Trending: Stingy defense propels Red Wings to a 3-1 win

TRAVERSE CITY -- Facing a Dallas Stars team that scored seven goals against the New York Rangers on Friday in a 7-5 victory, the Detroit Red Wings knew they had to slow the Stars down.
And slow the Stars down is exactly what the Wings did, earning a 3-1 victory over Dallas at Centre Ice Arena on Saturday night before a sold-out crowd.

Detroit's defense and special teams were the difference as the Wings evened their Prospect Tournament record at 1-1.
Michael Rasmussen led the Wings with two goals. He scored a power-play goal in the first period, tipping in Dennis Cholowski's slap shot, and in the third, he scored an empty netter, showing a burst of speed after being sprung into the clear with a nifty pass from defenseman Reilly Webb.
Cholowski also scored a power-play goal in the second period by making a move that left the Stars defenders standing still as he rifled the puck past Stars netminder Colton Point.
It was a good all-around effort by the Red Wings in a game they had to win to have any chance of playing in the championship game Tuesday night.
Rasmussen led Detroit with his two goals and an assist, Cholowski had a goal and an assist and Filip Zadina, Joe Veleno and Webb each notched one helper.
Up next, the Red Wings take on the Rangers Monday at 4 p.m. at Centre Ice Arena.
If the Wings win and the Minnesota Wild lose on Monday, the Wings will earn a spot in Tuesday's championship game.
1. Michael Rasmussen: Rasmussen was moved to left wing and excelled playing with Veleno at center and Zadina at right wing. They combined for five total points. He was also a handful in front of the Stars' net. Dallas had trouble defending the 6-foot-6, 221-pound Rasmussen as he effortlessly distributed the puck from behind the Stars net or created a wall in front of the Dallas goal. Slated to have a tremendous shot at making the Red Wings out of training camp, Rasmussen's skill set and overall leadership (he wears the 'A' on his sweater as the Wings prospects have three alternate captains), were on display on Saturday. If he continues to progress and plays like he did against the Stars, No. 27 will not be penciled into the Detroit lineup, he'll be written in with permanent magic marker.
Quotable: "I definitely feel good about my game. I worked extremely hard this summer on my off-ice and on my on-ice, so the fact that I put in a lot of hours in the gym and on the ice helps me in my confidence, so I feel there's opportunity here and I want to come in and do my best and be a good teammate. I want to contribute any way I can, whether it's on the scoresheet or whatever. I just want to contribute, a great play by Webby (Reilly Webb) there (pass on the empty netter) and a great shot by Cholo (Dennis Cholowski) there on the first one, like I said, a good effort. I just want to come in every day and do my best. I'm a big guy so I have to play well down low and in front of the net and stuff like that. Like I said, work hard just get better every day and be a good teammate, that's pretty much me." -- Rasmussen
Quotable II: "He played about as good as I've seen him play in a long time. He used his body a lot, presence in front of the net, protected the puck really well. That was one of the better games I've seen him play in a while." -- Cholowski
Quotable III: "He's got such a big frame, such a big reach. That's going to be one of his attributes he's going to have to use to his advantage, protecting the puck and not allowing guys to get inside of him. Once he gets the puck, it's tough to get inside that wing span." -- Ben Simon, Grand Rapids Griffins head coach
2. Kaden Fulcher: Sometimes it's easier for a goaltender to face a lot of shots than to have to sit there and wait for the puck. But after what they felt was a less than exemplary defensive effort in Friday night's loss to the Minnesota Wild, the Wings put forth a stronger effort. That effort resulted in the Stars getting just two shots in the second period, the first of those coming with 4:50 remaining in the period. But Fulcher, making his first start of the tournament, did not let it faze him. Fulcher had to make some big saves early in the game when the Stars came out flying and again late in the third when they were trying to tie the game. The only goal Fulcher allowed was a backhand shot from Tony Calderone at 8:00 of the third after a Detroit turnover. Fulcher finished with 16 saves and earned the Wings' first win of the tournament.
Quotable: "I think the toes definitely got a little cold there but I think it's just always making sure to keep track of the puck and always just kind of tracking it and making sure you're mentally prepared for it and taking it to that next level." -- Fulcher
Quotable II: "I thought he played very well. He's got confidence coming from the season he just had and I thought we did a better job defensively, allowing him to see shots. At times he was fighting through a lot of screens. I thought he did a good job controlling his rebounds. There wasn't a lot of second chances. I thought he stepped up and played very well." -- Simon
3. Dennis Cholowski: Cholowski is certainly getting his stamina tested in the early going, playing heavy minutes in back-to-back games. But the young defenseman, who spent the summer in metro Detroit training at Barwis Methods with several current Red Wings players, was up for the challenge. After assisting on both goals Friday night, Cholowski assisted on Rasmussen's power-play goal in the first period and then scored during a 5-on-3 at 19:08 of the second to give the Wings a 2-0 lead.
Quotable: "Z gave me a good pass. It kind of just seemed like the seas parted and then I just had a big lane right up the middle, kind of just took it and fired it. It's big for sure. Taking these kind of games into training camp is going to help a lot. Obviously we want to win our next game and hopefully get a chance at the finals. I think it's a big confidence booster for all of us." -- Cholowski
Quotable II: "I thought he played, again, another solid game. He's playing a lot of minutes. I think he's playing to his strengths. He's moving his feet, he's skating, he's seeing the ice very well right now. He's not making a lot of mistakes. He's making a statement that he worked hard this summer and was ready for camp." -- Simon