Red Wings 7 - Sharks 1: Game Four Scoring Chances

It's not often, if ever, an NHL game has had a 5-0 score after one period, yet the scoring chances were 8-7 and 6-6 at even strength.  It's probably never happened to the number one seed remaining in the playoffs either.  Yet after one period in game four, the Red Wings had scored on five of their first eight chances and six of their first ten and Evgeni Nabokov thought that he had been transported back to Vancouver in February.  Shots, Corsi, and scoring chances were all essentially even, but everything that Detroit, Johan Franzen to be precise, threw at the net went in.  Nabokov was mercifully pulled between periods and Thomas Greiss came in to do a damn nice job, considering the amount of time he spent killing penalties.

Scoring Chances for game 30234

For those of you who are new to the concept of tracking scoring chances, a scoring chance is defined as a clear play directed toward the opposing net from a dangerous scoring area - loosely defined as the top of the circle in and inside the faceoff dots, though sometimes slightly more generous than that depending on the amount of immediately-preceding puck movement or screens in front of the net.  Blocked shots are generally not included but missed shots are.  A player is awarded a scoring chance anytime he is on the ice and someone from either team has a chance to score.  He is awarded a "chance for" if someone on his team has a chance to score and a "chance against" if the opposing team has a chance to score.  Vic Ferrari makes this all possible with his tools to evaluate Corsi, head-to-head ice time and scoring chances.

There it is in all of it's glory.  6-6 at evens and 7-8 overall in the first period.  San Jose outshot the Wings by 11-9.  The rest of the game was a mess of power plays for each side, with Detroit looking like the killers from the last few years.

Again - it's strange to see a chances sheet look like this.  Get a chance, get a goal.  Get a chance, get a goal.

The Sharks outchanced the Wings at even strength as would be expected after a first period such as this.  Once again Logan Couture shined in his sheltered role.  He spent nearly all of his time on the ice against either Darren Helm or Mattias Ritola and did extremely well.  It's tough to say if he's able to drive the play yet, but I can't recall a game in these playoffs in which he's lost the battle on any given night.

With so much special teams play, and Brad Stuart out, the last two periods were the Jonathan Ericsson, Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski show.