The Red Wings came out flying in Dallas last night, led 3-0 after the first period, and never looked back. It seemed the team finally found the killer instinct they lacked in games 4 and 5, and they put away the Stars 4-1. They now move on to face the Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals. Here are the highlights:

Detroit simply outworked the Stars from the first drop of the puck last night. They came out fighting hard in the first two periods and Dallas didn’t have an answer until it was too late — much like the first 2 games of the series. Zetterburg and Datsyuk got back on the scoreboard and some of their second tier scorers got back on the board by getting themselves planted in front of Turco to create scoring opportunites. Kris Draper scored a goal off his chin — now THAT’S playoff hockey at its finest.

Keys to the series:

Sloppy Defense

Dallas was sloppy on defense early on in the series, tightened up in the games they won, and crumbled a bit again early in game 6. Detroit’s offense is too explosive to allow for any mistakes. One sloppy pass and Zetterburg, Datysuk, or any number of other talented forwards is burying one at the other end. There were a TON of bad defensive plays, sloppy passes, and turnovers in the neutral zone in games 1, 2, &, 3 before Dallas really got themselves together — and by that point, it was too late.

Power Play

Philly went through this with Pittsburgh, and it was no different in this series. Dallas’ power play had more than enough opportunities to rescue them when games were still within reach, and they just couldn’t convert. Last night, Detroit spent the majority of the second period down a man, and Dallas barely registered a shot on the man advantage. You aren’t going to win games this way. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Dallas took way too many penalties against a potent power play. In game 1, they were down 3 goals very quickly because of bad penalties — a deficit they never overcame.

Zetterburg and Datysuk

Possibly the most dynamic pair in the league, this duo of Selke finalists had a fantastic series, and gave Marty Turco fits. Zetterburg had two shorthanded goals and Datsyuk had a hat trick in game 3. Both were nearly invisible in games 4 and 5 when Detroit lost — coincidence? Not likely. When these guys are on their game, Detroit wins. The key to beating the Red Wings is shutting them down, and Dallas didn’t do it nearly well enough.

Goaltending

It pains me to say it because he’s one of my favorites, but Marty Turco struggled in the early stages of this series. Detroit’s net crashing got under his skin, and I think he had a bit of a mental struggle due to his personal record against Detroit being so poor. That being said, he also had some spectacular moments — he played amazingly in Game 5 and some of the earlier games could have been a lot worse for Dallas were it not for him. But he admitted himself that he felt he wasn’t at his best, and teams don’t win championships without consistently reliable goaltending. Osgood, on the other hand, has been just that - consistent. He lost his first game of the playoffs in Game 4, and preserved leads for the Wings more than a few times in this series. I’ve been repeatedly impressed with his play, and he’s quietly putting on one of the best performances of his career.

Overtime Hangover?

The Stars took 2 games to find their legs and really start playing strong hockey. After an exhausting 4OT victory to eliminate the Sharks in the previous round, they only had 2 days off before the Conference Finals. The Wings had a full week between series. Was the exhaustion a factor? With an extra few days (or two fewer overtimes), does Dallas come out stronger sooner? The Stars certainly proved in games 4 and 5 that they could compete with Detroit. Had they brought that intensity from the start of the series, this could have been an entirely different beast.

Bring on the Finals!