Oilers snap seven year losing streak in Detroit

The Edmonton Oilers had enough energy to be successful in back to back games. With a vulnerable Detroit Red Wings squad, they waited for the time to overtake them and win 2-1 at Joe Louis Arena Sunday night. Edmonton carried out a two game winning streak that only increased the Red Wings to a five game skid. It was the first time since 2009 that the Oilers won a game in Detroit. 

The Red Wings needed to end a lengthy losing streak with a second chance to do it against a vulnerable team. Detroit’s mistakes cost them a chance against the Winnipeg Jets Friday leaving them in a constant tie before they ended things victoriously in regulation. A day of rest and their second straight at home offered Detroit to begin dictating on their own rules that could take down the Oilers.

Edmonton came out with strength in their competition that saw them going for an early lead on the Red Wings. Jimmy Howard made stops on the quickness of the Oilers while Detroit configured their way into the mix. They had troubles right off the start with former goaltender Jonas Gustavsson across the ice in net for Edmonton.

His experience of Detroit, the top net minder dealt with the Red Wings first power play but couldn’t stop them from taking the lead. It came at the drive of Brendan Smith who got the puck near the crease where Justin Abdelkader put the puck behind the net for his second straight and his third overall.

Edmonton didn’t take long to respond and did so with Patrick Maroon getting a solid scoring chance but couldn’t get by the quick reactions of Howard. They remained focused on getting the game leveled at one all but the Red Wings were defending well in front of their goaltender. Six minutes remained in the period with the shots on goal neck n neck between the teams as the activity was alive and well.

With 3:21 left on the clock, the Oilers battled near the boards to get the puck loose. A centering drive from Milan Lucic went to the back of the net where Tyler Pitlick gained possession putting the puck behind the skate of Howard to tie the game and add his fourth of the year. It helped bring them back to level pegging with Detroit dead even at 12 shots each through 20 minutes.

The second period went on just as the first ended with Edmonton really making a statement of their wish to be the ones dictating the pace. After half the period went into the books, the Oilers had the lead on shots to the net firing eight while Detroit only took four. They eventually caught up with Edmonton but getting the go ahead behind was becoming more difficult as the time on ice allowed him to reacquaint himself to the movements on ice.

As the period neared its conclusion, the Red Wings challenged themselves to play shorthanded in their first power play given to a team in more than a game. They took care of business but suddenly gave up another one during the final minute of play. It was there that Edmonton put speed ahead of the time on the clock and set up a play where Ryan Nugent-Hopkins got a piece of Connor McDavid’s drive earning him his second to lead 2-1 after two.

With the losing streak looming over the heads of the Red Wings, something clearly had to be done in order to break out of the trouble they were in. For a majority of the period, it was a challenge form them as the Oilers had control of what they wanted to get done while on the road. They played great defense against the Red Wings who were struggling to find shots on Gustavsson all while trying to play tough to stop the Oilers.

Time fell off the clock that left Detroit scrambling but in the end it was too late to make a huge push. Detroit went for an empty net with one-minute left in the game but blocked shots on the count of Edmonton allowed them to win their first game at the Joe since 2009 handing the Red Wings their fifth loss in a row.

Jets get a Frday night win beating Detroit 5-3

Detroit’s efforts to get a victory at home were quieted at the Joe Louis Arena Friday night. The Winnipeg Jets put every ounce of energy they had left going on to end a losing streak beating the Red Wings 5-3. The loss gave Detroit their fourth defeat in a row while their opponents ended their own woes.

The Red Wings got Niklas Kronwall back in the lineup for the first time this season. The veteran defenseman sat out the start of the season dealing with a knee injury that has now allowed him to expedite his way back to the ice. Kronwall’s presence is greatly needed as the team sat on a three-game losing streak hoping to bring it to an end against the Jets on home ice. Winnipeg has also lost three straight that included a Thursday night loss to the Capitals that came in overtime. Both carried losing streaks into the night with the hope of it coming to an end for one of them.

Luke Glendening made things happen after three minutes skating in the right place to redirect a shot from Danny DeKeyser giving him his first of the season. The goal from Glendening helped Detroit increase their shots on the net of Connor Hellebuyck. By the halfway point, Detroit already had ten shots on goal while minimizing the struggling Jets to just a pair. It was nearly seven minutes since Winnipeg took their scoring chances in the Red Wings zone with Petr Mrazek between the pipes. They took another pair at the Czech net minder but he dealt with them easily.

