2008-10-09
Associated Press
DETROIT -- The Toronto Maple Leafs watched the Red Wings hoist the Stanley Cup banner to the rafters, then they put a damper on the celebration.
Pavel Kubina, Dominic Moore and Nikolai Kulemin scored, lifting the Maple Leafs to a 3-2 win Thursday night in the opener for both teams.
Vesa Toskala made 35 saves - and stood strong against a power play in the final 30 seconds - to help Ron Wilson win his first regular-season game behind Toronto's bench.
Detroit coach Mike Babcock was wary of how his players would play after a pregame ceremony that put an 11th Stanley Cup banner in the Joe Louis Arena rafters.
The Red Wings got off to a solid start, controlling the puck, but the Maple Leafs scored first to stunt their momentum.
Kubina rushed the net and was in the perfect place to score when goaltender Chris Osgood tried to clear the puck after it went toward him off teammate Niklas Kronwall's stick with 25 seconds left in the first period.
Moore scored on a goal-mouth scramble early in the second, then Tomas Holmstrom answered 1:24 later with his first of two goals.
Kulemin gave Toronto another two-goal cushion at 7:25 of the third period when he took advantage of Dan Cleary's giveaway by flipping a shot past Osgood. But Holmstrom responded again with another goal 2 minutes later on an assist from Marian Hossa in his Detroit debut, bringing the Red Wings within a goal and brining a sold-out crowd to its feet.
Toskala made enough saves in the final minutes to seal the victory.
Osgood turned away 26 shots for the Red Wings, who might've had an emotional letdown after an elaborate ceremony before the game that the Maple Leafs watched from their bench.
With an orchestra playing, Gordie Howe and other former Red Wings passed the white banner with red stitching to current standouts such as Nicklas Lidstrom on the ice.
The Stanley Cup was on display, atop a puck-shaped pedestal, along with six other trophies Detroit won last season.
Red-clad fans cheered the loudest for vice president Steve Yzerman - who helped the Red Wings win three Cups - general manager Ken Holland, coach Mike Babcock, Osgood and Lidstrom.
Detroit is on a quest to be the first to repeat as Stanley Cup champions since doing it in 1998.
GAME NOTES: The Red Wings have won four Cups in 11 seasons while the Maple Leafs, a fellow Original Six franchise, haven't been in the playoffs since 2004. ... Wilson, who was fired by the San Jose Sharks after last season, is the 20th different coach the Leafs have had, including interim ones, since they won the Stanley Cup in 1967. ... Toronto D Luke Schenn, the No. 5 pick overall, made his debut. ... The Maple Leafs evened the all-time series with Detroit 274-274-93. ... Toronto LW Ryan Hollweg served his first of an two-game suspension because he had a third boarding or checking from behind major in a 41-game span. The third penalty came in an exhibition game.
