ROUNDUP | Saturday's games

Red Wings 2, Predators 1
DETROIT -- Mathieu Schneider's slap shot went off the boards, off goalie Tomas Vokoun's skate and trickled into the net late in the third period to lift Detroit. The Red Wings are ahead 2-0 in the first-round series because they have outscored the Predators 4-0 in the third period. The teams will make a quick turnaround and play Game 3 of the best-of-seven series Sunday in Nashville. The winning goal in Game 2 came on the power play after the Red Wings were 0-for-9 in the series with an extra man. Schneider's shot from above the right circle went behind Vokoun, then caromed toward the net where the sprawled-out goaltender had the misfortune of having the puck go off his skate. Vokoun laid flat on his back as the crowd cheered. Manny Legace made 27 saves, and Robert Lang scored for Detroit, which had the NHL's best record during the regular season. Nashville's Vladimir Orszagh tied the game at 1 midway through the second period and Vokoun kept the Predators in it with 26 saves. The Predators were 0-for-6 on the power play Saturday and are 0-for-9 for the series. Legace was sharp one day after he was hit on his mask by a puck during practice. The career backup has become Detroit's No. 1 goalie because Curtis Joseph is hobbled with an ankle injury, and Dominik Hasek had a season-ending groin injury. Lang's second goal of the series -- which he poked past Vokoun -- put the Red Wings ahead 1-0 at 5:45 of the second period. Shortly after Vokoun stopped Ray Whitney on a short-handed breakaway, Nashville tied it midway through the second. After Orszagh fooled Legace with a move between the circles off a centering pass from Martin Erat, he went crashing into the post face first. The Predators were without standout defenseman Marek Zidlicky, who left Wednesday's game with what the team is calling "an upper body injury." Detroit has the most playoff experience among teams in the postseason, and the Predators have the least. Nashville began the playoffs with a combined 247 games of postseason experience, while the Red Wings have 11 players who have played at least 100 games, led by Chris Chelios with 216. Detroit is making its 53rd postseason appearance and 14th consecutive while Nashville is in the playoffs for the first time in its six-season history.
Sharks 3, Blues 1
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Patrick Marleau's slump is history, and the San Jose Sharks are halfway to the second round of the playoffs. Marleau scored three goals and Evgeni Nabokov made 25 saves, leading the Sharks. Though Nabokov was nearly impeccable again, San Jose took a 2-0 lead in the series thanks to a career-defining performance by Marleau, the All-Star who scored just one goal in the final 17 games of the regular season. The Sharks' 24-year-old captain has been inconsistent throughout his career, but his maturity is growing along with his abilities. Marleau scored in each period of a penalty-filled game, leading San Jose to an easy win over the hotheaded Blues, who gave San Jose 10 power plays in the first two periods. After getting two power-play goals, Marleau sneaked behind the St. Louis defense early in the third for a short-handed goal on a pass from Vincent Damphousse, who had two assists. The sellout crowd threw hundreds of hats onto the ice. Nabokov was on the verge of his second straight shutout until he allowed a terrible short-handed goal to Doug Weight with 2:09 to play, ending a streak of 127 scoreless minutes. No matter: San Jose will head to St. Louis for Game 3 on Monday with confidence and a two-game cushion. Game 4 of the best-of-seven series is Tuesday. The second-seeded Sharks, who set a franchise record with 104 points while winning the Pacific Division, have a 2-0 lead in a playoff series for the second time in their 13-year history. In 1995, they went two games ahead of the Calgary Flames before holding on for a seven-game, first-round victory.
-- Associated Press