Detroit Red Wings' rally no match for putrid 2nd period in 5-4 loss to Dallas Stars
As tough a second period as the Detroit Red Wings have had all season undermined what has been a good stretch of hockey.
They gave up 25 shots, a season high for one period and too much to overcome even with a furious third period Tuesday at Little Caesars Arena. The Dallas Stars prevailed, 5-4, handing the Wings (24-18-5) only their second regulation loss in January.
Alex Lyon (five goals) had seen 32 shots after two periods, more than he saw in the entirety of either of his previous two starts. James Reimer was in net when the third period began. That the game turned so lopsided was disappointing after the Wings exited the first period with a lead on the strength of power play goals from David Perron and Alex DeBrincat.
HELP SOON? Red Wings' Patrick Kane (lower body) may be back by end of January
The Wings had their chances after falling behind, as well. Christian Fischer put the puck in Dallas' net about five minutes into the third period, but was ruled offside on the play after a challenge. Dylan Larkin made it 3-for-3 for the Wings on power plays when he scored with 8:32 to play. J.T. Compher knocked in DeBrincat's rebound with 3:14 to play, after Reimer had been pulled for an extra attacker, to bring the Wings within a goal. The Wings went on a fourth power play with 38.9 seconds to play, setting up a 6-on-4 advantage, but to no avail.
Patrick Kane (lower body) and Ben Chiarot (upper body) watched the game from the press box. There is a chance either or both could be back before the end of the month.
Penalty kill gets a workout
The Wings undermined their own good start when they were caught with too many men on the ice at 3:10 of the first period, sending Dallas on a power play. The Stars needed just 14 seconds to convert, with Jamie Benn scoring at 3:24. It's the fourth time in the last five games the opponent has scored first. Defenseman Jeff Petry was called for holding Joe Pavelski at 5:10, sending the Wings on a second straight penalty kill. Of the seven shots Lyon faced in the first period, two were during penalty kills.
Power play gets a workout, too
On the flip side, there was 1 second left on the power play when, after much passing by the only unit to see ice during the stretch, Perron flung the puck on net and in behind Jake Oettinger. That tied the game at 14:31. Pavelski was called for high-sticking Petry at 14:54, sending the Wings on a second power play. This time, the second unit got the goal, with 2 seconds left in the advantage. Daniel Sprong, fresh off scoring the winning goal Sunday, hustled the puck behind Dallas' goal line and flipped a backhand shot out front, where DeBrincat turned it into a 2-1 lead, at 16:53.
Tough second
Mason Marchment scored 22 seconds into the second period, setting the tone for the Stars as they made things hard on the Wings, especially Lyon. They forechecked hard, cycled the puck and generally forced the Wings to play in their own zone, battering Lyon with shots. They took the lead when they swiped the puck right off Klim Kostin's stick down low and Roope Hintz turned that turnover into a 3-2 score, at 4:35. At 11:40, Esa Lindell scored from the left circle. Hintz scored again at 15:12, at that point, the Stars had outshot the Wings, 23-7 in that stretch alone.
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.
Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings doomed by rough 2P in 5-4 loss to Dallas Stars
