The Detroit Red Wings experienced a 310-day layoff between games, and it showed during tonight’s home-opening loss to the Carolina Hurricanes at Little Caesars Arena.
Carolina outshot the Red Wings 43-14 en route to a 3-0 victory. Their tight forechecking prevented any serious offensive pressure from Detroit, who had to shake off some noticeable rust.
“As the game went on we got more comfortable in the game,” Dylan Larkin explained afterward. “It was a little bit sloppy to start, but I like how we moved the puck. We didn’t spend much time in the D zone tonight; we need to create more in the offensive zone. I really like how we got better as the game went on, and I liked Thomas Greiss‘ play tonight.”
Greiss was busy in his Red Wings debut, making 40 saves.
Though some may point to the long stretch since the Red Wings last hit the ice, Larkin won’t be using that as an excuse for the subpar performance.
“It’s been 10 months since we’ve played a game, I’m not trying to make excuses for our team,” he said. “The 1st period felt like Game 7 of a playoff series with no lanes; It seemed like guys were on top of you, not making the plays to be made. It was a sloppy period.”
An ill-advised turnover by Larkin led directly to Carolina’s opening goal, as his pass was stolen by Sebastien Aho, who soon fed a wide-open Nino Niederreiter for the game’s opening score.
Larkin was later penalized late in the 3rd period shortly before Carolina put the game out of reach with a power-play goal.
“I made a poor mistake with the puck on their 1st goal, they get extended PP time in the 3rd and capitalize,” he said. “If you take away those two mistakes, it’s a close hockey game. I made a mistake with the puck and it cost us.”
It won’t be long before the two teams face each other again, as they’re scheduled to meet on Saturday. For Larkin and the Red Wings, it will be a chance to get back on track.
“The beauty of it is we come out on Saturday, can win and get two points on those guys to even things up.”
– – Quotes via Fox Sports Detroit Link – –
