Roy Pulls Out the Stops in Defeat of Red Wings

Behind his back, people were whispering that big-game goalie Patrick Roy had lost his edge the past two seasons and was no longer dominant.

Roy put a stop to that talk, at least temporarily, on Thursday night.

Roy posted his 13th career playoff shutout, and Peter Forsberg and Sandis Ozolinsh scored as the Colorado Avalanche defeated the Detroit Red Wings, 2-0, in the opening game of their Western Conference semifinal series.

Roy, tied for third in NHL history in playoff shutouts, extended his playoff record for victories to 115. He had 25 saves and Detroit’s Chris Osgood had 24.

Game 2 is Saturday in Denver.

Roy, who insists he isn’t a shutout goalie, said it was “important to be ready off the start and try to make a couple of saves. That’s what happened.

“After that, the guys really played well,” he said. “Tonight, I was really focused and was moving extremely well in my net. I’m very pleased the way things are going for me so far in the playoffs.”

Avalanche Coach Bob Hartley said Roy, “gave us some big saves right from the start.”

“That’s the strength of Patrick,” Hartley said. “He kept us in the game, then we gave him a two-goal cushion and he worked from there.”

Colorado defenseman Ray Bourque, acquired from Boston on March 6, was fully aware of Roy’s reputation.

“The bigger the game, the bigger he is,” Bourque said. “He made some unbelievable saves in the first half of the first period when we didn’t come out as sharp as we’d like. He was on top of his game right off the bat. That really lifts the team.”

Red Wing Coach Scotty Bowman also was impressed by Roy and Colorado’s defense.

“Their defense didn’t give us many chances,” Bowman said. “I don’t think we had more than seven with a few minutes to go. We had three chances in the first period, and not many after that.”

Since moving to Colorado from Quebec in 1995, the Avalanche has never lost a second-round playoff series, going 3-0 including a second-round ousting of Detroit last season.