The Michigan Daily - Thursday, October 6, 2005 -15A 0R Wings skate to victory in first game Sugiyama aces first test as a Wolverine DETROIT (A P) - It didn't take long for Pavel Datsyuk to make a return on Detroit's investment. Datsyuk scored 95 seconds into the game, assisted another goal sev- eral minutes later and the Red Wings went on to beat the St. Louis Blues 5-1 yesterday night in the opener for both teams. "That's why we wanted him back," Detroit coach Mike Babcock said after making his debut behind the Red Wings' bench. "He showed why a lot of people think he's one of the top young players in the NHL." The 27-year-old center returned to Detroit for a $7.8 million, two-year contract last week after threatening to stay home and play in Russia for a sec- ond straight season. "I'm happy to be back in Detroit," he said. Despite his late arrival, Datsyuk didn't look rusty and seemed to mesh well with his teammates. "The same players play," he said. "I didn't come to the camp, but it's the same team. It's a good start, not only for me, but for the team." A 2-1 game turned into a rout in the second period when Detroit scored three goals while St. Louis took just three shots, none of which got past Manny Legace, who needed to make a mere 13 saves. "That was unacceptable," said St. Louis' Dallas Drake, whose only shot was in the third period. "We just refused to shoot the puck." Patrick Lalime allowed four goals on 24 shots before the Blues replaced him with Reinhard Divis midway through the second period. ' "They have a good team, but we showed them too much respect," Lalime said. Robert Lang, Mathieu Schneider, Mikael Samuelsson and Brett Lebda scored for the Red Wings, who still seem to have a lot of talent despite hav- ing to cut their payroll almost in half because of the NHL's $39 million sal- ary cap, a result of the lockout that cost last season. Eric Brewer had a goal midway through the first period for the Blues, who will be challenged to extend the longest playoff streak in professional sports to 26 straight years after this season because their owners have put the streamlined team on the market. St. Louis traded star defenseman Chris Pronger to Edmonton, allowed forward Pavol Demitra to leave as a free agent, and legendary defenseman Al MacInnis retired. "It's a new world," Blues coach Mike Kitchen said. The one-sided game didn't provide much excitement, but Shanahan did with some feisty play in the third period. After Keith Tkachuk knocked down Datsyuk and was called for roughing, Shanahan pounced on him and the two were in the middle of a scrum. Shana- han fought skate-to-skate with Jamal Mayers later in the period, sending the crowd into a frenzy. By Bryan Hamilton For the Daily Remember that feeling? You're a freshmen, you're walking to your first college test. You're nervous, unconfident, maybe unprepared. Now imagine, that your first test isn't in chemistry or calculus, but in tennis. Not only are you up against the pressure of your debut, but up against upperclassmen looking to beat down on a young, inexperienced freshmen. You thought solving derivatives and integrals was tough. But it was Michigan women's ten- nis freshman Chisako Sugiyama, who in her debut looked like the experienced upperclassman. In her first tournament as a Wolverine, Sug- iyama posted a perfect 9-0 record to claim the singles title this past week- end at the Wolverine Invitational. "I certainly didn't expect to go undefeated," Sugiyama said. "But I felt confident because of the way that I played my doubles matches heading into singles play." And as for those first time jitters and nerves? "I wasn't really nervous at all," Sugiyama said. "I was obviously the underdog going into the tournament and that's a role I like because I don't feel like there's a lot of pressure on me." After such a performance, it's doubtful that Sugiyama will find, herself in many more underdog roles. Dominating the competition, Sugi- yama coasted to the finals by sweep- ing through her first three opponents in six sets. In the finals loomed the 109th ranked women's player in the world, Western Michigan's Rattiya Hiran- rat. The unfazed freshmen continued on her tear and rocked the heav- ily favored Hiranrat, 6-1, 6-3. After mowing down her opponents with such command, Sugiyama sought perspective. "When I won the match and real- ized that she was ranked so high, I was very surprised because of the way I beat her," Sugiyama said. "But rankings really don't mean that much. I don't really even know how the system works and how you get ranked like that. Plus, it's only one match." Such perspective and a level-head- ed attitude were instrumental in get- ting the Japan native to Michigan. The tennis prodigy was recruited by several schools, including Big Ten-rival Illinois, but she ultimately chose Michigan for the balance that it offered. "I've always loved big universi- ties," Sugiyama said. "I come from a small school and just saw Michigan as a place that had a lot to offer. The tennis facilities here are phenomenal and, academically, they're really good in the kinesiology field, which is what I want to study." Whether it's the professional field or professional sports, it's never too early for the potential star freshmen to consider life, post-collegiate tennis. "It all really depends," Sugiyama said. "My plan is to see where the next four years take me with my tennis. I may finish undergrad and decide to go and get a Master's in my field. But if I'm in a position to play tennis professionally, I would love to do that." In the mean time, the curve has been set high for Sugiyama for the rest of this year. A position, to no surprise, that Sugiyama relishes. "I also love to have the pressure on me," Sugiyama said. "I find that the more pressure is on me, the harder I push myself and the better I do." Whatever the task - whether it's the added pressure of playing as the favorite, or simply being a freshman in kinesiology taking her first exam - if this past weekend is any indica- tion, Sugiyama will have no problem passing any test. In the first Red Wings game since spring 2004, Detroit beat St. Louis, 5-1. aJbe o-trbog UttDl STAFF PICKS Predictions for the upcoming NHL hockey season Stanley Cup Winner Stanley Cup Runner-up Conn Smythe trophy winner Next team to win in a shootout Number of Al Montoya minutes Sidney Crosby goals Most overrated player Most overrated team Number of Red Wings victories Ian Sharad Herbert Mattu Montreal Philadelphia Vancouver Jose Theodore Washington 60 15 Lemieux Colorado 49 Calgary Peter Forsberg New Jersey 377 17 Robert Lang Detroit 48 Kevin Wright Pittsburgh Phoenix Mario Lemieux Columbus 1,002 25 Dany Heatley Washington 70 II.