RECAP: Red Wings get ‘two great points’ with 3-2 overtime victory over Senators

DETROIT -- By beating the Ottawa Senators, 3-2, in overtime at Little Caesars Arena on Tuesday night, the Detroit Red Wings earned two big points against an Atlantic Division rival and kept their status as one of the NHL’s hottest clubs by pushing their season-high winning streak to five straight games.

“Anytime you can get some wins, especially against divisional opponents, it’s huge for a team,” Joe Veleno said. “I think we’re obviously playing really well right now. No matter who our opponent is, we got to have the same mentality. That goes for the rest of the games going forward, but obviously great two points. Games against Ottawa are always going to be tough. We’ve kind of built that rivalry a little bit, but glad we could come out of this one with two points.”

Detroit (18-18-4; 40 points) moved back to the .500 mark with its win over Ottawa (19-17-3; 41 points), but head coach Todd McLellan said he wants his club to keep focusing on its process and playing the right way.

“I think that’s a really good thing, but .500 is just .500,” McLellan said. “That gets you nothing really in the League, but to crawl back the way we have is important. I did tell the players to quit worrying about wins and losses, streaks, playoffs. Just play the game. Make mistakes. Play well, we’ll fix it the next day. Later on, we’ll look at the standings. I’m aware we’re at .500, but I’m not overly concerned or too excited about it.”

It was a chippy start to Tuesday’s Atlantic Division clash, and at 7:07 of the first period, Senators captain Brady Tkachuk was handed a roughing minor to send the Red Wings to their first power play of the night. Just 1:23 into that man advantage, captain Dylan Larkin capped off a tic-tac-toe passing play with Alex DeBrincat and Lucas Raymond for the 1-0 lead.

Stretching his point streak to six straight games and goal streak to four, Larkin moved into a tie with DeBrincat for the team lead in goals (17). Additionally, DeBrincat’s primary assist was his 100th career NHL point with the Red Wings, marking the fewest games (122) for a player to notch his first 100 career points with the franchise since Brendan Shanahan (93 games on Nov. 9, 1997).

“It’s been incredible,” Patrick Kane said about Detroit’s play with an extra skater as of late. “Every time we go out there, we feel like we can score. The production has been really high, so obviously we want to continue that. We know it’s not realistic to score two every night. I think it’s been a huge reason for success, and we got to keep that rolling.”

Detroit Goalie Alex Lyon stopped all 10 shots he faced in the first period before being replaced by netminder Cam Talbot to open the second because of an upper-body injury. Talbot made 21 saves in relief of Lyon, who McLellan said they’d “probably have a better answer” regarding his status on Thursday.

“[Lyon] felt something near the end of the first period, came in between periods, got with the training staff and they felt it would be best that he didn’t continue on,” McLellan said. “He’ll get some tests. Already working on them after the game, will have more tomorrow.”

Thomas Chabot made it 1-1 just after an Ottawa power play expired at 12:25 of the second period, taking a shot from the point that hit off Tyler Motte’s stick and found twine. Jonatan Berggren served the penalty for Simon Edvinsson, who left the game but returned for the third.

“The collision was a bit awkward for him,” McLellan said about Edvinsson exiting the game. “Sometimes, you get a stinger or something like that, and you just got to get a little strength back. He came back and played really well.”

With 55 seconds to go in the second period, Tkachuk’s shot from above the left face-off circle got through a screen and found the back of the net for a power-play goal to give the Senators a 2-1 lead.

“There was a little bit of a challenge to the group there,” McLellan said. “A brand-new experience for all of us. What are we going to do when we’re down by one? Down by five against Toronto, completely different. But to the guys’ credit, I thought in the third [period] we skated a little bit better. In the second, we didn’t.”

Getting to the right place at the right time, Veleno saw the rebound from Edvinsson’s shot kick out to him in the slot before he flipped it over Ottawa netminder Anton Forsberg while falling to tie it 2-2 at 5:00 of the third period. Motte got the secondary assist on Veleno’s fifth goal of the season.

“I think we were struggling a little bit offensively, just sustaining O-zone pressure and keeping the puck in the zone,” Veleno said. “It was a big moment to score a goal. Obviously, I got a little excited. Just glad I can contribute, tie that game and give us a chance to win.”

Forsberg kept things tied at two apiece when he robbed Marco Kasper with a highlight-reel glove save at 9:26 of the third period.

Fittingly scoring the the game-winning goal on his bobblehead night, Kane won it for Detroit with a power-play strike at 2:21 of the extra session. Larkin had the lone assist on Kane’s ninth goal of the season, which also extended the veteran forward’s point streak to five consecutive contests.

“No matter what happens [in overtime], I think you have the chance to get the puck and create with that much ice,” said Kane, who leads Detroit with four game-winning goals this season. “Then it goes 4-on-3. Especially in that situation, where we win a face-off, you’re looking to try and create right off the draw. Larks did a great job winning the draw. I just tried to get it by the defensemen. It was nice to see it go in.”

NEXT UP: The Red Wings will look to keep rolling when they play the Chicago Blackhawks at Little Caesars Arena on Friday night.

POSTGAME QUOTES

McLellan on his assessment of how Detroit earned the two points on Tuesday

“I didn’t think we skated quite as well tonight as we have in some of the other games, and that’s going to happen. Maybe you don’t have your legs, maybe the team is hooking and holding a little bit more. There’s more to fight through. I didn’t think we got up the ice in units of five, but we still found a way to win a game when we were down by one heading into the third [period].”

Kane on how much confidence the Red Wings are playing with right now

“Obviously, you look at our last game against Winnipeg, we’re going in on the road against the best team in the League. We feel like we can win. Same thing tonight. Down, 2-1, no matter who’s out there we feel we have a good chance to tie it up. That was obviously a huge point. After you’re trying to get that point, you’re obviously trying to get the next one. Nice to finish it off, keep this thing rolling and keep the momentum going.”

Kane on what he feels is behind Detroit’s current success

“Obviously, got to give credit to Todd, right? Like, he’s come in and done an incredible job of changing some things and helping us be a little bit more aggressive in our game and upped the confidence in the room. That’s a huge part of it.”

Veleno on taking advantage of his opportunities to showcase his versatility

“Obviously, I just try to contribute any way I can. I don’t let [changing lines] get into my head a whole lot, just try to get out there no matter who I’m with or the situation. Just try to do my very best every time I get on the ice, and find a way to contribute.”