Red Wings handle adversity to beat Islanders in overtime 4-3

Lucas Raymond #23 of the Detroit Red Wings celebrates a third period goal by Jake Walman #96 against Ilya Sorokin #30 of the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on October 30, 2023 in Elmont, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

The Red Wings fought late to come through victorious in overtime at the UBS Arena Monday night. Lucas Raymond scored the game-winner against the New York Islanders in a 4-3 win, ending their three-game slide. Detroit stayed in touch with New York but struggled on scoring chances until the team clicked in. It was the first time in 17 games that the Red Wings beat the Isles on the road. Ville Husso made 36 of 39 saves for a .923 percentage and his third victory.  

Detroit sat with a three-game slip after losing two at home and a second straight 4-1 loss to the Boston Bruins Saturday. Net protection in front of Ville Husso was light, giving the Bruins enough room to light the lamp with ease. With the first month of action coming to a close, the Red Wings wanted to turn around their road trip against the Islanders, who have back-to-back victories. In their short stint at home, New York would vie for three in a row before heading out of town.

The Isles got a jump on shots to the net, taking the play to Ville Husso, who made the key stops. Detroit got into action going after Ilya Sorokin, after utilizing their defense and winning puck battles. By the halfway point, they got within reach on shots to the net against New York, but the game remained scoreless. The Red Wings were getting pucks to the net, tallying four scoring chances against Sorokin.

The Detroit defense remained firm going down to the final two minutes and consistent with shots to the net. They still looked to change the scoreless situation, but Sorokin and the Islanders cleared some loose pucks around the crease. Detroit faced aggression in the final seconds, but as the horn sounded to complete 20 minutes, Husso made a beautiful glove save.

In the second, Detroit came out hot to get on the board first, showing tremendous chances at the Islanders net. New York fired pucks at Husso, who, like Sorokin, didn’t want to be the first to give up the first goal. The teams remained close on shots to the net, but through eight minutes, no one changed the scoreboard. New York got their first chance to take the lead, but the Detroit PK denied them during the two-minute power play.

At 7:21, the Red Wings earned a two-minute advantage that helped boost their shots on the net to get close to New York but couldn’t get any luck at clean shots to the back of the net. They had another one in the final minutes, but things went sour for them. Detroit lost the puck at center ice and watched as Casey Cizikas took off going one on one with Husso and backhanding one through the five hole for the shorthanded goal. It was his second of the season and the one that Detroit would have to sit on. They didn’t make anything of their second chance and were caught up by the Islanders at 16 shots apiece.

The third overshadowed Detroit early as Pierre Engvall drove one from the blue line in the second minute of play. Noah Dobson got a piece of it near the crease, earning credit for the goal and a 2-0 lead. With a comfortable position, the Islanders left things in the hands of their goaltender, who remained hot through almost 48 minutes. His shutout came to a close with Dylan Sprong battling to get into a centering position, scoring his third.

Just under two minutes later, Detroit leveled the scoreboard as Jake Walman scored his second of the season on a wrister behind the faceoff to Sorokin’s right. J.T. Compher got in on the fun scoring at 11:43. It was the third consecutive unanswered for Detroit where Compher came around the net and connected with Mortiz Seider at the net, giving them the lead.

The Islanders had plenty of time left on the clock to make a statement, and on their third power play, the PP unit did work as Bo Horvat leveled things at three-all. New York outshot Detroit 10-7, but the game remained unsettled through sixty minutes of play. Detroit went into its second overtime situation of the season, taking a big scoring chance on Sorokin. Dylan Larkin tried to pull something off with Alex DeBrincat, but the netminder made a huge save on them.

The Red Wings were determined to get it done and keep control of the net. Compher was back with the puck on the final pass to Raymond, who scored on the open net to win it. "I think we put together 60 good minutes and we'll take a win in any shape or form," said Raymond during his chat with Bally Sports Detroit's Trevor Thompson. "It was a good pass from J.T., and with the one-timer it was wide open and I couldn't miss that."