The Jets became quite active late in the period with another pair of shots that woke up their lines. On a big opportunity from the faceoff, Winnipeg stole the puck away in the neutral zone during a change that Patrik Laine took off with, scoring a wrister to Mrazek for his seventh on the year. The success of tying the game only made Detroit want control back quickly that Gustav Nyquist made clear in his attempt.

Detroit had a late power play on their hands but their low success rate going against a solid penalty killing unit left them out of sorts during the two-minute man advantage. Despite not gaining the lead during their chance, they kept out front on the Jets outshooting them 15-8 through 20 minutes. The Red Wings faceoff was still underperforming which allowed the Jets to gain leverage and even up the game.

The second period saw Detroit again pushing their offense once more to get back the lead. Through half the period, the Red Wings took eight shots to the net while holding Winnipeg to four. A big play for the Red Wings had three men in where a rebounded shot came in line with the stick of captain Henrik Zetterberg as she slapped the puck in mid-air scoring his second. Officials went back to review the play and saw that Zetterberg had his stick below the crossbar to make it a good goal.

The one-goal lead wasn’t enough for Detroit to be comfortable and pressed in the Winnipeg zone to fire heavily on Hellebuyck. They closed in on the 30 shots mark but in the final minutes, Detroit couldn’t increase the lead all while the Jets were showing signs of fatigue playing back to back games. They gained nine shots in the period while still competitive off the face-off which remained a trait that dominated the Red Wings.

Winnipeg’s tenacity paid off huge just two minutes in where a scramble in front of Mrazek turned into a tying goal for the Jets. Mark Scheifele took a chance at the puck where it somehow crossed the line under the back of the Red Wings goaltender that was reviewed carefully by officials who called it a good goal. It was Scheifele’s sixth of the season and one that many in the arena didn’t agree with. It took some time but with focus and plenty left in the tank, the Red Wings got things going in the second half of the period with Detroit’s veterans getting together to gain the lead. Justin Abdelkader scored one for the second of the season but soon came to pass. The Jets tied the game two minutes later on a goal that quickly ringed out of the net for play to continue.

The NHL’s situation room stopped the game to alert officials that Winnipeg did indeed score with Brandon Tanev scoring his first career goal on a lift that hit the inside corner of the net leveling the score at three all. Very little time was on the clock and left both teams to either make something happen or send things to overtime. For the Jets, they made their intentions clear to end the game in regulation. Tanev became responsible for the go ahead and his second of the night rifling a shot past Mrazek for his second.

There was 66 seconds left on the clock and no opportunity for Mrazek to leave the net. By the time he did, there were ten seconds left and with six to go, the Jets scored once more. Nikolaj Ehlers made his third count to hand Winnipeg a victory to put a halt to their three-game skid.

Red Wings lose out in OT to Flyers

Philadelphia’s late comeback added another loss to Detroit’s woes. The Flyers third period game leveler with a minute left allowed them a chance to win it in overtime beating the Red Wings 4-3 at Wells Fargo Arena Wednesday night. Detroit picked up a point in the loss but carried a three game losing streak.

Detroit’s sudden two game skid at home led them away briefly in hopes of recovering quickly. They took on the Flyers who they had some success against last season. While they sit in second place in the Atlantic Division, the up and down progress to their scoring had to be leveled quickly before they increased to their longest losing streak of the season. Vanek remained week to week with a lower body injury sustained three games ago. His push to be the best led the Red Wings to rely on him. They’d have to adjust severely to get back to being at their best.

The game was slow for both teams as they spent plenty of time with possession but little on shots to the net. Both Neuvirth in net for Philadelphia and Mrazek for the Red Wings kept things dead locked without a goal for half the period. Things got interesting minutes later with Detroit showing tremendous activity within their young group of players. Dylan Larkin took a different approach to his offensive movements on ice setting up for a long drive at Neuvirth. The 20-year-old scored his fourth of the season on a centering drive that redirected off of Jakub Voracek to fly by the glove side of the net.

