Ottawa 3, New Jersey 2
Not exactly the present you want on your 35th birthday, if you are a hockey player. Especially if you are one of the greatest goalies to have played the game and was looking to put your name on another Stanley Cup Trophy. Martin Brodeur turns 35 today. Happy Birthday Brody!!
Yeah, not much to celebrate, the Ottawa Senators eliminated the Devils from the postseason last night with a 3-2 victory in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. In the loss, Brodeur failed to make at least one routine save, and his team could not make up for it with goals of its own or by shutting down the opposition’s best players. Brodeur could have made something up to explain his disappointing playoff showing. But he shot any speculation about that down. Brodeur said after the game he wasn’t injured in any way, but said the long NHL regular season wore him down. He looked as tired as he sounded.
Brodeur said the difference in the series was that Ottawas big guns of Spezza, Alfredsson, and Dany Heatley delivered. They had 23 points, including nine goals. “We as a team, including me, weren’t up to par,” said Brodeur. “What they brought to the table, as far as their top line, we couldn’t match. You have to give them credit. They’re a great hockey club.”
New Jersey dominated the opening period and finally broke through when Gomez stuffed the rebound of Patrik Elias’ shot past Ray Emery. If there were any fears that Emery might have been rattled by his fender-bender on an Ottawa highway on Friday afternoon he answered the questions in the first period when the Devils put a lot of pressure on him. They did get one goal on the 11 shots they had but Emery kept it close. Emery said getting into the accident and missing the flight acted as motivation for the game. “Spezza said that to me before the game, you’re either the stupidest guy I ever met or the smartest guy I ever met by doing this stuff, ” said Emery.
But, Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson got the big goals. The Senators’ defense limited New Jersey to two goals or less for the third straight game, and checking line left wing Antoine Vermette ignited the big second period with a great play to set up his own goal. Vermette made the biggest play of Game 5, keeping the puck in the Devils’ zone early in the second period and eventually tipping a shot by 
defenseman Tom Preissing past Brodeur to tie the score at 1-all. The goal took the air out of the crowd. The Senators took over from there. Spezza put the Senators ahead a little more than a minute after Jay Pandolfo was penalized for interfering with Emery at 10:58. The center took a pass from Alfredsson along the left boards, skated into the circle and ripped a shot past a screened Brodeur.
Alfredsson, who has three goals in the last four games, scored with less than three minutes left in the second period, beat Brodeur with a shot between the pads, the third soft goal New Jersey’s All-Star surrendered in the past two games.
Happy Birthday, Marty!! Although, you may be too tired and too upset to celebrate it.
Detroit 4, San Jose 1
This is not how you want to play or even win a series, but if the San Jose Sharks are willing to give it, the Detroit Red Wings are willing to take it. In all three of their losses, the Sharks have been ahead after the first period. But they have wasted those leads by playing sporadic, sloppy hockey in the second period.
More than any single screw-up – although Evgeni Nabokov’s was a monumental screw-up – that is the reason the Sharks find themselves one loss from elimination. Pavel Datsyuk turned San Jose goalie Nabokov’s misplay into the winning goal late in the second period, and Nabokov didn’t seem the same after that, surrendering a pair of third-period power-play goals. With the Sharks circling in the Red Wings’ zone, Detroit cleared the puck into San Jose territory. Nabokov left the goal to play the puck, but sent it straight into a charging Datsyuk. He scooped it up and fired it into an open net with 3:47 to play in the second. “I tried to go straight. When he was ready to shoot the puck, I just jumped,” Datsyuk said. “He hit my stick. It was unlucky for Nabby.” 
Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg each had a goal and two assists, leading the Red Wings within a victory of reaching the Western Conference finals. Ahead 3-2, Detroit can end the conference semifinal Monday night in San Jose.
Mikael Samuelsson added an insurance goal nearly 4 minutes into the final period, slapping a one-timer past Nabokov. Zetterberg and Datsyuk set up Samuelsson’s first goal of the playoffs. Tomas Holmstrom concluded the scoring, converting Zetterberg’s centering pass with 13:46 left in the third. Datsyuk also picked up an assist on the play.
Dominik Hasek was perfect after allowing a shaky early goal, turning aside 23 shots and proving again how valuable he is to the Red Wings. 
On the subject of blowing leads, “I don’t know why we seem to have lapses like that,” center Joe Thornton said. “It’s just inconsistent play,” said defenseman Craig Rivet. “We all know we’re a great team in here. And we’re playing a very good team in Detroit. They’re going to play a 60-minute game. We’re not working 60 minutes, and it’s hurting us.”
Marcel Goc had the Sharks goal, giving them a 1-0 lead — the fourth time in the series the Sharks have scored first. Kyle McLaren, who assisted on San Jose’s lone goal said “We’re going to go home and be in front of our crowd. They’re going to be jacked up, and we’re going to be jacked up. We’re going to bring it all in Game 6.”
Well, they’ve been ready to bring it every game; they just can’t seem to take it home with them.
