Red Wings Petr Mrazek, Henrik Zetterberg weigh in on controversial goal in loss to unbeaten Montreal

Montreal Canadiens' Brendan Gallagher, left, collides with Detroit Red Wings' Jonathan Ericsson during third period NHL hockey action in Montreal, Saturday, Oct. 17, 2015.

Detroit Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill didn't want to talk about a controversial goal that helped the Montreal Canadiens post a 4-1 victory Saturday night at the Bell Centre.

Blashill was asked twice by John Keating of Fox Sports Detroit about Brendan Gallagher's second-period goal and both times he politely declined to comment, saying it was a matter the Red Wings would handle internally.

Gallagher's goal on  a power play 7:44 into the second period tied the score 1-1 less than three minute after Dylan Larkin had put the Red Wings (3-2) ahead with his second goal of the season.

Gallagher was crashing the net between Red Wings Kyle Quincey and Luke Glendening when he started to fall to the ice. Quincey knocked the puck off Gallagher's skate and it deflected into the net just as Gallagher crashed into goaltender Petr Mrazek.

 After a lengthy review, the NHL's Situation Room deemed it a legal goal because Gallagher didn't purposely kick the puck into the net. But some thought it should have been disallowed because of goaltender interference.

The Red Wings did not use a coach's challenge seeking a penalty.

"I didn't think it was a goal but the ref said it was a goal so it counted," Mrazek told FSD. "Nothing you can do about it.

"He told me the puck went in the net early (before) the guy hit me but the puck hit me in the pads and I feel like the guy hit me in the pad and it went in. Tough call."

Mrazek had another busy night in his second appearance of the season. He made 37 saves after stopping 44 last week in a 4-3 victory at Carolina.

The Red Wings, who entered the game averaging an NHL-worst 21.3 shots per game, tested Montreal goalie Carey Price 22 times and were outshot 19-5 in the third period.

Larkin's goal gave him a point in all five games this season. That's a team record for a rookie at the start of a season.

Captain Henrik Zetterberg drew the lone assist, giving him a five-game streak as well. Zetterberg entered the game leading the NHL with eight points.

Like Mrazek, Zetterberg questioned the legitimacy of Gallagher's goal.

"Obviously contact was made," Zetterberg told FSD. "And obviously that's a tough goal. They reviewed it so it must have been right but I thought the coach's challenge was for that kind of thing. They kind of saved the review for Montreal there.

"When stuff like that happens, when they kind of slam into the goalie, there's not often there is a goal. I thought that should have been no goal. That's a dangerous play and that's not the first time No. 11 on their team has been running into the goalie either.

"It was pretty heavy contact so I'm surprised actually that it counted as a goal. We didn't lose the game there. Obviously the power play's got to be better. PK is doing a good job. Eventually pucks will go in. But the power play unit's got to produce more."

The game was the first of four straight on the road for the Red Wings, who play Wednesday in Edmonton, Friday in Calgary and Saturday in Vancouver.

Jeff Petry, Tomas Plekanec and Brian Flynn also scored for Montreal, which set a club record by winning its sixth straight game to open the season.

Source : http://www.mlive.com/redwings/index.ssf/2015/10/red_wings_petr_mrazek_henrik_z.html

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Jake Rudock's composure impressing Michigan, could play big role vs. Michigan State

Michigan quarterback Jake Rudock (15) looks to hand off the ball in the first quarter against BYU at Michigan Stadium on Saturday, September 26, 2015.

ANN ARBOR -- Jim Harbaugh's yet to see Jake Rudock get flustered.

He's seen mistakes and misreads, and he's seen his fifth-year senior quarterback have to fight through rough patches. But he still hasn't seen him lose his cool.

Rudock's played Michigan State before, but never like this. Saturday will be his first and only Michigan-Michigan State battle, and plenty will be on the line. There will be pressure, intensity, some highs and some lows. But Michigan expects Rudock to remain cool through it all.

It's a big part of the reason why he's the team's starter in the first place.
"He's playing his best football (right now)," Harbaugh said this week of Rudock in advance of Saturday's Michigan-Michigan State tilt (3:30 p.m., ESPN). "(He's been) consistently good each and every week. (He) doesn't get rattled.

