Detroit Red Wings earn point, but 4-3 OT loss in D.C. drops them further in playoff chase
Patrick Kane showed again why he's so important to the Detroit Red Wings, changing the tone of their latest game.
The Wings were five minutes from departing Capital One Arena in Washington emptyhanded when Kane's goal pushed the outing against Washington Capitals past regulation Tuesday. The Wings ended up settling for one point after losing in overtime, 4-3, however keeping them just on the outside of the playoff picture with 10 games to go.
Alex DeBrincat broke a 12-game goal drought when he scored in the second period, and David Perron converted on a power play to take a 2-1 lead into the third period. But the Caps scored twice in the first five minutes of the third. Kane tied it at 3-3 with 5:20 to play in regulation. DeBrincat and J.T. Compher's forechecking created an opening for Kane to record his 17th goal and 40th point in 41 games.
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Gridlock in D.C.
The Wings started well, matching the strong defensive effort that was a highlight of their previous game, a 1-0 loss at Nashville. An opening-minute power play yielded a terrific chance by Robby Fabbri that Charlie Lindgren stopped. There wasn't much happening offensively for either side through the first half of the first period, but in the latter half, the Wings had to deal with the Capitals' surging power play (33.3% in March) when Perron was called for hooking. Moritz Seider blocked Alex Ovechkin's first attempt, and goalie Alex Lyon denied Ovechkin's slap shot attempt half a minute after that. Lyon made seven saves in the first period, including a left-pad gem on Hendrix Lapierre.
Nic Dowd scored from the high slot when he fired a shot through traffic early in the second period, but the Wings were able to tie it within three minutes. Compher passed the puck to Jeff Petry, who skated up near the boards while Compher drove the right flank, and DeBrincat went to the net. Petry made a perfect pass to DeBrincat, who turned it into his 24th goal of the season. It was DeBrincat's first goal since Feb. 27, when the Wings trounced the Capitals, 8-3, at Little Caesars Arena.
Washington went on a second power play with five minutes to play in the second period. Seider blocked another Ovechkin shot, Lyon denied John Carlson, and Christian Fischer came up big with a diving poke check to thwart T.J. Oshie. The Wings went on their second with less than two minutes to play, and Perron converted with 42.8 seconds left in the second period when he dug for the puck during a mad scramble and put Detroit up, 2-1.
Caps use their veto
Connor McMichael tied it up 35 seconds into the third period when he scooped the puck up as it came out from behind the net and snuck it behind Lyon. The Capitals moved into the lead at 4:49 when Dylan Strome won a draw against Copp. The puck came back to Carlson at the blue line. Lyon stopped that shot, but Strome immediately used his backhand to score on the rebound. Strome scored again 1:55 into overtime.
The Wings (36-29-7) next play Thursday at the Carolina Hurricanes.
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.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings rally but fall to Washington Capitals in OT, 4-3
