PITTSBURGH -- If the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins meet in the first round of the NHL playoffs, things will be different than they were Wednesday night at Consol Energy Center. The Red Wings will likely have Jimmy Howard in goal and are hopeful captain Henrik Zetterberg will return from an extended injury absence. The Penguins should get Evgeni Malkin back from a foot injury, too. But in outplaying Pittsburgh and tying the score late in the third period before losing 4-3 in a shootout, Detroit showed that it could present serious matchup problems for the Metropolitan Division champions. "I thought our team played real well tonight. I thought we were better than them," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said after the shootout loss clinched a playoff spot. "We carried play, in my opinion, tonight, for sure. I thought we played well." By getting a point on the same night the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Dallas Stars, the Red Wings fell to the Eastern Conferences second wild-card spot, even though each team has 91 points. As Babcock pointed out, the Blue Jackets have the tiebreaker that could give them Pittsburgh, while the Red Wings get the Bruins. "Im not spending a whole lot of time awake worrying about this stuff," he said. "Were just in and whoever we get, were going to be a tough out." Babcock said his Red Wings didnt score as many goals as they should have, partially a product of a strong game from Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. But they also put 37 shots on net to the Penguins 24, giving up two of three goals on the power play and another when Jonas Gustavsson couldnt hang on to a puck and Jussi Jokinen poked it in. "Weve matched up well against them," said forward Riley Sheahan, whose goal with 1:15 left got Detroit the point it needed. "Theyre a really skilled team and weve got some skill as well. "If were matched up against them or whoever else, its going to be a lot of fun." Fleury likewise said it would be a "fun matchup," though one that could see him tested a year after another disappointing playoff showing. This is the same team Fleury beat to win the Stanley Cup in 2009, though only a handful of players remain. "I think theres no easy team that will make the playoffs," Fleury said. "Detroits a good team, they play hard, they got some skills. ... Its going to be a good challenge for us." Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said after his teams morning skate that aspects of the game could affect a potential playoff series, like if one team scored three times on the power play or one player won all his faceoff attempts. Pittsburgh went 2-for-4 on the power play, so that was good enough. "I dont think we were going to analyze the score of the game and project forward if it is a possible playoff matchup," Bylsma said. "We wanted to do certain things in areas of the game and maybe have that be a statement for how we played. Tonight we did that with the power play, for sure." Any statements made in the shootout can be overlooked, whether it was Fleury channelling Dominik Hasek for a diving save or Jussi Jokinen scoring the winner off the shaft of Gustavssons stick. If this were a playoff game, the Red Wings and Penguins wouldve kept playing. Thats not necessary yet, as Jokinen thinks these teams know each other well enough. "I think maybe it helps both teams. I think both teams are pretty familiar," Jokinen said. "They are in-your-face all the time. They play that man-to-man, very aggressive all over the ice. At times we did a good job of that, and at times we need to be better and do a better job making sure we get the pucks out and get pucks behind them." Cheap Nike Air Max Plus Tn . You can catch all of the action LIVE on TSN2 at 6pm et/3pm pt. The Heat reached that mark Saturday night when they ruined the Philadelphia 76ers home opener. Cheap Air Max Plus Gold . - No matter the lineup or location, the San Antonio Spurs are rolling through the NBA again this spring, just the way they have for most of the last two decades. http://www.cheapairmaxplusshoes.com/cheap-air-max-plus-red/ . Costa Rica followed up its wins over Uruguay and Italy by holding England to a dour 0-0 draw on Tuesday, enough to finish first in Group D. Cheap Nike Air Max Plus . Or, for that matter, the aged. Cheap Air Max Plus All Gold . PAUL, Minn.ST. LOUIS -- Matt Adams might want to have his fathers visit last longer. Adams homered for the third straight game -- all with his father in attendance -- and Matt Holliday also went deep, helping the St. Louis Cardinals to a 5-2 