The Detroit Red Wings were flying high after a surprising win over the Dallas Stars. However, the team was unable to find a similar outcome against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Red Wings saw a three game win streak come to a halt in a 5-2 loss. Conversely, Carolina saw a three game winless streak snapped.
The Red Wings looked slow at the start, and the team was badly outshot. Still, Detroit had managed to end the first period with a 1-0 lead over the Hurricanes. Unfortunately, Carolina began converting their strong play into scoring with a three goal second period. Consequently, Detroit was never able to recover, though the team looked better in the third period.
Goalie John Gibson suffered his first loss of December, ending an 8 game win streak. Gibson’s strong play in the first period kept Detroit in the game early. However, Carolina was just too much for the goalie in the second two frames. It was a tough end to a great stretch for Gibson, his best since coming to Detroit.
Secondary Scoring continues to chip in
The bright side of this loss came in the form of Detroit’s two goal scorers. Andrew Copp continued to add to his offensive numbers, scoring on the power play. Copp’s goal was assisted by John Leonard, who now has four points in six games played. Axel Sandin-Pellikka assisted as well, garnering his 16th point of the season. Additionally, ASP has quietly become Detroit’s second top scoring defenseman in his rookie campaign.
Michael Rasmussen scored the games opening goal on a nice play from JT Compher. Rasmussen’s play of late has garnered more confidence from the coaching staff. Consequently, the former first round pick played over 15 minutes in the game, up from his season average of 12:27.
Detroit’s second half success will depend greatly on players outside of the top contributors scoring. Dylan Larkin, Alex Debrincat and Lucas Raymond have accounted for 51 of the teams 120 goals. However, more players are stepping up recently, and that could be the difference maker for this team’s success.
The Red Wings have to recover quickly
Fortunately, the Red Wings will be able to try and rebound from this loss quickly. Detroit will play the Toronto Maple Leafs just 24 hours after the loss. Toronto is coming off of an impressive 7-5 win with a lot o momentum. Therefore, a slow start could be a big problem for the Red Wings.
The Red Wings face a daunting schedule over the next 40 days. The team will play 20 games, both at home and away. Therefore, lapses in play can quickly turn into a losing streak. However, the Red Wings have yet to lose two games in a row in the month of December. Hopefully, they can continue that trend to end the year.
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