It's not about adjustments anymore, not really. Sure both coaches -- the Sharks' Todd McLellan and the Red Wings' Mike Babcock -- have tweaked some things between Games 1 and 2.
The Wings spent a good portion of their practice Saturday working on their power play, which was 0-for-5 in Game 1. They talked about ways to win more defensive zone faceoffs and to get more than 23 shots at goalie Evgeni Nabokov.
Goalie Jimmy Howard knows now, too, that the Sharks think they've found a weak spot on his blocker side. They were firing at his right side all game, scoring two of their four goals there.
And the Sharks, even though they played an effective game against the Wings, will be fitting leading scorer Patrick Marleau, who missed Game 1 with the flu, back into the mix. McLellan is toying with the idea of putting the big line of Marleau, Joe Thornton and Dany Heatley back together.
But when you have two extremely talented teams like this, with equal amounts of high-end skill and blue-collar grit, who play with sound structure and basically the same system, there's not going to be any surprises.
"There's always adjustments to be made," McLellan said. "We expect to be better in Game 2 because we will tweak some things and adjust some things. The Red Wings will do the same thing. But there isn't a team in the league that's recreating their game right now. There are no secrets."
Better execution
No matter what minor adjustments are made, either between games or during games, the difference between who wins and who loses in this series is going to be miniscule. It could hinge on a faceoff, a bounce or a couple of power plays. Or, like in Game 1, all of the above.
"It's just a matter of execution now," Wings captain Nick Lidstrom said. "You have to keep working hard. That's the bottom line. You have to outwork the other team. You kind of know what to expect and I am sure they know what to expect, as well. So it does come down to execution and working hard."
Execution -- like the ability to get off clean shots on goal. The Wings had 23 shots reach Nabokov in Game 1, but 43 others either missed the target or were blocked.
"Give them credit, they did a good job of cutting off the top on us," Babcock said. "I just don't think we were hard enough on Nabokov, and we thought we were flat-out poor in our own zone. There's two parts to it. Give them credit for what they did, and we don't think we were any good as a team. It reminded us of Game 1 in the last series. We have to be better."
It may come down to somebody getting in the way of one of Joe Pavelski's shots. He's notched seven goals in seven playoff games.
"You have to commit yourself every shift," Pavelski said. "We know they are going to do that. We realize it's going to take an effort like we had in Game 1 every game to be successful."
Extra day's rest
With the teams so much alike, Pavelski said it comes down to winning the little battles.
"You have to make sure you are in position and that you do your job," he said. "You expect them to be in the right positions on the ice, so when you get a chance to battle one-on-one, that becomes a big part of the game. Faceoffs become a big part of the game. Anywhere you can get even a little edge is so important."
The Wings obviously didn't win enough of those battles Thursday. Two of the Sharks' four goals came directly off faceoff wins in the Wings' zone.
"We have similar structure, similar tactics, similar matchups," Pavel Datsyuk said. "The team that works the hardest and wins every battle will win the game."
It may be, too, that the Wings just needed an extra day of rest. Certainly making a third flight to Phoenix, winning Game 7, traveling to San Jose and playing Game 1 with a one-day turnaround isn't optimal.
The Eagles played sold-out concerts at HP Pavilion Friday and Saturday, so the day off that should have been Thursday wound up being Saturday.
"I like having an extra day at home, but I don't like that we had to stay in one city this long," Babcock said. "But saying all that, we needed a day off. It's nice they had the Eagles concert. Kenny (Holland) told me the Eagles were a great band and they played all their hits for an hour, took a rest and then came back and played some more of their hits.
"So, you can't take that away from the people in the Bay Area."
No, you certainly can't, especially if it puts a bit more pep in your step.
The Wings spent a good portion of their practice Saturday working on their power play, which was 0-for-5 in Game 1. They talked about ways to win more defensive zone faceoffs and to get more than 23 shots at goalie Evgeni Nabokov.
Goalie Jimmy Howard knows now, too, that the Sharks think they've found a weak spot on his blocker side. They were firing at his right side all game, scoring two of their four goals there.
And the Sharks, even though they played an effective game against the Wings, will be fitting leading scorer Patrick Marleau, who missed Game 1 with the flu, back into the mix. McLellan is toying with the idea of putting the big line of Marleau, Joe Thornton and Dany Heatley back together.
But when you have two extremely talented teams like this, with equal amounts of high-end skill and blue-collar grit, who play with sound structure and basically the same system, there's not going to be any surprises.
"There's always adjustments to be made," McLellan said. "We expect to be better in Game 2 because we will tweak some things and adjust some things. The Red Wings will do the same thing. But there isn't a team in the league that's recreating their game right now. There are no secrets."
Better execution
No matter what minor adjustments are made, either between games or during games, the difference between who wins and who loses in this series is going to be miniscule. It could hinge on a faceoff, a bounce or a couple of power plays. Or, like in Game 1, all of the above.
"It's just a matter of execution now," Wings captain Nick Lidstrom said. "You have to keep working hard. That's the bottom line. You have to outwork the other team. You kind of know what to expect and I am sure they know what to expect, as well. So it does come down to execution and working hard."
Execution -- like the ability to get off clean shots on goal. The Wings had 23 shots reach Nabokov in Game 1, but 43 others either missed the target or were blocked.
"Give them credit, they did a good job of cutting off the top on us," Babcock said. "I just don't think we were hard enough on Nabokov, and we thought we were flat-out poor in our own zone. There's two parts to it. Give them credit for what they did, and we don't think we were any good as a team. It reminded us of Game 1 in the last series. We have to be better."
It may come down to somebody getting in the way of one of Joe Pavelski's shots. He's notched seven goals in seven playoff games.
"You have to commit yourself every shift," Pavelski said. "We know they are going to do that. We realize it's going to take an effort like we had in Game 1 every game to be successful."
Extra day's rest
With the teams so much alike, Pavelski said it comes down to winning the little battles.
"You have to make sure you are in position and that you do your job," he said. "You expect them to be in the right positions on the ice, so when you get a chance to battle one-on-one, that becomes a big part of the game. Faceoffs become a big part of the game. Anywhere you can get even a little edge is so important."
The Wings obviously didn't win enough of those battles Thursday. Two of the Sharks' four goals came directly off faceoff wins in the Wings' zone.
"We have similar structure, similar tactics, similar matchups," Pavel Datsyuk said. "The team that works the hardest and wins every battle will win the game."
It may be, too, that the Wings just needed an extra day of rest. Certainly making a third flight to Phoenix, winning Game 7, traveling to San Jose and playing Game 1 with a one-day turnaround isn't optimal.
The Eagles played sold-out concerts at HP Pavilion Friday and Saturday, so the day off that should have been Thursday wound up being Saturday.
"I like having an extra day at home, but I don't like that we had to stay in one city this long," Babcock said. "But saying all that, we needed a day off. It's nice they had the Eagles concert. Kenny (Holland) told me the Eagles were a great band and they played all their hits for an hour, took a rest and then came back and played some more of their hits.
"So, you can't take that away from the people in the Bay Area."
No, you certainly can't, especially if it puts a bit more pep in your step.
