Henrik Zetterberg	Pavel Datsyuk	Justin Abdelkader
Johan Franzen	Valtteri Filppula	Daniel Cleary
Gustav Nyquist	Joakim Andersson	Damien Brunner
Patrick Eaves	Cory Emmerton	Jordin Tootoo
Niklas Kronwall	Jonathan Ericsson
Kyle Quincey	Brendan Smith
Danny DeKeyser	Jakub Kindl
Jimmy Howard

Babcock

Coach Babcock said the same lineup will be in for Game 1 as it was down the stretch.

“You have to play (Anaheim) hard, have to play them strong. You have to cut off their cycle early. You just got to slow them down.” - Dan Cleary told Ansar Khan

Cleary

.

Cleary

“We don't go into it as a huge underdog. We think we're a good team.” - Dan Cleary told Ansar Khan

“It’s no surprise that Pav and Z are our best players, they constantly are night in and night out. The same goes for (Perry and Getzlaf). Perry is one of those guys that has a nose for the net, and Getzlaf is more of a passer.” - Jimmy Howard told Ansar Khan

Howard

Abdelkader

“Both teams have some high-powered skill. At the same time, both teams play well defensively and don’t give up much.” - Justin Abdelkader told Khan

Todd Bertuzzi will be a healthy scratch tonight.

Bertuzzi

Samuelsson

Mikael Samuelsson will also watch the game from the press box.

Darren Helm accompanied the team to Anaheim, but isn't expected to play.

Helm

Miller

Drew Miller skated but without a stick in his broken hand. He is expected to miss the series.

Continue to Play Well Defensively - Detroit has given up just 14 goals in regulation in their last 11 games. Plain and simple, don't change a thing.

Best Players Need to Play Well - Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk combined for 18 points in the last 4 games. They came through when the playoffs were on the line. They need to continue their strong play into the playoffs.

Get Off to a Good Start - Sometimes in playoff hockey, the home team stumbles out of the gate in Game 1. The Wings need to get after the Ducks early. It's easier to play with the lead than playing catch up.

On April 30, 1992

Detroit sends home the Minnesota North Stars winning 5-2 in Game 7 of the division semifinals.

The most wonderful time of the year has arrived. The time of year when every shift means more, every goal means more, every game means everything, and the time of year when one play here or there can determine whether a team achieves hockey immortality on Lord Stanley's Cup or has some extra unwanted tee time. It's the postseason; a place where stars become legends and a place that's become a routine accomplishment in Hockeytown for more than two decades.

This year has been an injury-filled transition year for the Red Wings, who squeaked into the postseason on the last game of the year, but none of that matters now; what matters is the Wings are in a 16-way tie for first and are the same number of wins away from hoisting Lord Stanley again as any team left standing. Tonight, they'll try to take one step closer by taking the opening game of the first round series against the Ducks.

Welcome to the Detroit Red Wings Game Day Blog, where you can get behind-the-scenes information, thoughts from players and staff, and up-to-date news on anything and everything Red Wings on game day.

You can watch tonight's 10:30 PM game on NBC Sports Network or Fox Sports Detroit, or TSN for our Canadian viewers, or tune in on 97.1 The Ticket.

Henrik Zetterberg’s breakaway goal
Henrik Zetterberg drives down the ice for a breakaway and sends the puck past Richard Bachman for the Detroit goal.

Jimmy Howard was sensational again to lead the Wings back to the postseason for the 22nd straight year in a 3-0 shutout against the Stars!

Thanks for tuning in to our Game Day Blog...we'll see you next week when we take on the Anaheim Ducks in the playoffs!

Stars of the Game powered by Ram Trucks are...

1. Henrik Zetterberg (2 Goals, 1 Assist)

2. Pavel Datsyuk (3 Assists)

3. Jimmy Howard (17 SV)

Darren Helm	Drew Miller	Todd Bertuzzi	Mikael Samuelsson
Helm (Back)	Miller (Hand)	Bertuzzi (Healthy Scratch)	Samuelsson (Healthy Scratch)
Ian White	Carlo Colaiacovo	Brian Lashoff
White (Healthy Scratch)	Colaiacovo (Healthy Scratch)	Lashoff (Healthy Scratch)