Laine scores in return but Blue Jackets fall in Detroit

DETROIT -- Daniel Sprong scored the go-ahead goal to help the Detroit Red Wings to a 5-4 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday.

Five different players scored for the Red Wings (8-5-2), who had lost six of their past eight games (2-4-2). Jeff Petry and Christian Fischer each had two assists, and Ville Husso made 18 saves.

"We had a great start, and I was happy with our whole 60 minutes," Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde said. "It was a very complete game for us."

Patrik Laine scored his 200th NHL goal in his return for the Blue Jackets (4-7-3) after missing nine games with an upper-body injury. Spencer Martin made 23 saves for Columbus, which has lost four straight and eight of nine (1-5-3).

"We have to find a way to get some points," Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski said. "There are obviously some good things we can take away from this game, but we need points in the standings."

The Red Wings took a 1-0 lead at 3:41 of the first period when Lucas Raymond started behind the net, reversed direction and stopped to slip the puck in at the post.

Robby Fabbri made it 2-0 at 4:26, knocking in a rebound from the edge of the crease. It was his third game of the season and first at home.

"We have all seen how hard [Fabbri] has worked to come back from injuries and get back onto the ice," Petry said. "This is his first game back in the building and he gets a big goal and blocks a huge shot at the end."

Alexandre Texier beat Husso on a breakaway at 5:33 to cut the lead to 2-1.

"At the 9:43 mark of the first period, we were 0-for-9 on face-offs, and at the next TV timeout, we were 1-for-12," Blue Jackets coach Pascal Vincent said. "When you start the game chasing the puck against a very skilled team, it is going to hurt you."

Adam Fantilli made it 2-2 at 18:14, batting in the puck from a bounce off the boards.

Sean Kuraly gave Columbus a 3-2 lead at 5:41 of the second period, tipping the puck past Red Wings defenseman Jeff Petry before beating Husso.

"If you look at the NHL nowadays, you see you can come back from being down one or even two goals," Vincent said. "But you can give a lead away, too."

Alex DeBrincat scored at 16:01, beating Martin with a one-timer to tie the game at 3-3 with his 10th goal of the season and first in eight games.

Sprong put the Red Wings ahead 4-3 at 18:19 of the second before Jake Walman made it 5-3 at 2:33 of the third.

"Along with the starts to the game, getting to the net and getting in front of the goalie's eyes was an emphasis we had going into tonight," Fabbri said "So being able to get a few dirty (goals) like that in a game where they were scoring as well definitely helped us."

Laine scored at 11:30 to get Columbus within 5-4. He nearly tied the game with 1:34 remaining, but his shot hit the shaft of Husso's stick.

"It took two periods before I stopped feeling rusty," Laine said. "My hands weren't working and I was thinking too much."

It was the final game for the Red Wings prior to the 2023 NHL Global Series -- Sweden in which they, along with the Minnesota Wild, Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators, will each play two games at Avicii Arena in Stockholm from Nov. 16-19.

"To get the result tonight was the No. 1 priority for today and then to go back home, spend a little time with the family and get on the plane," Petry said. "Looking forward to the trip but at the same time, there's two important games that we are playing over there."

NOTES: Laine has 382 points (200 goals, 182 assists) in 467 NHL games. … DeBrincat became the fourth player in Red Wings history to need 15 or fewer games to score his first 10 goals with the team (Jakub Vrana, 13 games from 2020-22; Steve Yzerman, 15 games in 1983-84; Bill Lochead, 15 games in 1974-75). … Detroit won 63 percent of face-offs (33-of-52).