“They were the hungrier team," said Head Coach Ryan Huska. "We turned over a lot of pucks and we couldn't defend the rush – and they have some good skill and they played a good team game.
"If you're going to turn over as many pucks we did tonight, you're asking for it. Then, it's just a steady dose of odd-man rushes against and that's not a recipe for winning at any level.”
The Red Wings opened the scoring only 1:59 into the game, as Justin Holl pinched in from the point, carried it deep and centered a pass out front to DeBrincat, who plunged it home from the lip of the crease. DeBrincat – who’s in his first year with the Wings – now has goals in four of his last five games, leads the NHL with eight overall, and is now the league’s top point getter with 12 already this year.
Joe Veleno made it a 2-0 game at 9:44 as he tipped home a 45-foot floater from Ben Chiarot, beating a screened Vladar over the left shoulder.
Things could’ve got a lot worse late in the period when Blake Coleman was whistled for hooking. The Wings got a ton of great looks, including a one-time rocket from Daniel Sprong, but all of Detroit best chances – including another from Sprong – failed to connect on target.
The killers went back to work with 2:17 to play when Nazem Kadri was flagged for tripping. This time, the Wings came even closer to hitting paydirt – but a pair of goal-saving blocks by MacKenzie Weegar, followed by a spectacular Vladar save, kept it a 2-0 game.
Shots on goal favoured the homeside 14-9 after one.
"We're not playing the way we want to.
"We're not playing as a team," said captain Mikael Backlund. "We talked about it in camp and we're still talking about not turning pucks over and we've got to play more simple hockey here. We played really well against Washington and Buffalo, and then these last two games haven't quite been the same. We've gotten away from the hard-nosed game and play with a little more pace. When we don't play with pace, we look like a slow team.
"That's the reality.
"So, we've got to pick up the pace.”
Dylan Larkin put the Wings up 3-0 exactly two minutes into the second, as he took a cross-ice feed from DeBrincat on the far side and snuck a beautiful shot upstairs, beating Vladar from a near-impossible angle.
The visitors finally got on the board at 12:12 of the second, as Mangiapane banged home a loose puck in the blue paint to score his third of the season. Backlund and Blake Coleman drew the helpers after digging the puck free along the wall and putting it toward the net.
