Red Wings, Kings Look for Magic

Now you see him, now you don’t:

Steve Yzerman, the Detroit Red Wings’ captain and leader, practiced with his teammates Sunday for the first time since he injured his left ankle in the playoff opener against the Kings. Yzerman skated off early in the session at HealthSouth training center but said that was because it was an informal workout, not because of pain in the foot he visibly favored. He left open the possibility he will play tonight when the Red Wings try to avert playoff elimination.

“It’s my decision if I can play,” Yzerman said, “and if I can play and play well, I’ll play. It’s not a difficult decision.”

Asked the exact nature of the injury, he clammed up. “Quite frankly, it’s not anybody’s business,” he said. “What good would it do to tell anybody?

“My knee is feeling good.”

Now you see him, now you don’t:

Dynamic Detroit winger Brendan Shanahan, hobbled by a broken left foot, made a courageous and unexpected return in Game 5 on Saturday at Joe Louis Arena. His last-minute shot almost found its way into the net, but the Kings held on for a 3-2 victory and a 3-2 series lead.

Shanahan, who had difficulty walking from the shower to his locker stall afterward, didn’t accompany the Red Wings here. Coach Scotty Bowman skipped Sunday’s practice, and associate coach Dave Lewis said there was a chance Shanahan would fly here but said Shanahan’s foot was sore. He also said Yzerman was struggling Sunday and will decide today whether he will play.

The Kings are prepared to see Shanahan, Yzerman and Gordie Howe wearing the winged wheel tonight at Staples Center.

“We don’t have Yzerman on our chart, but we didn’t have Shanahan the other day, either,” King Coach Andy Murray said. “I was believing what Scotty was saying [that Shanahan would miss Game 5]. When somebody says something, you’re supposed to believe them, aren’t you?”

Now you see them, now you don’t?

One loss for the Red Wings and their season is over. One victory for the Kings and they advance to the second round of the playoffs.

The Red Wings haven’t lost in the first round since 1994, when they were upset by the San Jose Sharks; the Kings haven’t gotten out of the opening round since their 1993 march to the Stanley Cup finals. If the Red Wings win tonight, Game 7 would be Wednesday at Joe Louis Arena.

“We’ve got to take advantage of the edge we have playing in our own building,” King defenseman Mathieu Schneider said. “We know it’s going to be a battle right to the end. . . . Going in, we thought we could win, but we didn’t play like it. Coming home [for Games 3 and 4] we started to play with more desperation. As the series has worn on, we’ve played better and better.

“The second game was kind of embarrassing for us, losing, 4-0. I definitely think that was the turning point. We were underdogs, like everyone said, but at the same time, we knew we were a better club than we showed. We felt we needed to put something better out there on the ice.”

They have played better defensively, allowing few outnumbered rushes and limiting the rebounds goaltender Felix Potvin has faced. Potvin has been solid but hasn’t had to steal a game, which means his teammates are playing well in front of him.

The Kings have also exploited some of Detroit’s weaknesses, and they’ve used the speed of forwards Eric Belanger and Ziggy Palffy to rip through the slow defense.

“I’m sure they’re worried, but those guys have been there before,” Luc Robitaille said. “They’ve been up, 2-0, and they’ve been down, 3-2. I don’t think at any point we can take anything for granted.

“We finally got our breaks, but they’ve been through everything and they know what it takes to win. There’s no doubt in my mind it’s going to be their best game [tonight].”

Detroit defenseman Mathieu Dandenault said he got a lift seeing Yzerman on the ice Sunday, but Dandenault knows the Red Wings can’t rely on their captain alone.

“It’s not up to Steve to win Game 6. It’s up to the team,” Dandenault said. “We know we can beat that team. They haven’t outplayed us except maybe Game 5. The first two, we outplayed them, and Game 3 [a 2-1 King victory] could have gone either way. In Game 4, we outplayed them for 54 minutes, before they came back. They haven’t totally dominated us. We’ve got to build on that and come back and get a win in Game 6.”

Winger Darren McCarty, also hampered by an ankle injury, admired Yzerman’s fortitude but knows Yzerman alone won’t cure the Red Wings’ ills.

“We know what position we’re in. We’ve been in this position before,” McCarty said. “There’s nowhere to go. We’ve got to play our best game of the year.”

King forward Adam Deadmarsh got to know the Red Wings well while he was with Colorado and helped push them out of the playoffs each of the last two seasons. He, too, expects them to be at their best--but knows the Kings can be even better.

“They’re a veteran team and they’ve played a lot of playoff games. They’re not going to quit,” Deadmarsh said. “We’re going to have to play our best game of the series. . . . To put a team away is always the toughest one. You don’t want to look too far ahead, but you don’t want to go back to Detroit and look at a Game 7.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Kings lead series, 3-2

Game 1: at Detroit 5, KINGS 3

Game 2: at Detroit 4, KINGS 0

Game 3: at KINGS 2, Detroit 1

Game 4: at KINGS 4, Detroit 3 (OT)

Game 5: KINGS 3, at Detroit 2

Tonight: at KINGS, 7:30

Wednesday: *at Detroit, 4 p.m.

* if necessary