Wings drop pre-season opener, 3-2
Tuesday, 09.19.2006 / 12:00 AM
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Detroit Red Wings
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ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- Marian Gaborik scored twice, including the winning goal 5:28 into the third period, and the Minnesota Wild beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 Tuesday in the preseason opener for both teams.
With a two-man advantage, Gaborik tried to center the puck from the bottom of the right circle, but the puck deflected off a defender's skate past goaltender Stefan Liv.
Playing the first of nine preseason games, Detroit was without many of its big-name players, including Pavel Datsyuk, Nicklas Lidstrom, Jason Williams and Henrik Zetterberg. With most of its regular-season roster set, Minnesota played its top players in the first of its six exhibition contests.
Gaborik, who signed a three-year, $19 million contract in July, put Minnesota on the board 32 seconds into the game when his slap shot from atop the left circle went between the pads of Joey MacDonald. Pavol Demitra scored at 1:35 on the power play, tucking home a rebound of Kurtis Foster's shot to give the Wild a 2-0 lead.
Johan Franzen scored late in the first period for Detroit, and Boyd Devereaux added a goal on a rebound during a two-man advantage midway through the second period to tie it 2-2.
MacDonald finished with 11 saves in two periods. Liv stopped seven third-period shots.
Manny Fernandez went the distance for Minnesota, making 23 saves.
Minnesota was 2-for-11 on the power play; Detroit 1-for-9.
With a two-man advantage, Gaborik tried to center the puck from the bottom of the right circle, but the puck deflected off a defender's skate past goaltender Stefan Liv.
Playing the first of nine preseason games, Detroit was without many of its big-name players, including Pavel Datsyuk, Nicklas Lidstrom, Jason Williams and Henrik Zetterberg. With most of its regular-season roster set, Minnesota played its top players in the first of its six exhibition contests.
Gaborik, who signed a three-year, $19 million contract in July, put Minnesota on the board 32 seconds into the game when his slap shot from atop the left circle went between the pads of Joey MacDonald. Pavol Demitra scored at 1:35 on the power play, tucking home a rebound of Kurtis Foster's shot to give the Wild a 2-0 lead.
Johan Franzen scored late in the first period for Detroit, and Boyd Devereaux added a goal on a rebound during a two-man advantage midway through the second period to tie it 2-2.
MacDonald finished with 11 saves in two periods. Liv stopped seven third-period shots.
Manny Fernandez went the distance for Minnesota, making 23 saves.
Minnesota was 2-for-11 on the power play; Detroit 1-for-9.
