By Dave Hart
LocalSportsJournal.com
Red Wings 3, Maple Leafs 2 – The Red Wings picked up their second win in a row, defeating the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night.
Detroit passed the Boston Bruins for third place in the Atlantic division standings with three games remaining.
The Red Wings jumped out to a 2-0 after the first period on goals from Brad Richards and Mike Green.
The Maple Leafs cut their deficit to 2-1 on a goal by Colin Greening 2:44 into the second period.
Detroit added a goal from Kyle Quincey 3:59 into the third period to take a 3-1 lead.
Green and Richards each paced the Red Wings with a goal and an assist.
Detroit’s goaltender Jimmy Howard picked up his second straight win, stopping 32 of 34 shots.
The Red Wings are now 40-28-11 on the season, good for 91 points and third place in the Atlantic Division. They are two points ahead of Boston for a spot in the Atlantic Division playoff race.
Detroit will play its last home game on Wednesday night against the Philadelphia Flyers.
Record: 40-28-11 91 pts
3rd Place in Atlantic Division (6 pts behind Florida)
Tied for 8th Place in Eastern Conference (25 pts behind Washington)
2 points ahead of Boston for final Atlantic Division playoff spot.
Magic # to clinch 25th straight playoff berth: 8 pts
Magic # to clinch Atlantic Division title: 15 pts
Misery # towards elimination from a playoff berth: 8 pts
Misery # towards elimination from Atlantic Division title: 1 pt
Eliminated from Eastern Conference title contention
Next Game: 04/06/2016 vs. Philadelphia Flyers 8:00 p.m. @ Joe Louis Arena
Stats: Goals- Mike Green (7), Kyle Quincey (3), Brad Richards (10). Assists- Pavel Datsyuk (32), Jonathan Ericsson (12), Luke Glendening (13), Green (27), Darren Helm (13), Richards (17). Goaltender- Jimmy Howard W (13-12-5) 32 saves on 34 shots.
Pistons 94, Bulls 90 – The Pistons picked up a key victory over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.
Detroit, which now has a two and a half game lead over the Bulls with five remaining, picked up the season series over Chicago to earn the tie-breaker if necessary.
The Pistons trailed 27-26 after the first quarter, led 46-45 at halftime and had a 70-65 advantage after three quarters.
Reggie Jackson led the Pistons with 22 points while Tobias Harris added 21 points and seven rebounds. Andre Drummond chipped in with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
The Bulls were paced by Jimmy Butler with a game-high 28 points and 17 rebounds while Paul Gasol had 16 points and 14 rebounds.
The Pistons are now 41-36 on the season, good for a seventh place in the NBA’s Eastern Conference. They will have their first winning season since 2007-08 season.
Detroit will continued its road trip on Tuesday night against the Miami Heat.
Record: 41-36
2nd Place in Central Division (13.5 games behind Cleveland)
7th Place in Eastern Conference (13.5 games behind Cleveland)
2.5 games ahead of Chicago for the last playoff spot
Magic # to clinch a playoff berth: 4
Misery # towards elimination from playoff contention: 9
Eliminated from Central Division and Eastern Conference title contention.
Next Game: 04/05/2016 @ Miami Heat 8:00 p.m. @ American Airlines Arena
Stats: Reggie Jackson 22 points, Tobias Harris 21 points 7 rebounds, Marcus Morris 16 points, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 13 points, Andre Drummond 11 points 11 rebounds.
