The Detroit Red Wings had just gone through dealing with penalties and two quick goals by an opponent.
It was a similar story Thursday as the Winnipeg Jets forced the Wings to play from behind, only this night it was over in regulation, as the Wings lost, 4-1. It’s their first game without a point since the season opener, ending a six-game streak.
Mason Appleton (Michigan State) scored midway through the third period to put Detroit behind by two goals.
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Lucas Raymond scored his second goal of the season on a setup by Dylan Larkin, whose assist extended his personal point streak to eight games. The Wings pulled goalie James Reimer, making his third start of the season, with 2½ minutes to play but soon had to put him back in. After they pulled him again with 1:35 to play, Nino Niederreiter took advantage to score a final empty-net goal.
The Wings (5-2-1) next play Saturday in Boston against their Atlantic Division-rival, the Bruins.
Start, sit, shoot
Two days after lamenting late penalties that led their opponent convert and eventually win in overtime, the Wings took two early penalties, with David Perron being called for high-sticking 11 seconds into the game and Justin Holl being called for tripping at 3:49. That deterred much of an attack, and led Reimer to face most of the action the first five minutes. When the Wings were finally at full strength, they looked much better; Larkin’s line with Raymond and Alex DeBrincat had an especially good shift.
Jets take off
Nikolaj Ehlers seemed to surprise Reimer with a whip-around shot at 16:28 of the first period that put the Jets up, 1-0. The Jets scored again at 17:30 when Kyle Connor (Shelby Township) netted his fifth goal of the season. It was the second straight game the Wings have surrendered two goals close together, as the Seattle Kraken scored within two minutes near the end of the second period Tuesday. The Wings got one by Connor Hellebuyck (Commerce) early in the second period when Raymond jammed the puck in from just outside the paint.
Third place for Seider
That general manager Steve Yzerman choose extremely well when he drafted Moritz Seider at sixth overall in 2019 was evident even before Seider joined the Wings for the 2021-22 season. Seider, the 2022 Calder Trophy winner, became the third-fastest Wings defenseman to reach the 100-point mark when he assisted on Raymond’s goal, reaching the milestone in 172 games. Nicklas Lidstrom did it in 160 games; Reed Larson holds the record with 139 games.
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Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings drop 2nd straight, fall 4-1 to Winnipeg Jets
