Senators winger Colin Greening had a bit of stick embedded in his face when he scored the Game 3 winner. (Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

An annotated guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• One look at Colin Greening’s face proves how far a player will go to win in the playoffs.

• Daniel Alfredsson’s game-tying goal in the last minute turned what looked like a Pittsburgh sweep into a series that could go the distance.

• The Penguins always seem to do things the hard way, writes Dejan Kovacevic.

• Forget what opposing fans say. This player has proven himself to be one of the toughest in hockey with his performance in these playoffs.

• With a win, and Jason Spezza back in the lineup, there is hope in Ottawa.

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Henrik Zetterberg (left) was instrumental in stopping the Blackhawks’ captain Jonathan Toews. (Robin Alam/Icon SMI)

By Brian Cazeneuve

After being outclassed by Chicago in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals, the Detroit Red Wings took the ice at the United Center on Saturday knowing they needed to turn in an improved performance. They did just that in beating the Blackhawks 4-1 to send the series to Detroit knotted at one game each.

Here are some thoughts and observations on Game 2:

• Patrick Kane may be a scoring machine, but the Chicago forward’s goal in the first period at 14:05 was only his first marker in this postseason. Kane has had a tough time, denting the twine just twice in the playoffs since his overtime Cup-winner in Game 6 against the Flyers in 2010 —  a span of 14 games without a postseason goal. In his previous 19 games, he’s produced 15 assists, but just that one tally.

• The Wings continue to get solid efforts from younger, less proven players. Give Gustav Nyquist credit for taking a big hit from Chicago’s Bryan Bickell and getting the puck back to the point to defenseman Jakub Kindl on Detroit’s first goal. Kindl walked the blueline from right to left with great poise and threw a long shot at the net. Damien Brunner then deflected the it past Corey Crawford for his fourth goal of the playoffs.

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Boston’s Tuukka Rask might have a sense of foreboding about tonight’s Game 7 in Boston. (Graig Abel/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

An annotated guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• The Maple Leafs will play in a game that seemed wildly unlikely two weeks ago. And now they know it is one they can win.

• Steve Simmons argues that all the momentum heading into tonight’s Game 7 favors the Maple Leafs. After two huge wins in a row, he ain’t wrong.

• Playing in Game 7 after blowing a massive series lead? Yeah, Tuukka Rask knows that feeling all too well.

• The tired and slow Bruins are have left themselves no margin for error in tonight’s decisive battle.

• Damien Cox writes that this game is about making history and the chance to kickstart a new era for the Leafs franchise.

• No surprise that the Capitals and Rangers are headed to their own Game 7 tonight…or that the series will come down to the play of their goaltenders.

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Rick Nash and the Rangers will have to win a Game 7 on the road for the first time in team history. (Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

An annotated guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• No one ever shoots when the crowds screams for him to … except this once. The decision paid off, as Dustin Penner’s long blast with two-tenths of a click remaining on the clock served as the clincher as the Kings knocked off the Blues.

• Solid piece from Bernie Miklasz on what went wrong this time for a St. Louis team that always finds a way to break the hearts of its fans.

• It hasn’t been easy to be an Avs fan lately, but winning the first overall pick in the draft and now getting Joe Sakic in charge of hockey operations in Denver probably makes this the best postseason since they last won the Cup.

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Henrik Zetterberg’s game-winning goal for the Wings in overtime forced Game 7. (Dave Reginek/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir 

Henrik Zetterberg picked a perfect time to break out of a series-long slump.

Detroit’s captain scored his second goal of the game 1:04 into overtime as the Red Wings clawed their way back from a nearly epic collapse to beat Anaheim 4-3 and set up what should be a thrilling Game 7 on Sunday at the Honda Center.

If not for Zetterberg’s late-game heroics, Game 6 might have gone down as one of the most painful losses in recent Red Wings history.

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Is Sidney Crosby better than Mario Lemieux? The debate about two Pittsburgh greats may be more complicated than you think. (Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

A notated guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• How does Sidney Crosby match up against Mario Lemieux? TribLive breaks it down. Really, that Pittsburgh has had both of them is as ridiculous as John Derek marrying Bo Derek after Ursula Andress. (Note: you must be at least 50 to appreciate those references.)

• The Blue Jackets have earned points in 10 straight? Unbelievable. Sergei Bobrovsky took it to another level last night, making 39 saves to win a game in which his team didn’t score. Check out this number: his save percentage over the last eight games is .976.

• You know how routs are usually kinda boring? Last night’s 8-1 pantsing of the Stars by Chicago was the exact opposite. It was like watching the Globetrotters pull out every trick to humiliate the Washington Generals, a jaw-dropping display of skill and effort that showcased the best the NHL has to offer. What a perfect night for Dallas owner Tom Gagliardi to fly in his family from Vancouver for the game. Oh, well maybe not…

• BREAKING NEWS: Chicago GM Stan Bowman thinks his team is pretty good. “I’d be comfortable [going into the playoffs] with the group we have,” he said when asked about what his team needs ahead of the trade deadline.

• Speaking of fun to watch, today’s Boston-Pittsburgh matinee stacks up as a beauty. It goes at 12:30 EDT on NBC.

• The Pens should put up a far better fight than the Caps did yesterday. That meek effort made it four losses in five for Washington and has to give GM George McPhee reason to question whether he has the right mix to move into next season.

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It’s hard to argue against picking the best player on the league’s best team. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

The 2013 NHL All-Star Game was a casualty of the lockout, but as the season nears the midway point, that doesn’t mean we can’t play a little game of “what if” — as in “what players would have earned a trip to fabulous Columbus if hockey’s ultimate schmoozefest had only be delayed a few weeks instead of being punted to 2015?”

Yeah, assembling a make-believe lineup card like this is a bit of a bear trap. For as little meaning as the game itself carries, the rosters always generate a wholly unsupported level of controversy. We care about who goes a lot more than most of the players do (hey, a four-day weekend in a place of their choosing sounds pretty sweet to those guys right about this time of year). But it’s that passion for our personal favorites that makes putting this list together — and then having it ripped apart — so much fun.

Just to make it interesting, I decided that every team required representation. That means a few worthy players were left off the roster to make room for others whose place seems a little more charitable than earned.

With that in mind, here’s who I think deserves to represent the Western Conference. For my Eastern Conference picks, see here.

See an obvious snub? Feel free to blast away in the comment section below.

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