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Job to do Red Wings not ready to begin celebratingPosted: Wednesday June 12, 2002 7:11 PM
DETROIT (AP) -- No, the Detroit Red Wings are not having fun yet. They are not making plans for a Stanley Cup parade, they have not begun to think about summer vacations and they refuse to be satisfied until they reach their goal. The Red Wings must beat the Carolina Hurricanes one more time to win the Cup, and their next chance comes in Game 5 Thursday night at Joe Louis Arena. "We haven't finished our business," said goaltender Dominik Hasek, who extended his own league record with a sixth shutout of the postseason in Monday's 3-0 victory. "There's no time for celebration until you win all 16 games. ... If we win, then it's time to celebrate. But right now, we have to be very focused for the next game." Detroit, which has welcomed a Cup-or-bust mentality, has been focused on winning it all and nothing else since training camp. When the Red Wings dominated the NHL during the regular season, earning at least 15 more points than any other team, they refused to make the feat a source of pride. After surviving a tougher-than-expected series against Vancouver, eliminating St. Louis easily and battling Colorado for seven games, the most outward sign of joy was Hasek bouncing on his skates a couple times after advancing to the finals. Brendan Shanahan said Detroit will enjoy this ride only after it reaches its ultimate destination. "When this team was put together, the one thing we always said was, 'Well, yeah, this has been a great start to our season, but we haven't accomplished our goal,'" Shanahan said. "And it has been that way with each round of the playoffs. And it's that way today. It's that way until we do accomplish our goal." Shanahan said the expectations make for a very demanding test. "Not every player in the NHL enjoys being considered a favorite from the early stages of a season," he said. "Not every player reacts well to that. But there has been pressure on this team all year long, and we have kind of shouldered it equally. The depth has helped." Hasek says this trip to the finals has been much different from his first when he and the Buffalo Sabres lost to Dallas in 1999. "We were underdogs. This year, we were the favorite team," he said. "I think this year, there's pressure because everybody in this town and everybody in this locker room expects us to win. And we like this pressure because we are here to win." Hasek can complete his sterling resume with a Stanley Cup, but he refuses to say whether he will retire if Detroit wins the Cup. Right now, there is more immediate business. "We don't look too far ahead," he said. "All I am concentrating on is the first period of the next game, and the next 60 minutes." |
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