9601160038 DETROIT FREE PRESS 960515 Wednesday, May 15, 1996 METRO FINAL

NWS

1A Photo Color JULIAN H. GONZALEZ Detroit Free Press Photo JULIAN H. GONZALEZ Detroit Free Press : In Detroit's 4-2 victory Tuesday night, Red Wing Dino Ciccarelli puts Al MacInnis of the St. Louis Blues against the boards. The showdown game in the best-of-seven series is Thursday night at Joe Louis Arena. Red Wing Sergei Fedorov gets a double hit Tuesday night from St. Louis Blues Brett Hull, background, and Murray Baron. MITCH ALBOM SEE ALSO CHASER EDITION, Page 1A Copyright (c) 1996, Detroit Free Press JUST ANOTHER VICTORY ST. LOUIS -- Hold the applause. The Red Wings may have won a game, but they have not earned cheers, not yet, and they will be the first to admit it. You don't get anything for losing in seven games, no more than you do for losing in six, and this nerve-racking hockey series is still perched on the edge of a very high cliff. The only difference now is that both teams are out there together: one blue, one red. That's red, not dead. "Whew," Wings fans seemed to gush, after the 4-2 victory Tuesday night over the St. Louis Blues that kept the Detroit season alive, forcing a Game 7, and, at least for the time being, keeping certain fanatics from putting their heads in the oven. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" With all due respect, no thanks are necessary -- because none has been earned. The Wings still have plenty to worry about, as anyone who almost fainted during the last three minutes can tell you. Don't misunderstand. Game 6 gave us much to admire. Here, in a thumping building that shook signs reading "Bye, Bye Octopi," came a courageous Detroit effort, with players willing to drop and take a puck in the face to stop a shot, as Bob Rouse did in the second period, slicing open his forehead. There was splendid goaltending -- until the final minutes, anyhow -- from young Chris Osgood, who continues to play well beyond his baby-face years, and there was marvelous penalty killing by the Wings' biggest names. And yes, for a blessed change, there was opportunistic scoring, with Igor Larionov getting his stick on a shot and redirecting it past Blues goalie Jon Casey, and Dino Ciccarelli nubbing a Paul Coffey shot into pay dirt the same way. And there was the biggest play of the night, from -- get this -- Kris Draper. The guy acquired by the Wings for a dollar scored a goal that was worth a million, stealing a bad pass from Casey and weaving past him for a solo score and a two-goal lead, which was the first time in days that I actually saw the Red Wings breathe. Red, not dead. History lesson "Don't you figure the odds are at least on your side?" I had asked Draper before Game 6. "I mean, what are the chances St. Louis would win four in a row from you?" "I dunno," he'd said. "What were the chances they'd win three?" Good point. The Wings were -- and are -- supposed to win this series. They are not supposed to lose four in a row to the Blues, and they are not supposed to lose four out of five. The difference between these teams in the regular season was 51 points. How big a margin is that? There were years when the Wings did not earn 51 points total. So hold the applause. You will be forgiven for waiting, for crossing your arms, sitting on your hands, holding the back- slaps until you see what happens Thursday night. The fact is, the Wings themselves are doing the same. Remember, this is a team that didn't want to make big deal out of winning the Central Division, and even refused a group photo after breaking the all-time NHL regular season victory record. "We haven't done anything," they said, shrugging, "if we haven't won the Cup." Well then, they certainly haven't done anything by simply holding off disaster for a night. And as anyone who watched Tuesday's 3-0 lead turn quickly to a 3-2 hold-on-and-look-out- finish -- well, you know there is no such thing as relaxing until the final horn has happily sounded. There were moments when I swore I could hear the hearts in Detroit pounding all the way in up in the press box at the Kiel Center. So while it was sweet for Wings fans to see the Blues held in check for most of the night, and to see Wayne Gretzky returned to planet Earth, and to see the Detroit Russians finally score, to see Coffey get back into things, it will all be for naught if Thursday night is another weird, cursed evening. And it is not without precedent. Three years ago, the Wings came back from a 3-2 deficit against Toronto, tied the series, then came home and lost it. You remember that, don't you? Ah, ah, ah, get your head out of the oven! History doesn't always repeat itself. Lucky breaks Now, there will be one good thing about this series -- should it end in victory. The Wings will have faced the hardest stone the devil can throw in the playoffs -- not just elimination, but embarrassing elimination -- and they will have survived. This will serve them well down the line. Last year, before the embarrassing finals sweep, the toughest series the Wings had was a five-game affair with Chicago. Whether it was luck, timing, good play, who knows -- but they were charmed, they won and they advanced to the championship round in 14 games. Thursday night, they play their 13th game of this post- season -- just to get out of the second round. So it will serve them well, this experience, but only if it has a happy ending. Two days ago, the Wings couldn't breathe. Now they are simply waiting to exhale. Before the team left for St. Louis, I asked Draper one more time about the odds. "Well," he said, smiling, "Let's hope Lady Luck hops on Redbird One on our way down." Request granted. Now, let's hope she took the return flight back. THIS ELECTRONIC VERSION MAY DIFFER SLIGHTLY FROM THE PRINTED ARTICLE. HOCKEY; GAME; RED WINGS