It quickly became 2-0 16 seconds later on a bad faceoff loss for the Flyers. Their attempts to send the puck in the Detroit zone went straight to the Red Wings who went coast to coast with the puck. It was Andreas Anthanasiou with possession who slowly skated forward to Neuvirth scoring his third of the year over the shoulder of the goaltender. The major statement made by Detroit allowed them to not only outshot the Flyers 9-8 but also carry good improvement going into the second period.

It was a turnaround for them as the Flyers got their game going with a push back on the Red Wings. The exploded at times with a rush of offense that allowed them a series of shots to the net of Mrazek. The Czech made phenomenal stops for his team while the defense blocked shots but couldn’t clear away the surge.

The Flyers continued their onslaught where they nearly double the shots on net of their opponents. After nearly 14 shots on goal, Philadelphia managed to score one on Brayden Schenn’s cross pass to Chris VandeVelde notching his first of the season that cut Detroit’s lead in half. Six minutes remained in the period but it continued to see the Flyers hunt down the tying goal. Mrazek and Detroit did everything to prevent that; breathing a sigh of relief when the period came to an end.

When the third period began, the Flyers picked up quickly where they left off; dominating on their ice. Nearing the fourth minute, Flyers rookie Roman Lyubimov scored his first career NHL goal tying the game at two all with plenty of time for more. Detroit knew that their push for the lead had to stop and take steps to regain control of play. Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg led the way with his veteran line pulling things off. Justin Abdelkader helped set up Tomas Tatar and the team leader with a scoring chance that gave the captain his first of the year and the lead back for Detroit.

Things looked good for the Red Wings to walk out of the arena with a much needed road win. The Flyers were clearly desperate to make a statement and did so with 1:04 left on the clock. A scramble in front of the Detroit net allowed them to slap away at the puck getting into the net during the scuffle. Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill challenged the call due to goaltender interference. After review from NHL officials, the goal stood in favor of Philadelphia giving Mark Streit his third of the year. The final minute of the period wasn’t enough to make a major difference for both teams leading the game into overtime where the Red Wings would see their second 3 on 3 matchup this season.

The Red Wings had an opportunity to put the game away in the opening minutes with Larkin setting up Darren Helm with a point blank shot. Unfortunately, the Detroit veteran held on to the puck too long ending in the hands of the Flyers. Philadelphia quickly put together a solid 2 on 1 going into the Detroit zone where Voracek got a pass from captain Claude Giroux before sniping the puck into the net that ended the game.  

Red Wings lose second straight to Panthers

The Florida Panthers took the game away from the Red Wings and never looked back Sunday evening. A hat trick from Colton Sceviour allowed their team to defeat the Red Wings 5-2 at Joe Louis Arena.  

Detroit’s tough one goal loss to the Boston Bruins has them wanting to get back to winning after their six-game winning streak came to an end. Jimmy Howard had a good night in net putting up big saves for the Red Wings but the offense struggled from start to finish to end sixty minutes with no goals in net. Facing the Panthers at home gives them a better chance to do well against them as they fell to Florida on the road when the season began. While their opponents remain one of the strongest teams in the Atlantic Division, getting an edge on them would be top priority despite not having Tomas Vanek on the roster for the second straight game.

The Panthers were the only ones to record a shot on goal in the opening six minutes of the game. When they earned a man advantage, Florida nailed one in on the shot of Sceviour notching his third of the year. He quickly made it two straight with another during even strength that sent a cause for concern on the Detroit bench. Coach Jeff Blashill took advantage of the TV timeout to get his team back in control and recover from the large deficit that they find themselves.

They regained ground by playing more actively in the Florida zone but getting shots by James Reimer was difficult. To make matters worse, the Panthers added another to make it 3-0 on a two on one that allowed Jonathan Marchessault to score his sixth of the season. The period ended with Detroit clearly responding to the onslaught of Florida but gaining no goals in twenty minutes was the biggest issue. The six giveaways were another key problem for the Red Wings to settle up going into the second period.

Dylan Larkin was the one to make things happen for Detroit as he got the team on the board 2:36 into the second. It was quickly silenced at 5:02 when Vincent Troichek scored on an overwhelming 3 on 1 that gave Florida a 4-1 rout with much of the period left to go. Most of the period saw the Red Wings push the envelope and bring the heat to deal with the lopsided score. They outshot Florida but with four minutes left, things only got worse. Sceviour conducted his way to a first career hat trick taking the puck away midway in the Florida zone. The Panthers forward skated into the Detroit end passing a shot that went off Brendan Smith, off the pads of Mrazek and back to Sceviour to score.

