Coyotes Get Win, Lose Shane Doan

It wasn't always as exciting as Friday's 11-goal explosion in the desert, but the Phoenix Coyotes managed go into Detroit on Sunday afternoon and hold off the Red Wings for a 4-2 win, taking a 2-1 lead in the series and regaining home-ice advantage.

They did it the same way they've won most of their games this season: strong two-way play from their forwards, defensemen providing some offense and great goaltending from Ilya Bryzgalov. And they also managed to do it while only getting six minutes from their captain, Shane Doan, who had to leave the game in the first period after crashing into the boards following a collision with Red Wings goaltender Jimmy Howard.

Coyotes lead series, 2-1
Coyotes 4, Red Wings 2: Recap | Box Score | Series Page

Doan left the game with the most popular injury at playoff time -- an "upper body injury" -- and did not return. As their leading scorer during the regular season (55 points), he's obviously a player the Coyotes can't afford to lose long-term. In the opening two games of the series he had already recorded a goal and an assist, while also being a physical force on the forecheck.

For the short-term, however, his absence didn't seem to hurt. The Coyotes managed to outshoot the Red Wings by a 26-18 margin over the final two periods (all without Doan) and 33-31 for the game. They also found a way to respond every time Detroit cut into the lead. One such example: after Johan Franzen beat Bryzgalov to narrow the gap to 3-2 with 10 minutes to play in regulation, Radim Vrbata quickly answered with a tally of his own less than two minutes later, beating Howard on the short side.

It hasn't been the best start to the postseason for Howard, who took the No. 1 job from Chris Osgood during the regular season. In his first three playoff appearances he's given up 11 goals on just 98 shots.

Given his play so far, and the fact Osgood has elevated his game in the playoffs the past two years, you have to wonder if Howard will enter Game 4 on Tuesday on a short leash. Of course, it hasn't been all on Howard, as there have been periods of time during the first three games -- just like there were during the regular season -- where Detroit simply hasn't played the type of defense we've grown so used to seeing it play over the years (like during Petr Prucha's third period goal on Sunday).

At the other end of the ice, Bryzgalov rebounded nicely with a 29-save effort after surrendering six goals on Wednesday, even holding off the Red Wings during a stretch where they registered 14 consecutive shots on goal.