The Red Wings better hope that the early minutes of Game 1 with the Blackhawks are indicative of tired legs or a bit of a mental letdown after the highly competitive Anaheim series, because the score could easily be 3-0 after the first five or six minutes of Period 1.

A sloppy line change allowed Versteeg to clang the frame past a waving Chris Osgood. Minutes later, a tip in missed due to shooter, not goalie. And the first goal, by popgun Adam Burish (10 G in 3 seasons) was of the really ugly variety, bad angle, slow as a pass and through the five hole.

Don’t be surprised to see Ty Conklin in this one, unless things change in a hurry.

The good news for the Red Wings is that Khabibulin can be very shaky on the other end as well…

And, as I write, there’s a wonderful shot ripped into the top shelf by Game 7 hero Dan Cleary to emphasize that point.  Tied 1-1 after 10 minutes and it’s looking like a high scoring and competitive game and series.