GAME THREAD: NHL: NASHVILLE (7-7) at DETROIT (11-3)

DETROIT (Ticker) -- Pavel Datsyuk scored the decisive goal inthe shootout and Chris Osgood remained perfect as the DetroitRed Wings posted a 3-2 victory over the Nashville Predators onWednesday.


Henrik Zetterberg tallied in the shootout and added an assist inregulation to set a club record with at least one point in 15straight games to start a season for Detroit, which has woneight in a row. The previous mark was set in 1960-61 by NormUlman.


"When we're playing well, there's a lot of opportunities to putsome points out there," Zetterberg said. "Playing on the powerplay, you should put some points up. Fifteen games in a row,that's always nice."


Datsyuk went first in the shootout and deked to his right beforebeating goaltender Chris Mason with a backhander to the leftside. On Detroit's second attempt, Zetterberg used a great deketo the right that froze Mason and slipped in a backhander.

Osgood, who stopped 28 shots before the bonus format, made agreat glove save on J.P. Dumont before Alexander Radulov fired ashot high and to the right of the net, clinching the win forthe Red Wings.


"You're not going to win the exact way you want to every night,"Osgood said. "It was tough tonight. We didn't play very wellthe second half of the game, but we had a two-goal lead. Wewould have liked to make it three. We didn't play good, but wemanaged to win the game, and that's what matters."

Osgood improved to 8-0-0 while serving as the backup to DominikHasek, who was activated from injured reserve before the gameand is expected to return from a hip injury on Friday.

"Dom's played a lot of games. He's a great goalie," Osgoodsaid. "Dom needs to play. He's been practicing since Monday,so he's ready now. He had to get some shots to get the rustoff. He's ready. Dom will play against Columbus (on Friday)and then we'll go from there."


Meanwhile, Dumont helped Nashville rally from a 2-0 deficit ashe scored the equalizer on a one-timer from the right side ofthe net with 84 seconds remaining in the third period.

"To be down 2-0 against the best team in the Western Conferenceand to come back to get a point, we'll take that," Nashvillecoach Barry Trotz said. "It was a well-earned point."

The Predators, who were outshot, 45-30, pulled within 2-1 at12:28 of the third period as defenseman Ryan Suter fired a shotfrom the point that beat Osgood to the short side for his secondgoal of the season.


"We needed something," Suter said. "Once we scored, that gaveus a little jump."


While Detroit coach Mike Babcock did not want to blame the RedWings' six-day layoff for his team's late-game collapse, he saidhe was expecting it.


"I've been nervous for five days," Babcock said. "I knew thiswas coming. I was scared about it. Even though you need therest and you need the time to regroup, you knew this was goingto be a tough night for us. We had good goaltending, we scoreda couple power-play goals and then we had some skill in theshootout."


Detroit outshot Nashville, 16-7, in the first period but couldnot break through until Daniel Cleary collected his own reboundin front of the net during a power play and put the puck pastMason at 8:40.


With a two-man advantage in the second session, Jiri Hudlerscored his fourth goal of the season as he put back the reboundof Tomas Holmstrom's shot with 77 seconds to go for a 2-0 bulge.Mason, who entered just 3-7-0 with a 3.68 goals-againstaverage, stopped 43 shots.


"For me, it was a huge measuring stick," Mason said. "They puteverything on the net, and there's usually two guys going to thenet afterward. You really have to be able to contain things."

The Predators, who had won five of six, were 0-for-5 on thepower play.