Another game another 1 goal victory. This time though game 4 went the way of Detroit and they fought off the sweep. Now they need to win on away ice to fight it off again and take the series back to the Joe for game 6. The series has followed the same pattern as last years with the Sharks winning the first 3 then losing game 4. Last year they won game 5 and will be hoping to do the same this year.
Detroit have got better game by game and the 1st period of game 4 was some of the best hockey in this year's playoffs. If they can put together 3 periods of hockey similar to that then this series will see game 6. A good start for the Redwings is a must. If they are chasing the Sharks i can see them struggling and going out tonight. However, Detoit chased down a lot of teams in the regular season after bad starts so have the experience and know how if they are in that position tonight.
San Jose will want to finish the game on home ice and give themselves the advantage of extra days rest over the eventual winner of the other Semi Final. They showed good fighting qualities to come back from a 3-0 deposit in the 1st period of game 4 to tie the game and almost take it into another overtime period and you can never write the Sharks off even if the opponent has a lead over them during the game. They will not want to start as badly though this time round and if the game is close going into the 3rd period don't be suprised if San Jose nick it by 1 goal again to get them into the Conference Final.
Lidstrom has 4 goals already in this series so expect San Jose to be looking to try and stop or block him from getting his shots through on net. They will be hoping Ryan Clowe continues his point scoring as he has been nothing short of outstanding so far with 12 points in 10 games.
My key to the game is whether Detroit can get that 2 or 3 goal lead. If they can i think they will be going to game 6. The closer the game, the more i can see San Jose taking it with a late goal or an OT winner.
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