Red Wings’ alumni finish sweep of Leafs

12/31/2013

DETROIT — Tomas Holmstrom scored the only goal of the shootout to give the Detroit Red Wings’ alumni a 6-5 victory and a sweep of two games in the NHL’s Alumni Showdown outside at Comerica Park before an announced crowd 33,425 on Tuesday.

Bryan McCabe tied it at 5 for Toronto with 2 seconds left to cap the Maple Leafs’ comeback from a 5-1 deficit.

Detroit won the first game 5-4.

The second game, played in two 25-minute halves, featured Hall of Famer and longtime Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman, who is the general manger of the Tampa Bay Lightning and the GM of Canada’s Olympic Team; Brendan Shanahan, an NHL vice president; and Nicklas Lidstrom for Detroit, and Hall of Famers Darryl Sittler, Doug Gilmour, Lanny McDonald, Mike Gartner, and Joe Nieuwendyk for Toronto.

Lidstrom had a goal and an assist, and Shanahan also scored.

Other Hall of Famers who suited up for Detroit were Chris Chelios, who scored a goal, Larry Murphy, Paul Coffey, Slava Fetisov, Igor Larionov, Mark Howe, and Dino Ciccarelli.

Hall of Famer Scotty Bowman coached the Red Wings, and Pat Quinn directed the Maple Leafs. Hall of Famers Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay dropped the puck for a ceremonial faceoff between Yzerman and Sittler before the second game.

Vladimir Konstatinov was helped onto the ice to join the rest of his “Russian 5” former Detroit teammates, Larionov, Fetisov, Sergei Fedorov — who had a goal — and Slava Kozlov. Konstantinov was badly injured in a limousine accident a few days after Detroit won the 1997 Stanley Cup.