Red Wings top Rangers in shootout, end eight-game losing streak

DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings ended an eight-game losing streak with a 3-2 shootout victory against the New York Rangers at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday.

Andreas Athanasiou, the center on Detroit's first line in place of Dylan Larkin (back), had a goal and an assist, and scored the only goal in the shootout. He played an NHL career-high 24:13.
WATCH: [All Rangers vs. Red Wings highlights]
"Those are the minutes I would play [Larkin] in a game like this, especially with overtime, and he earned them," Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said. "When he's on, he's an incredibly electric player, and I thought he was electric every time he touched the puck tonight."
Jimmy Howard made 32 saves for Detroit (24-33-10). He is 9-3-3 with a 1.75 goals-against average and .945 save percentage in 15 games against the Rangers, his favorite team growing up.
"It is special because it is the Rangers, my childhood team," said the goalie, who was born in Syracuse, New York. "I don't know what it is, but it has been like this since Day One. I wish it could happen against every team."

New York (27-28-12) has lost a season-high six straight games and 12 of its past 17 (5-7-5). Henrik Lundqvist made 43 saves, and Pavel Buchnevich scored twice for the Rangers but missed to end the shootout.
"These games are still important for a lot of reasons, and one of them is giving our young guys experience in close games," New York coach David Quinn said. "We are all professionals and we still want to win hockey games."
Buchnevich gave the Rangers a 1-0 lead when he knocked in a rebound at 8:44 of the first period.
Tyler Bertuzzi tied it 1-1 at 5:46 of the second period, tipping in Madison Bowey's point shot.

Athanasiou put Detroit ahead 2-1 at 6:15 of the third period, eight seconds after Red Wings defenseman Danny DeKeyser blocked Tony DeAngelo's shot at an open net.
"That's the biggest play of the game right there," Blashill said. "Jimmy makes a huge save and then Danny throws himself in front of the rebound and we go down and score. That's how this league works; almost every game is close, and one play like that can make the difference."
After the goal, Athanasiou pointed to Ted Lindsay's No. 7 jersey in the rafters. Lindsay, a Hockey Hall of Famer and four-time Stanley Cup champion with the Red Wings, died Monday at the age of 93. He was honored before and during the game.
"I just wanted to pay a little thank-you to Ted," he said. "I thought tonight was a good tribute to him."
Buchnevich made it 2-2 at 14:29, beating Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall down the middle of the ice and flipping a shot in off Howard's shoulder after a long pass by Brendan Lemieux.
"I saw he had a step on his man, so I tried to get the puck in front of him," Lemieux said. "I figured, if nothing else, he could prevent icing, but he's got so much skill that he made a play and tied the game."

The game was the 13th decided by one goal in the past 14 between the Red Wings and the Rangers.
"Jimmy and Henrik were great tonight, just like they always are when we play the Rangers," Blashill said.
In addition to Larkin, the Red Wings were without defenseman Mike Green, who is out for the rest of the season with a virus.
"I think we played great tonight," Athanasiou said. "We're missing two key players -- one up front and one on defense -- so we needed to step up without them."

They said it

"Our young guys need to understand how important this stretch is for our team. This is the time of year when you build the habits that you take into this summer and into next season, when we are playing for Stanley Cup points. We need to stay focused and keep building off the good things we are doing every night." -- Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist
"I think tonight was touching for everyone who has been a part of this organization, because of everything Ted has done for the coaches and the players. We didn't see him much the last year, but until then, he was always around and he always had the attention of everyone he talked with. He was an incredible human being." -- Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill on Ted Lindsay and the tributes to the Hall of Famer before and during the game

Need to know

Lundqvist played his 850th game for the Rangers, making him the third NHL goalie to play at least that many with one team (Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils, 1,259; Tony Esposito, Chicago Blackhawks, 873). … Blashill said after the game that he didn't have a time frame for Larkin's return.

What's next

Rangers: Host the New Jersey Devils on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; MSG, MSG+2, NHL.TV)
Red Wings: At the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; SUN, FS-D, NHL.TV)