Wings muster just 12 shots in loss to Hurricanes
RALEIGH, N.C. – The Detroit Red Wings were unable to flip another close game.
Their three-game road trip ended with a loss Friday at PNC Arena, where the Carolina Hurricanes scored a power play goal in the third period en route to a 4-2 victory. It was only the Wings’ second loss in regulation (and third overall) in their past 10 games. The defeat ended Detroit’s seven-game point streak.
Klim Kostin scored his third goal of the season and J.T. Compher his 10th.
The Wings (23-17-5) had 10 shots on net when Jeff Petry was sent to the penalty box for tripping at 10:15 of the third period. Alex Lyon had made 21 saves when Andrei Svechnikov converted 31 seconds into the man advantage, scoring on a tap-in right by the net. The Wings pulled Lyon with about 1:32 to play, and Sebastian Aho put the game away with an empty net goal with 1:16 to play. The Hurricanes outshot the Wings 30-12.
Quick change
The Wings had a goal to celebrate just 2:27 into the first period, thanks to Carolina netminder Antti Raanta’s fumble. Daniel Sprong sent a pass to Joe Veleno, who drove up the left flank into Carolina’s zone, opposite Kostin on the right side. Veleno sent the puck to Kostin, who fired a shot that Raanta got a piece of, only to drop the puck and have it slide into the net. That was the Wings’ only shot on net through the first half of the period. It did not last long as a lead, however. Less than a minute later, Jordan Martinook scored after the puck bounced out from behind the net, making it 1-1. Shots at the end of the period favored the Hurricanes, 8-3.
Tough sledding
Halfway through the second period — so halfway through the game — the Wings still only had three shots on net. Sprong appeared to have a decent chance at a shot at one point, but missed the net. Olli Määttä fired away, only to have his attempt blocked by Jesper Fast. Robby Fabbri finally forced a save from Raanta. While the Wings had a hard time igniting much of anything in Carolina’s zone, Lyon saw more pucks, though Wings such as Ben Chiarot, Michael Rasmussen and Moritz Seider helped out by blocking shots.
Timely goal
Martin Necas, returning after missing five games with an upper-body injury, looked in form as he pulled a nice move in Detroit’s zone and beat Lyon far side to put Carolina up at 16:25 of the second period. With 1:03 to play in the second, officials called the first penalty of the game, a holding call on Jaccob Slavin. The ‘Canes had a shorthanded rush, but the Wings were able to regain control and push the puck
back the other way, and Dylan Larkin sent the puck across to Compher for a power play goal just 20 seconds into the advantage, making it a 2-2 game going into the third period.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com . Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames . Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from Amazon , Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.