Red Wings’ play frustrates Blackhawks

It’s not easy to frustrate Jonathan Toews, but Henrik Zetterberg and the Red Wings were able to do it Saturday.

Zetterberg had 2 assists and got away with a few shots that the Blackhawks captain thought should have been penalties in Detroit’s 4-1 victory at the United Center in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals.

“I’m not going to go off and complain about some calls I thought should have been called or whatever, but if that’s the way they’re going to play we need to play the same way,” Toews said.

“There’s a lot of clutch and grab, a lot of interference. If they’re going to let that go, that’s something we need to know and maybe do it to them a little bit.”

The Hawks were short-handed four times, the Red Wings twice.

“It’s just tough to understand sometimes why we get roughing penalties and hooking penalties, whatever it is, and it doesn’t go both ways,” Toews said.

“It is what it is, but if that’s the way it’s going to be then we need to understand that and be more physical and be tougher on them. We’ll know that going into the next one.

“It’s not out of frustration, it’s just trying to frustrate their team. That’s something we need to do a little more. They’re trying to do it to our top couple lines, and we could do a little more of it. We’re kind of letting them skate around with the puck a little too much.”

Toews didn’t have a point and managed 3 shots in the loss. Patrick Sharp had 1 shot and Patrick Kane just 2, including a goal in the first period.

“I thought we battled their top guys a lot better than the previous game,” said Red Wings defenseman Kyle Quincey.

Detroit coach Mike Babcock argued that he didn’t believe Toews was frustrated.

“I don’t know about frustrated; that guy doesn’t get very frustrated, he just competes,” Babcock said. “We try not to give him any space. They’ve got four elite, elite forwards. They’ve got lots of depth, but they’ve got four guys that are all-world, and you can’t give them much room.”

Momentum change:It#146;s funny how one game can change the feelings of both teams in the playoffs.After the Hawks#146; relatively easy 4-1 victory in Game 1, it had some people thinking sweep. Now that the Red Wings have tied the series with their 4-1 win in Game 2, the Hawks are talking about finding a way to regain the momentum.#147;They have the momentum right now, so we have to try to get it back somehow,#148; Patrick Kane said. #147;That starts with maybe letting this one slip behind us and start getting ready for Game 3.#147;Maybe after the first game we thought it was going to be an easy series. We had a lot of confidence in here, but they#146;re a good team and they have a lot of players over there that still want to battle and prove themselves even more than they have already.#147;By no means is it going to be an easy series or a cakewalk.#148;Bouncing back:After a quiet Game 1, Henrik Zetterberg was the best player on the ice Saturday with 2 assists. He made the pass of the series so far setting up Brendan Smith#146;s goal that made it 2-1 in the second period.#147;I think that#146;s what makes (Jonathan) Toews and (Pavel) Datsyuk and Zetterberg different from most guys in the league,#148; Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. #147;That#146;s what they do. They just compete, and when it doesn#146;t go their way they just dig down and find a way to go harder.#147;That#146;s why you want them around. That#146;s a great example for the rest of your group.#148;Carcillo contributes:Daniel Carcillo was in the lineup for a second straight game for Viktor Stalberg and led the Hawks with 7 hits.#147;It#146;s more of a mental thing than anything,#148; Carcillo said of trying to get back in the lineup. #147;You need to be sharp in practice and especially during games. It puts the onus on yourself to kind of play a perfect game and help the team any way you can. You never quit.#148;Tip-ins:Duncan Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Brent Seabrook and Nick Leddy, the Hawks#146; top four defensemen, all were minus-2. #133; It wasn#146;t a good day on faceoffs for the Hawks, who went 25-for-31. Jonathan Toews was 9-for-13.