PREVIEW: Red Wings host Golden Knights for St. Patrick's Day Celebration on Sunday afternoon

DETROIT -- Before hitting the road for a four-game trek, the Detroit Red Wings will host the Vegas Golden Knights at Little Caesars Arena on Sunday afternoon.

As part of a St. Patrick's Day Celebration at Little Caesars Arena, fans are encouraged to wear their red, white and green for the first matchup of the season between Detroit (31-29-6; 68 points) and Vegas (39-19-8; 86 points). Puck drop is set for 1 p.m., with TV broadcast coverage airing exclusively on TNT with simulcast on truTV and streaming on MAX. Ken Kal and Paul Woods will have the call on the Red Wings Radio Network (97.1 The Ticket in Detroit).

Back in action following Saturday’s scheduled day off, the Red Wings return to home ice looking to bounce back from a 4-2 road loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday. Detroit jumped out to a late first-period lead on Alex DeBrincat’s team-leading 31st goal of the season but allowed three unanswered second-period goals and, although the club came close, ultimately fell short of completing a comeback.

“It’s hard to sit here and say you feel really, really good about [the overall team game] when you’re not getting results this time of the year and given the position we are in,” Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin said. “You’d like to play that way and get results. We’re looking for two points every night.”

April 17 marks Detroit’s regular-season finale, and the players know they need to collect as many points as they can in the weeks ahead to give themselves the best possible chance of securing a Stanley Cup Playoffs berth. Entering Sunday’s matinee, the Red Wings sat just four points behind the New York Rangers for the Eastern Conference’s second Wild-Card spot.

“Everyone in this locker room knows what we’re capable of,” Lucas Raymond said. “We have a lot of belief in ourselves. There’s a lot of games left to be played, and our goal remains the same. We’re going to do everything we can to push towards it.”

Ranked first in the Western Conference’s Pacific Division, Vegas is coming off a 4-3 shootout loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday. Jack Eichel leads the Golden Knights with 80 points (21 goals, 59 assists) and heads into Sunday riding an eight-game point streak after lighting the lamp once in Buffalo. Next in line behind Eichel on the club’s scoring leaderboard are Mark Stone (17-41—58) and Tomas Hertl (27-28—55).

Goalie Adin Hill made 34 saves for Vegas on Saturday.

“Our attempt at a win [on Sunday] is going to have to be more consistent than it was [on Friday],” Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan said. “The game may be a little bit different. [Vegas] play a little bit differently [than Carolina], but if we’re not in it for 60 it doesn’t matter what momentum or preparation we’re talking about. This isn’t the time of the year to play for two periods. It’s the time to compete for three.”