we deserved it because we created a lot of opportunities that didn't go in," Brown said. "The odds are good that eventually something will go in."
The Detroit record for shortest time between goals is seven seconds, done twice previously. Shanahan and Brown tied the franchise record for most short-handed goals in a period.
"We have great special teams," Colorado coach Bob Hartley said, "but the two short-handed goals were the difference in the game."
Drury gave the Avalanche a 1-0 lead just 2:42 into the game when he launched a rising shot from just inside the Detroit line that deflected off Wregget's glove and into the net.
But the Red Wings, who outshot Colorado 16-3 in the first, answered only 22 seconds later when Steve Yzerman chased a loose puck behind the Colorado net and fed it in front to Verbeek, who beat Roy point-blank.
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