"(We've) come to expect that."

Rudock will enter the biggest game of Michigan's season on the heels of his best game as a Wolverine.

The 6-foot-3 Iowa transfer went 17 of 23 for 179 yards and zero turnovers in a 38-0 win over Northwestern a week ago. Michigan hasn't asked Rudock to re-write record books this season, it's simply asked him to protect the football and win games.

For the season, Rudock's completed 62 percent of his passes for 1,135 yards, 5 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. The turnovers have been a problem, but in the end, he's 5-1 -- and he's the same quarterback mentally after a touchdown or a negative rush.

Which, for Michigan's offense right now, is highly important.

"Being patient helps, but there's other times where you don't want to be too patient, like if a pocket's breaking down or something," Rudock says. "There's a healthy balance (there) that's sometimes hard to find. "But you're trying to find it as much as you can."
Staying on schedule. Taking advantage of open looks down field. Not turning it over. Keeping Michigan out of rough spots and making sure every drive ends with a kick.

Those -- plus winning -- are Rudock's jobs.

And halfway through his first and only season at Michigan, the staff insists he's reaching a level of comfort during games and at practice. An intense film study, Rudock now feels more comfortable going to any teammate during or after a practice to correct a mistake, or offer a tip for any situation on offense.

"It's not always perfect, so we're constantly correcting and teaching and telling him and asking him and challenging him and wondering 'why,' " passing game coordinator Jedd Fisch says. "The most important thing is, you've got to be able to answer 'why.' The 'why'd you throw it there, what did you see?' You have to have an answer. If you have an answer, we can help.

"If you don't have an answer, you're predetermining the decision and that's what we try to avoid."

According to Fisch, Rudock's ability to answer the "why" after each throw he makes in practice or a game has gotten better and better, and appears to be at an all-time high. He knows the scheme and understands Harbaugh's game plans now more than he did six weeks ago.

Which makes sense, of course.

Earlier this season, center Graham Glasgow explained how Rudock was, in many ways, like a true freshman when he arrived on campus this summer. But now, he's viewed as a leader.

And Saturday, he'll have to put it all together in a highly-anticipated rivalry game. Michigan State's secondary has had its issues this season, as the Spartans now rank 10th in the Big Ten in pass defense (242 yards per game allowed).

The Spartans have allowed 26 passing plays of 20 yards or more. Only Rutgers, Indiana and Nebraska are worse in the league. Chunk plays may be open Saturday, but Rudock has to find them and execute. He can't over-shoot sure-fire touchdowns or miss an open receiver streaking down the sideline.

Last week against Northwestern, he found an open Jake Butt on a 32-yard play during the game's first offensive series. He found Jehu Chesson for 27 yards on the second drive. Both plays helped pull back Northwestern's defense a bit, and create more breathing room for Michigan's running game. He also rushed for his third touchdown of the season, another part of his game.

Michigan's quarterback play during the last two games against Michigan State has been rough, with three combined interceptions and zero touchdown passes. Rudock will have to turn that around.

And composure will be key.

"The rivalry games, I've played in them before," says Rudock, who went 26 of 46 for 241 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 picks in a 10-point loss to MSU at Iowa in 2013. "You try to not get too distracted by it, but you know it's a big game for both schools. ... You can't get distracted, but you still have to understand -- it's one of those games.

"Coach is always adamant about having really good practices. We're trying to do just that. One day at a time. ... You start looking ahead, and everything falls apart."

Source : http://www.mlive.com/wolverines/index.ssf/2015/10/jake_rudocks_composure_impress.html

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Beat writer breakdown: Seahawks reporter explains what Lions are in for on Monday night

CenturyLink Field is one of the league's most intimidating venues, and it'll be the site of Detroit's game Monday night against the Seahawks.

SEATTLE -- The Seattle Seahawks have lost just twice at home since the start of the 2012 season. So any team that comes here faces some long odds of escaping with a victory.

That's especially so when you are the Detroit Lions (0-3), and you are the last winless team in the league.

