The Detroit Red Wings broke a three-game winless skid this afternoon, blanking the New Jersey Devils by a 3-0 final score at Prudential Center thanks to 17 saves from goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic. With his 4th shutout, he becomes the 1st rookie Red Wings goaltender since Roger Crozier in 1964-65 to record four shutouts in a single season.
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Detroit was able to limit any serious offensive pressure from New Jersey, making the afternoon a relatively easy one for Neddljkovic.
“In these games, you need to come up with ways to win,” head coach Jeff Blashill said afterward. “I thought our guys, at different moments, when they needed to step up and do a good job, they did a good job. We got a little loose at the beginning of the 3rd period, but we got it back and started playing the right way.”
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Of course, the Red Wings are without several key players on the offensive side of the puck, including Dylan Larkin, Robby Fabbri, and Filip Zadina. It was Oskar Sundqvist breaking the scoreless tie late in the 1st period, followed by two empty-net goals from Tyler Bertuzzi and Michael Rasmussen late in the 3rd.
As the regular season winds down for the Red Wings, they’ll be focused on limiting scoring chances by the opposition.
“We have to work on trying to play the right way and trying to limit scoring opportunities,” Blashill said. “We’re shorthanded so we’re not going to be able to score as easy as we did at one point this year, so we have to make sure we’re limiting scoring opportunities.”
The Red Wings will next visit the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night before wrapping up the regular season once again against the Devils in New Jersey on Friday.
– – Quotes via Bally Sports Detroit Link – –
In today’s betting guide, we look at two games featuring the Minnesota Wild and St. Louis Blues who each look to take hold of second place in their division as the playoff matchup is set. The Wild take on the Nashville Predators, while the Blues visit the Anaheim Ducks.
