- The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 5-3, keeping their playoff hopes alive.
- Ben Chiarot, Marco Kasper, Patrick Kane, and Michael Rasmussen all scored for the Red Wings.
- With the win, the Red Wings moved within four points of the second wild card spot in the NHL standings.
An outburst of goals kept the Detroit Red Wings in the playoff race, albeit still with a gap to close and little runway left to do so.
But one game at a time is all they can go at it, and so they did Friday, taking advantage of an opponent already clinched and missing key players. The Wings scored in bunches on the Carolina Hurricanes in the third-to-last appearance of the season at Little Caesars Arena, holding on to win, 5-3.
It was only the fifth victory for the Wings (35-33-7) since the start of March, but they moved within four points of Montreal Canadiens in the East’s second wild-card berth, with the New York Rangers and Columbus Blue Jackets also ahead in the standings.
The Wings led by as much as three goals but it was down to one with 7:16 to play in the third period when Brent Burns’ shot slipped past Cam Talbot. Alex DeBrincat scored an empty net goal with 1.5 seconds to go.
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The Hurricanes had Andrei Svechnikov, Jordan Staal and Dmitry Orlov on the sidelines and looked like it, showing little of their usual puck-funnel style. It was the Wings who stormed around, building a quick lead in the first period on goals from Ben Chiarot and Marco Kasper, and building on it in the second period with goals from Patrick Kane and Michael Rasmussen.
Two in 26
Thwarted on a power play six minutes into the first period, the Wings made up for it midway through the period. Alex DeBrincat fired a shot that ricocheted off the post and into the left circle, where Chiarot pounced, ripping a slap shot past Pyotr Kochetkov to make it 1-0 at 9:03. By 9:29, it was 2-0. During a battle down low, Kasper slid to the crease and got a backhand on the loose puck, picking up his 16th goal of the season.
Two in 21
Jackson Blake got one through on Talbot two minutes into the second period, but Talbot avenged that with five saves during a Wings penalty kill four minutes later. Then Kane showed why he’s nicknamed “Showtime,” stealing the puck and pumping his legs up ice to score unassisted. Rasmussen followed up with his 11th goal of the season at 9:26. Eric Robinson scored for Carolina at 12:36.
Kane’s goal marked the 17th time in his career he has hit the 20-goal mark, passing metro Detroit native Mike Modano for the most such seasons in NHL history among American-born players.
Add one, subtract two, get a dozen
Elmer Söderblom returned to the lineup after missing four games having re-aggravated an injury March 24 at Utah. That prompted the Wings first to send Austin Watson back to Grand Rapids —and hours later, Dominik Shine, which left them with just 12 forwards. But no reason to have those two sitting around in Detroit when they could be playing for the Griffins, who also were in action Friday. The Wings play again at home Sunday, and then can call up a forward to have as a spare for the three-game road trip next week.
Contact Helene St. James at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.
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Her latest book, “The Franchise: Detroit Red Wings, A Curated History of the Red Wings,” was released October 2024. Her books, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” and “The Big 50: The Men and Moments that made the Detroit Red Wings” are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.
