The Detroit Red Wings left the last stop on their road trip with a point and a redeeming performance.
An errant pass in overtime proved costly Saturday at American Airlines Center, leading the Dallas Stars to a 3-2 victory, but overall the Wings played well against one of the top teams in the NHL. They banked five of a possible eight points during a trip that featured three elite opponents.
David Perron celebrated his 1,000th game with a goal, tipping Ben Chiarot’s shot off a faceoff late in the second period, tying the game after the Wings had fallen behind, 2-1. The Wings had possession of the puck most of the overtime period, but in the final minute Dylan Larkin dropped a pass intended for Moritz Seider that was picked off by the Stars. Nils Lundkvist scored with 31 seconds remaining.
The game began well, with the Wings showing the energy and execution that had lacked two days earlier. Larkin got the Wings a lead when he connected on a pass from Austin Czarnik and picked a corner from the top of the left circle, beating Jake Oettinger midway through the first period. Oskar Sundqvist drew a penalty that gave the Wings a chance to pad their lead, but that went nowhere and instead the Stars tied the game when Mason Marchment took the puck across the blue line and sent it down low, where Denis Gurianov put it behind Ville Husso.
Penalties disrupted flow in the second period. The Wings killed off an early one to defenseman Gustav Lindstrom, and killed off another one while Moritz Seider served two minutes for tripping Roope Hintz to stop him on a breakaway, but a double-minor to Jake Walman for high-sticking was too much.
Less than a minute into their third power play, the Stars pulled ahead when Jamie Benn had time and space in the slot to finish a setup by Jason Robertson (he’s the 41-goal scorer the Stars drafted at No. 39 in 2017, right after the Wings took Lindstrom).
The matinee capped a trip that began with the Wings using their power play and Husso to win against the Columbus Blue Jackets and end a four-game skid. The second stop was a bigger challenge, coming against a team that has been to the Stanley Cup Final the last three seasons. The Wings responded with an energetic, well-executed performance to topple the Tampa Bay Lightning, only to come out with a flat, fiasco of a performance two nights later at the Florida Panthers. Saturday’s performance was a much better showing.
The Wings (13-8-6) next play at home Tuesday, against another elite team in the Carolina Hurricanes.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings fall, 3-2, in OT at Dallas Stars