Detroit does catch a break, though, with Seattle ruling out star tailback Marshawn Lynch for the game. That means the Lions will see a healthy dose of former Michigan tailback Thomas Rawls.

Seahawks beat writer Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times joined us to break down what the Lions can expect from Rawls, and the deafening crowd that will be behind him.

MLive: The Clink is famous for volume. What's that place like in prime time, and why is it so hard on opposing teams?

Bob Condotta: It's simply really loud and raucous, and the Seattle fan base is pretty sophisticated at knowing when and when not to cheer. Observers often remark how the Seattle crowd is one that is participating as much as it is spectating. The fans know when it's third and long for the opponent to really get into it, and they do.

The stadium was also constructed in a manner to accentuate the noise. Owner Paul Allen wanted to replicate the atmosphere of the Kingdome as much as he could when the new stadium was built in its place 15 years ago and had studies done on roof angles and all of that to capture the noise as much as possible. The stadium is also relatively small --- it's on the same footprint as the Kingdome was --- so the noise is kept in pretty well.

MLive: Seattle is still one of the heavyweights in the NFC, but sits at just 1-2. What's gone wrong so far?

Condotta: The Seahawks opened with two rough road games in St. Louis and Green Bay. So that was one of the biggest things. The Rams just really match up well with the Seahawks --- Seattle has now lost there three of the last four years and the one win came in 2013 in a contest that the Rams statistically dominated and went down to the last play.

The defense was also without strong safety Kam Chancellor for the first two games. And the offense is breaking in a remade line that features two first-year starters and another starting at a new position. Seattle was also just sort of sloppy, allowing a long punt return for a touchdown against the Rams, for instance, and with some ill-timed penalties really costing them against the Packers.

MLive: What kind of difference did Kam Chancellor make in his return to the field last week? Does that pass defense have any weaknesses? Or is Matthew Stafford in for another long day?

Condotta: Statistically he made a huge one as Seattle went from allowing a combined 61 points in the first two games, to zero in Chancellor's return. But playing a home game against a bad Bears team and Jimmy Clausen contributed, too. Three founding members of the Legion of Boom are still around and in their prime --- Chancellor, Earl Thomas and Richard Sherman --- so the secondary should be still among the best in the NFL. But without Chancellor the first two games there was sort of a domino effect that helped lead to some uncommon statistics.

This game will be a really good test of just where the Seattle defense really is. The Seahawks have a new starting right cornerback in Cary Williams and have gone to Marcus Burley at nickelback to replace the injured Jeremy Lane. The Lions will be a good test of how good the Seattle secondary is now that it's basically whole again.

MLive: Thomas Rawls is a guy people from this area know because of his days at Michigan, where he was pretty underwhelming. Then he signs with Seattle and goes off for 100 yards in his first extensive NFL action. How's he gone from Point A to Point B?

Condotta: One of the biggest things is Rawls appears to be a perfect fit for the Seahawks' system, which emphasizes zone blocking and patience from the running backs to let things develop. One of Rawls' big runs last week was a 21-yarder when he cut to the backside and into the open, the kind of thing Lynch has made a living off of for years.

The team liked Rawls' physicality and vision, and had a need for a young running back to step up this year after growing impatient with Christine Michael, who was eventually traded to Dallas, and after Robert Turbin was hurt in the preseason. Lynch is battling several injuries, most notably a hamstring, and won't play against Detroit.

MLive: The Seahawks haven't lost a home game to Detroit since 1999. They continue that run if ...

Condotta: ... they get pressure on Stafford and play an efficient game on offense. The Seahawks have struggled out of the gate this year --- they have yet to score an offensive touchdown in the first half --- and if they let what I would assume to be a pretty desperate Lions team hang around, then things could get dicey. But if Seattle plays a fairly mistake-free game and gets the running game going enough to move the ball consistently, it should be able to win another one at home.

Bob Condotta covers the Seahawks for the Seattle Times. You can find his work here, or follow him on Twitter at @bcondotta.

Source : http://www.mlive.com/lions/index.ssf/2015/10/beat_writer_breakdown_seahawks.html

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