The Detroit Red Wings were facing serious adversity in the opening round of the 2002 Stanley Cup Playoffs, but a long shot from Nicklas Lidstrom soon changed everything.
There may never be another NHL team assembled like the 2001-02 Detroit Red Wings, who boasted a total of 10 future Hall of Fame players and were led by the legendary Scotty Bowman, the game's greatest coach.
However, that aura seemed to fade a bit during the opening two games of the 2002 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Red Wings, who were the first overall seed by a wide margin, were matched up against the No. 8 Vancouver Canucks, who stunned them with two straight victories to open the series at Joe Louis Arena.
Heading into Vancouver for a pivotal Game 3, the Red Wings took a 1-0 first-period lead thanks to a tally from captain Steve Yzerman, who was essentially playing on one leg.
But Vancouver knotted the score at 1-1 midway through the second frame after future Red Wings forward Todd Bertuzzi roofed a backhander past a sprawling Dominik Hasek.
With time winding down in the second period, both teams appeared as though they would head to their respective dressing rooms to figure out a game plan on how to gain the advantage in the third period.
However, Nicklas Lidstrom singlehandidly changed the series around with what appeared to be an innocent shot from center ice.
Lidstrom's shot from almost 100 feet away skipped under the glove of goaltender Dan Cloutier, giving Detroit a stunning 2-1 lead.
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Brendan Shanahan then added a tally in the third period, during which Hasek shut down Bertuzzi on a penalty shot.
From that point on, the Red Wings won four straight against the Canucks, rallying from what had the makings of a disastrous first-round exit.
Eventually, they'd raise the Stanley Cup for the 10th time in team history later that spring with a five-game series win over the Carolina Hurricanes.
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