Mike Green's first hat trick sparks Red Wings

DETROIT-- Mike Green knew it was a special night on Monday.
He couldn't have known how big of a role he was about to play.
Green scored the first hat trick of his career in the Detroit Red Wings' 5-1 win against the Ottawa Senators in the final home opener at Joe Louis Arena.

The day began with the players entering the arena on a red carpet, where they were greeted by fans. There was also a pre-game ceremony recapping the arena's history, much to the delight of the capacity crowd.
"Walking the red carpet with all those fans led right into the opening ceremony and right into the start of the game, you couldn't help but feed off that energy."

Green scored twice in the first period, then drew a sea of hats with 6:36 remaining when he took a pass from Luke Glendening and put a high wrist shot past Senators goalie Andrew Hammond.
"I've never had a hat trick before, so that was a lot of fun," Green said.
He was asked about a potential three-goal game before he joined the NHL a decade ago, but Green his head.
"Never," he said. "Not anywhere."
It was the first hat trick by a Detroit defenseman since Nicklas Lidstrom on Dec. 15, 2010.
"Three goals from Mike Green," Hammond said. "He certainly showed that he still has a lot of the ability from a few years ago. He was the difference in the game."

Detroit (1-2-0) lost its first two games to the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning on the road. Ottawa (2-1-0) opened with home wins against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens.
"We needed to win this game after what happened in Florida, but this was also a special night," Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said. "A home opener is always different, but this was like a playoff game."
Darren Helm scored twice for the Red Wings and Thomas Vanek had three assists. Goalie Petr Mrazek made 31 saves.
Ryan Dzingel scored for the Senators. Hammond stopped 20 of 25 shots.
"We started out fine, but their first goal deflated us," Senators coach Guy Boucher said. "You are asking for trouble when you react that way to one goal."

Green opened the scoring with his first goal of the season, a high shot from the point that bounced off Hammond's glove and trickled over the line at 11:43 of the first period.
Detroit quickly made it 2-0 when Darren Helm broke in alone and beat Hammond low on the stick side at 14:15 for his second goal of the season.
Green's long slap shot got past Hammond for a power-play goal at 17:17.
The Senators scored shorthanded when Erik Karlsson got to a loose puck in his own end and sent a long pass to Dzingel for a 2-on-1 break. Dzingel tried to feed Kyle Turris, but his pass deflected off Riley Sheahan's skate and past Mrazek at 8:51 of the second period to make it 3-1.
Helm made it 5-1 with a power-play goal at 17:04 of the third.

Goal of the game

Green's third of the game might have been his best. He took the pass from Glendening near the blue line, skated in a few strides and placed a wrist shot in the top corner. His hat trick was the fifth by an NHL defenseman in the past five years.

Save of the game

Hammond didn't have a great first period (three goals allowed on 13 shots), but it could have been worse. With Detroit up 2-0 and on the power play, Hammond was able to get his glove up fast enough to tip Tomas Tatar's point-blank shot away from the net.

Highlight of the game

The game's most emotional moment came at the first TV timeout in the opening period. A tribute to Gordie Howe was played on the video board, and instead of a moment of silence, the fans stood and cheered in a celebration of Howe's life. Players on both teams joined in the tribute while the fans chanted "Gordie."

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Unsung moment of the game

Henrik Zetterberg's first-period assist might get lost in the box score, but he couldn't have placed his defense-splitting pass in a better place. He picked up the puck in the Detroit zone, broke toward center ice and hit Helm in stride. The ensuing breakaway gave the Red Wings a 2-0 lead.

They said it

"Obviously I'm new here, but I know about the history of this club and this building. I couldn't believe how many people showed up to watch an 0-2 team walk a red carpet." -- Red Wings forward Thomas Vanek
"We tried to come back in the second period, but you just can't start that way in the first period." -- Senators forward Ryan Dzingel

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Need to know

The Red Wings will move to Little Caesars Arena next season. … Senators forward Matt Puempel, who grew up across the border in Essex, Ont., made his season debut. … Red Wings defenseman Jonathan Ericsson left after being hit in the face with a puck late in the second period, but was able to return.

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What's next

Senators: Home against the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday (7:30 p.m. ET; TSN5, RDS, FS-A, NHL.TV
Red Wings: At the New York Rangers on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, TVA Sports, NHL.TV