victory and series sweep Sunday over the Washington Nationals. Adams gave St. Louis a 2-0 lead in the second inning with a two-run shot on an 0-2 pitch, his sixth homer of the season. Adams father, Jamie, has been visiting from Pennsylvania on Fathers Day weekend. "Unfortunately, hes going to go home," Adams said. There were going to meet before Adams father left for the airport. "He might give me a big hug and start crying," Adams said. "Hes an emotional guy." Adams has homered in all three games since coming off the disabled list with a torn calf muscle. Holliday put St. Louis up 3-0 in the third with his fifth home run. St. Louis manager Mike Matheny never doubted his sluggers would start to hit the long ball after a slow start. The Cardinals are last in the National League in homers. "Weve been saying for months now these guys have done that," Matheny said. "Its not a surprise. Its not like these guys have never hit any home runs in their lives. I think that everybody just thought that we were either brainwashing them not to hit home runs or else they all lost it collectively and both of them are ridiculous." Last year, Adams had 17 homers in 108 games and Holliday had 22 in 141 games. "We knew that our power didnt go anywhere," Adams said. "We knew the type of hitters we are. We go out there on daily basis and grind through our at-bats." Jaime Garcia (3-0) pitched seven innings, allowing five hits and a run for St. Louis. He struck out six and walked two. Trevor Rosenthal got the final out for his 20th save. Washingtons Doug Fister (5-2) had his five-start winning streak snapped. He pitched six innings, allowing seven hits and four runs. "The two home runs were the biggest things for me," Fister said. "I need to find a better effort." St. Louis has won 12 of the last 14 regular-season meetings with Washington. The Nationals are 2-18 in the newest version of Busch Stadium. "We have a bitter taste in our mouths going home," Nationals outfielder Scott Hairston said. &"I think we definitely didnt play up to our capabilities.dddddddddddd" The Nationals loaded the bases in three innings, stranded 10 runners and scored on two bases loaded walks. The timely hit didnt come for Washington. "Its the ebbs and flows of the game," Washington manager Matt Williams said. "Its that time of the year where heavy legs start to set in a little bit." Garcia pitched out of a one-out, bases-loaded jam in the second. Third baseman Matt Carpenter caught Sandy Leons grounder on a short hop and threw out Hairston at home. Garcia then struck out Fister. Jayson Werth drew a bases loaded walk in the fifth to cut the lead to 3-1. "I didnt have my best stuff today but at the same time you go out there and you compete," Garcia said. "You battle and you keep your team in the game." St. Louis got the run back in the fifth, when Kolton Wong snapped an 0-for-16 skid with a leadoff triple and scored on a sacrifice fly by Holliday, who has 999 RBIs in his career. Craig doubled home Holliday in the seventh for a 5-1 lead. Rosenthal walked pinch-hitter Adam LaRoche in the ninth with the bases loaded to make it 5-2. NOTES: Reliever Carlos Martinez will make his second career start Monday when the Cardinals host the New York Mets. Martinez is taking the start in place of Adam Wainwright (elbow). ... Before Sundays game, the Cardinals purchased the contract of left-handed pitcher Nick Greenwood from Triple-A Memphis and optioned outfielder Randal Grichuk back to the affiliate. ... After starting 1,114 MLB games at third base, and 12 in left field, Ryan Zimmerman started Sunday at first base for the Nationals. ... Washingtons Danny Espinosa was hit by a pitch in the second inning, the eighth time this season. ... Washington CF Denard Span was scratched from the lineup due to back stiffness and replaced by Nate McLouth. ... St. Louis native boxer Devon Alexander threw out the first pitch. Alexander (25-2 with 14 knockouts) is a former WBC and IBF light welterweight champion and a former IBF welterweight champion. He has a welterweight fight against Robert Guerrero (31-2-1) on June 21. ... Randy Choates one-pitch win in Saturdays game made him the sixth pitcher in Cardinals history to throw one pitch and record a victory. Cheap Jerseys ChinaNFL Jerseys ChinaNFL Jerseys WholesaleDiscount Basketball JerseysCheap NHL Jerseys AuthenticCheap Baseball Jerseys Free ShippingCheapest College Jerseys SaleCheap Football Jerseys ChinaNike NFL Jerseys CanadaWholesale NHL Jerseys From ChinaMLB Jerseys Outlet CanadaWholesale NBA Jerseys Canada StoreCheap Soccer Jerseys ChinaCheap Authentic Jerseys Canada ' ' '