Red Wings win Game 2 in overtime

The Red Wings have put the Chicago Blackhawks on notice. The defending Stanley Cup champions are two wins away from getting back to the finals, and they aren’t even playing their best hockey.

Mikael Samuelsson scored 5:14 into overtime and Chris Osgood made 37 saves, lifting Detroit to a 3-2 win over the Blackhawks on Tuesday night and a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference finals.

Red Wings Coach Mike Babcock was relieved to win a game in which his team was often outplayed. They played for the fourth time in a week, including two hard-fought games against the Ducks.

“I don’t think we had any legs or any pop whatsoever,” Babcock said. “I thought we had good will and good determination, but no legs.”

The Blackhawks had nothing to show for their grit, desire and talent.

“It’s a brutal loss,” Chicago Coach Joel Quenneville said.

The fourth-seeded Blackhawks, playing in their first conference final since 1995, now have the daunting task of beating the defending champions in four out of five games to advance. Game 3 is Friday night in Chicago.

Detroit won Game 2 on a three-on-one rush, taking advantage of Chicago defenseman Brian Campbell’s turnover near Detroit’s blue line.

Jiri Hudler raced up the left side with the puck, pushed it to his right toward Valtteri Filppula, whose drop pass set up Samuelsson for a shot from the slot that beat Blackhawks goalie Nikolai Khabibulin.

“I just kept skating with them,” Samuelsson said. “It was a great play.”

Campbell lamented his role.

“If I’d do the play over again, maybe, I’d put a little sauce on that,” he said. “But I’ve got to make that play.”

After losing 5-2 in the series opener, the young Blackhawks weren’t going to get routed again.

Jonathan Toews’ second goal of the game with 7:40 left in regulation pulled Chicago into a 2-2 tie. Toews gave Chicago the lead midway through the first period, but Brian Rafalski got Detroit even later in the frame. Dan Cleary made it 2-1 early in the second.

Khabibulin stopped 35 shots.