Red Wings 5, Sharks 4
Monday February 10, 2003DETROIT (AP) Brett Hull became the sixth player in NHL history to score 700 goals as the Detroit Red Wings beat the San Jose Sharks 5-4 on Monday night.
Wayne Gretzky (894), Gordie Howe (801), Marcel Dionne (731), Phil Esposito (717) and Mike Gartner (708) are the others in the 700-goal club. Only Gretzky got there quicker than Hull.
Patrick Boileau beat Evgeny Nabokov high to the stick side from the right circle for his second career goal with 2:37 remaining to win it.
Hull's big goal was a one-time wrist shot from the bottom of the left circle that slipped through Nabokov's pads. Pavel Datsyuk set up Hull for the goal with a cross-ice pass.
Hull, the son of Hall of Famer Bobby Hull, went seven games without scoring after reaching 699. He had a huge smile on his face as his Red Wings teammates jumped off the bench to celebrate with him.
Kris Draper, Brendan Shanahan and Henrik Zetterberg got the other Detroit goals.
Mark Smith, Brad Stuart, Owen Nolan and Scott Thornton scored for San Jose.
Zetterberg put Detroit up 4-3 just 1:54 into the third period when he took a pass from Hull, cut in off right wing on his backhand, switched to his forehand and slid the puck between Nabokov's pads.
But Thornton tied it 4-4 with a power-play goal on a one-timer from the high slot.
The teams were tied at 3 going into the third period.
Stuart's power-play goal 1:13 into the second period gave San Jose a 2-1 lead. His slap shot from the point deflected off the stick of Detroit's Mathieu Dandenault and past goalie Manny Legace.
But Detroit capitalized on two penalties assesed at the same time. Vincent Damphousse was called for holding Shanahan, and before the Sharks could get control of the puck for play to stop, Dan McGillis pulled down Hull and was called for holding.
Both players went to the penalty box with 5:06 left in the period. Shanahan tied the game just 18 seconds later when he slammed a loose puck into an empty net.
And exactly two minutes after the penalties, Hull gave the Red Wings a 3-2 lead with No. 700, only to see San Jose tie it with just 1:26 left in the middle period on Owen Nolan's goal.
Smith gave San Jose a 1-0 lead in the first period when he put in a rebound. Detroit tied it when Draper scored on a rebound.
^Notes: Hull's first career goal came on Nov. 13, 1986, as a member of the Calgary Flames. Nabovov was 12 years old in his native Kazakstan at that time. ... Detroit defenseman Chris Chelios missed his eighth straight game with a leg injury. ... Smith's goal was his first in 87 games. His last goal had come on Nov. 6, 2001. ... San Jose coach Ron Wilson's uncle, Johnny Wilson, attended the game. Johnny Wilson is a former Detroit Red Wings player and coach and lives in the Detroit area.
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