Red Wings Score Early but Hot Start Fizzles in 7-4 Loss

The Detroit Red Wings started a brutal stretch of seven games Monday night that would pit them against some of the best in the league. Detroit couldn’t have asked for a better start but they would dig a hole after they just couldn’t climb out of in a 7-4 loss to Minnesota.

Dylan Larkin scored his 25th goal of the season and Gustav Lindstrom followed with his first of the season minutes later, giving the Red Wings a very quick 2-0 lead. The Wild would roar right back, potting two of their own in a stretch of three minutes. The scoring barrage would cool heading into the second period, but the Wild would take the lead on a Kirill Kaprizov goal that made it 3-2.

A scrum late mid way through the second featured a brutal hit on Marc Staal, followed by Troy Stecher tussling in an effort to stand up for Staal. Stecher lost the battle and ended up heading to the locker room but the Red Wings were awarded a power play. It wouldn’t yield a goal and Detroit found itself trailing heading into the third period by a pair after Matt Boldy registered his first career hat trick with a goal that put Minnesota up 4-2.

The Red Wings struggled to get much of anything going in the third period, as Wild netminder Kaapo Kähkönen kept Detroit at bay. After giving up another goal–making it five unanswered–Lucas Raymond ripped one past Kähkönen off a beautiful pass from Larkin, pulling Detroit within two.

After a power play with four minutes left, the Red Wings saw their penalty killed but kept the pressure on, netting a goal from Sam Gagner, pulling things within a goal. But the Wild would get an empty netter and then score again quickly to remove any doubt (not that there wasn’t any remaining) to finish the Wings off 7-4.