A historical look at Game 7s and the Red Wings

By @SKubus –

After failing to close out the Tampa Bay Lightning on home ice in Game 6, the Detroit Red Wings are now tasked to win at Amalie Arena for the third time this series, though that should be all too familiar for the Red Wings’ veterans, as the team’s last four Game 7s have come on the road.

MORE: UPDATE: Kronwall suspended for tomorrow’s Game 7 | Red Wings fall behind early, drop Game 6 to Lightning

The series finale begins at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday night, and here are some other quick hits with regard to Detroit’s Game 7 history:

• Dating back to 1939 when the best-of-seven format was first introduced in the NHL, the Red Wings are 14-10 all-time in Game 7.
• Tampa Bay, meanwhile, is 3-1 all-time in Game 7, with a 2-0 mark at home. All four games have been decided by one goal.
• Detroit will play in its 25th Game 7 Wednesday night, tying the Boston Bruins for most in history.
• While 11-5 at Olympia Stadium and Joe Louis Arena in Game 7, the Red Wings are 3-5 in road arenas.
• After Wednesday night’s finale with Tampa Bay, the Red Wings will have played in seven Game 7s since 2009. Five of their last six Game 7 outings have been decided by one goal.
• In six career Game 7s dating back to 2009, Detroit captain Henrik Zetterberg has recorded three goals and six assists, including a point in each contest but one. Zetterberg has yet to score in the series, but has recorded three assists.
• Pavel Datsyuk has amassed four goals and one assist in seven Game 7s, but is pointless in his last two.
• The last Game 7 Detroit won in overtime was on May 16, 1996, the night Steve Yzerman made famous with his top-corner slap shot from just inside the blue line that knocked out Wayne Gretzky and the St. Louis Blues in double overtime in the Western Conference Semifinals, a 1-0 game.
• Speaking of conference, this will be the Red Wings’ first Game 7 as a member of the Eastern Conference.
• And speaking of overtime, it has taken extra time to solve six of Detroit’s 24 Game 7s. The Red Wings are 4-2 in those games and all but one have come on home ice. The most recent, and only on the road, came in the form of a 2-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2013 Western Conference Semifinals.