Detroit Adds Another Name to the Marquee

Another unsung hero came through for the Detroit Red Wings.

Fredrik Olausson scored his first playoff goal in 10 years at 12:44 of overtime as the Red Wings beat the Colorado Avalanche, 2-1, Wednesday night to take a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference finals.

After relying on its marquee players in the first two rounds of the playoffs, Detroit’s lesser-known players have come through against the defending Stanley Cup champions.

Darren McCarty scored three straight goals in the third period of Game 1, a 5-3 Detroit victory, after scoring only five during the regular season. Kirk Maltby and Boyd Devereaux, who had one goal between them in the first two rounds, both scored for Detroit in Game 2.

“Colorado is playing great defense. They don’t give you much room,” Olausson said. “Sometimes opportunities present themselves.”

Olausson took advantage of his, beating Patrick Roy from just inside the blue line on a shot that appeared to hit Colorado defenseman Martin Skoula in the leg.

Dominik Hasek, who made 20 saves, set up the goal by clearing a loose puck to Steve Yzerman at center ice. Yzerman found Olausson, who scored his first playoff goal since April 18, 1992, for Winnipeg against Vancouver.

“I don’t think Patrick saw it when I shot it, and it might have surprised him a little bit,” said Olausson.

Colorado struggled defensively and only made it to overtime because Roy stopped 40 shots.

The Avalanche played physical seven-game series against the Kings and San Jose in the first two rounds of the playoffs, but Coach Bob Hartley became angered when asked if his team was tired.

“This is the worst excuse in the book,” Hartley said. “I don’t even want to hear until the end of the playoffs the word fatigue. This is for losers.”

The series was touted as a showdown between the league’s two best goalies, but it was far from that in the first two games as the teams combined for 15 goals.

Game 3 was more of what everyone expected, with Roy and Hasek trading spectacular saves.

Hasek faced 21 fewer shots than Roy (42-21), but was still solid after allowing seven goals in the first two games.

Roy, who kicked a puck into his own net in Game 2, stopped Brendan Shanahan on a one-timer from close range midway through the first period, then made a kick save on a redirected shot by Olausson in the second.

Roy also squeezed his pads around a rebound attempt by Sergei Fedorov late in the second, and stopped another shot by Fedorov in the third despite being screened by two players.

“I think it’s pretty clear that Patrick almost stole a game that we had no business being in,” Hartley said. “He gave us every chance possible to go home with a victory we didn’t deserve.”