RECAP: Red Wings battle 'right to the end' in 3-2 win over Golden Knights

LAS VEGAS -- The Detroit Red Wings did many things right in Thursday's 3-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena.

But according to head coach Derek Lalonde, perhaps above all, his club played a "great discipline game."
"Tonight, we were good from start to finish and we got a result," Lalonde said. "Something like this will certainly build some confidence."
Lucas Raymond gave Detroit a 1-0 lead at 2:45 into the game before Vegas evened the score late in the first period. Dominik Kubalik scored on the Red Wings' first power play of the night early in the second, then Joe Veleno netted the eventual game-winner in the 10th minute of the frame to put Detroit ahead, 3-1.
After Vegas pulled goalie Adin Hill for the extra attacker late in the third, the Golden Knights made it a one-goal contest with 43 seconds left in regulation. But Ville Husso staved off Vegas' late rally, helping Detroit snap a three-game winless streak.
"We played, I think, one of the better games this year defensively," said Husso, who finished with 33 saves. "We scored three goals with zero penalties, so that's usually a good chance to win."
With the victory, the Red Wings (19-17-8; 46 points) earned three of a possible six points on a three-game western road trip. The Golden Knights fell to 28-16-2 overall.
"It feels great in here after a win," Veleno said. "We really wanted this one bad. I think the boys earned it. We worked hard today and we didn't take any time off. We hung in there and battled right to the end."
Speaking to Bally Sports Detroit's Trevor Thompson after the game, Lalonde said that Tyler Bertuzzi did not play in the third period due to a lower-body injury.
NEXT UP: Detroit will return to Little Caesars Arena for two straight home games, starting with a 7 p.m. puck drop against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night. Fans are encouraged to arrive early for Saturday's game, as the first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a Nicklas Lidstrom Bobblehead, presented by Chevrolet.

SCORING SUMMARY

Detroit 1, Vegas 0 (2:45, 1st period)
Captain Dylan Larkin took advantage of a turnover just below Vegas' blue line, skated with the puck to the left face-off circle and set up Raymond to open the scoring. With the lone assist on Raymond's 14th goal of the season, Larkin extended his point streak to six consecutive games.

Vegas 1, Detroit 1 (19:24, 1st period)
Nicolas Hague delivered a cross-ice to Alex Pietrangelo, who sent a one-timer from just above the left face-off circle past Husso.
Detroit 2, Vegas 1 (2:38, 2nd period)
Filip Hronek settled down a bouncing puck, then pushed it to Oskar Sundqvist in the left face-off circle. Sundqvist's quick pass slid across the slot to Kubalik, who scored his 14th goal of the season. Hronek also earned his 150th career NHL point on Kubalik's tie-breaking tally.

Detroit 3, Vegas 1 (10:25, 2nd period)
Off the rush, Jonatan Berggren fed Jordan Oesterle just past Detroit's blue line. Oesterle raced down the ice and passed the puck to Veleno in the slot, who scored his first goal since Dec. 28. It proved to be the eventual game-winner, the first of Veleno's NHL career.

Vegas 2, Detroit 3 (19:17, 3rd period)
The Golden Knights tightened things up down the stretch and cut Detroit's lead back to one when William Karlsson deflected Jack Eichel's shot past Husso for a goal.

QUOTABLE

Lalonde on why Detroit was successful on Thursday night
"We managed our game better. It's gonna be a frustrating group at times because you see moments of us playing extremely well for the majority of the time."
Lalonde on his assessment of the Red Wings' three-game road trip
"You want as many points as games on the road to hang in there. That's exactly what we did. We turned it into a pretty solid road trip."
Veleno on his takeaways from the game
"I think we just battled to the end. We played a full 60 minutes. We hung in there, grinded it out and were able to come out with two points tonight."
Husso on not allowing Vegas the late third-period equalizer
"We can't sit back and just wait. I think what we did was good and unfortunately, they got one goal there at the end. But we still found a way to close it."