As forty minutes came to a close, the realization of a comeback was dim for the Red Wings to make a miraculous recovery despite outshooting Florida 19-10 in the period. With the third period left to go, Detroit had to do whatever possible to reel in the margin or suffer a very rough defeat.

The third period saw the Panthers playing a strong line of defense to hold their four-game margin together. For ten minutes their game went really well with the stop of every chance that Detroit brought on the ice. Red Wings defenseman Brendan Smith made a statement midway through the period to put another goal on the board for his team. With help from Frans Nielsen and Riley Sheahan, the two set up Smith with a scoring chance to bring the deficit down to three.

The mission never found its way to take course as the Red Wings played out the last ten minutes of regulation with very little chances on net and a strong Florida defense that put them away. Detroit outshot 36-24 but the blocked shots and numerous giveaways played a strong role in the Red Wings demise. They’ll get the day off Monday before trying to recover from a two-game losing streak before taking on the Philadelphia Flyers on a short road game Tuesday.

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Bruins snap Red Wings six game winning streak

Boston put the scare on the Red Wings to win at the Joe Louis Arena Saturday night. The Bruins got a goal midway into the game that held to beat Detroit 1-0 that put an end to their six game winning streak and four game streak on home ice. Tuukka Rask made 24 saves on the night to get a well-deserved shutout against the Atlantic Division rivals.

Detroit held a six game winning streak coming back home to face the Bruins for the first time this season. The Red Wings came to the end of October with a strong success with most of their wins coming at home. With an Original Six rivalry in the midst and the final season at The Joe in play, taking their offense to Boston would be huge to keep the streak alive. Rask returned in net for the Bruins after missing the last three games due to soreness. He’ll compete against Jimmy Howard who sat on his own winning streak to defend.

Steve Ott got things started for Detroit getting into a scuffle with Boston captain Zdeno Chara. The six foot nine defenseman tried to get something going but saw himself and the Red Wings forward go for unsportsmanlike penalties. It was the only moment in the game to occur as neither team took a shot on goal in the opening four minutes. The Bruins managed to do better on the face-offs holding Detroit from winning their first.

Boston took their first chance on net where Howard made an easy stop on them. Detroit tried finding their first but didn’t get it on Rask till 10:30 into the period. The Bruins already had five shots to the Red Wings net with Chara taking some drives on Howard. Despite the late actions, the Red Wings did well to hang in with the Bruins. They gained plenty of action in the final minutes in their attempt to take control of the score. Detroit was unable to get it done but did match Boston’s seven shots while killing their only power play of the period.

The Red Wings opened the second with their first man advantage of the night with the top shooters in play. The Bruins cancelled out the remainder of the penalty sending things to 4 on 4 with Gustav Nyquist slashing Brad Marchand to prevent a shorthanded breakaway. Boston got two shots during the remainder of their power play but couldn’t convert it into a lead.

The fight for control ensued drastically with the shots increasing and both goaltenders still playing flawless in their respective nets. Power plays were dealt with by the penalty killing units leaving the only option to make something happen during even strength. With three minutes left in the game, Boston had the puck and went for a scoring chance on Dominic Moore as he delivered a wrist shot into a small spot that Tim Schaller got a piece of. Detroit challenged the play due to off sides but was defeated. It was the first time in 156.13 that Howard allowed a goal being Schaller’s first of the season.

With the lone goal giving Boston an edge, Detroit had to make something happen in the third. The offensive surge of the Bruins slowly took its toll in the opening minutes as the Red Wings struggled to outduel their opponents. It wasn’t till the seventh minute that Detroit got a chance to increase their shots on net, gaining a power play. They let another one slip by leaving them scratching their heads on how to get around Boston and level the score.

Boston had answers for dealing with the Red Wings breaking up their moments with the puck, taking the play away from them all while killing time off the clock. 70 seconds remained on the clock and the decision came to pull Howard from the net. The sixth man didn’t help as the Bruins cleared the puck twice in their efforts. A final chance with the faceoff in the Boston zone occurred with six seconds left, but despite having a 6 on 4 advantage, the Red Wings were foiled at home to end their six game winning streak.