The Detroit Red Wings attempted to snap their losing streak by prolonging the New Jersey Devils’ misery as the Devils came to Detroit amidst a 4-game losing streak…
All while playing in the first double-header in Little Caesars Arena history, with LCA transitioning from a noon NBA basketball game to 8 PM NHL hockey.
As you know by now, both the Red Wings and Devils were hit hard by COVID, with the Wings absent coach Jeff Blashill, assistant coach Alex Tanguay, goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic, and forwards Robby Fabbri, Michael Rasmussen, Carter Rowney, Givani Smith and Filip Zadina.
The Red Wings managed to win a 5-2 decision over the similarly decimated Devils thanks to 3 goals from Dylan Larkin…
2 goals from Tyler Bertuzzi and a 31-save performance from Thomas Greiss, all of whom were excellent as the Ben Simon and Doug Houda-coached Red Wings did the job they needed to do to emerge at 15-13-and-3.
The teams dressed the following lineups…
Tonight’s *projected* lineup. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/Pb3ThgrilQ— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
An undermanned #NJDevils lineup is warming up like this ahead of facing the Red Wings:
?Eleven forwards moves Tatar to the top line
?Defense stays the same
?No extra bodies
? Schmid pic.twitter.com/SXirrWQpiW— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) December 19, 2021
The teams’ starters and scratches were as follows:
In the 1st period…
When Taro Hirose, Joe Veleno and Sam Gagner are your “checking line,” with Nick Leddy and Filip Hronek in front of Thomas Greiss…And the Devils are without Jesper Bratt due to a non-COVID illness…
It was a patchwork lineup for both teams.
So Veleno drew in for the opening faceoff vs. Michael McLeod, and Veleno cheated his way to a win back to the Wings’ defense.
Leddy chipped, then chased down a bad Veleno pass, and the Wings entered the Devils’ zone, watched the Devils chip and send a shot in on Greiss by McLeod, and Veleno fed Hirose, who passed laterally to Gagner, who was hit high. Gagner punched Jimmy Vesey, and nothing further took place.
The Tatar line took to the ice and skated the puck deep, cycled, and Raymond helped Bertuzzi clear the zone.
Bertuzzi fed Larkin, whose shot went wide, Seider worked down low, Raymond covered up on the point, and his shot attempt was blocked into the crowd at 1:20.
Suter drew in for the deep offensive zone draw and lost it;
New Jersey worked the puck out to center, skated it deep, and Greiss worked with Lindstrom to send Erne and then Namestnikov in for a wide attempt on Schmid.
New Jersey skated back up into the Wings’ zone, Dougie Hamilton was checked, and the Devils regrouped at center, chipped and changed 2:05 into the 1st.
Oesterle sent the puck deep for Criscuolo, Barber fired a shot out into the netting, and we got a stoppage of play with 2:19 gone in the 1st.
Detroit rolled its lines again and Larkin lost the deep offensive zone faceoff, New Jersey chipped and chased, Griess played it around but the Devils’ Siegenthaler sent it deep, Bertuzzi helped clear the puck, and Raymond was dumped with control of the puck sans call.
The Devils broke in with McLeod feeding Vesey, but he was unable to control the puck on a 2-on-1 3:30 into the 1st;
New Jersey looked like it had better structure and poise some 4 minutes into the 1st period, and the Devils held the puck for the vast majority of the time.
Example: Detroit iced the puck at 4:01 of the 1st, and it would figure; Jordan Oesterle was the player who was closest to the puck on the Wings’ side.
The Wings won the defensive zone draw, however, and cleared the zone, but surrendered a rush on the next play, and scrambled to clear their defensive area.
Hronek did do a nice job of pinching and passing for a slot chance that went untouched by Red Wings sticks;
McLeod looked really good vs. Hronek and Leddy and Veleno, cycling back for Severson, who was blocked off at 5:15;
Siegenthaler worked the puck up ice and Gagner got high-sticked sans call, but Hirose cleared the zone;
Leddy, Hronek and company then chugged up the gut, Erne, Suter and Namestnikov chased, and Seider had to chug back to stop Hughes from getting a breakway attempt on Greiss, who made a good toe stop.
The first TV timeout hit at 6:09 of the 1st period.
Detroit was being out-shot 5-0 and out-attempted 7-1 some 6:09 into the 1st.
As play resumed, the Red Wings won a defensive zone draw, chipped and chased, and Larkin, Raymond and Bertuzzi worked the puck to the point, Seider got caught, and Staal afforded STUDENIC AND MERCER a TREMENDOUS opportunity that Greiss GRABBED once and then TWICE:
GREISS! #LGRW pic.twitter.com/8gYSMTfn5B— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
As play continued, Tatar nearly snuck a centering pass out front;
The Devils were firing pucks through the Red Wings’ checking forwards and defense, and that was a problem.
By the time the 8-minute mark passed, the Devils had 9 shots that Greiss had stopped, and Detroit really looked sloppy.
Kyle Criscuolo got the Wings’ first shot some 8:30 into the 1st period, one-on-one on the rush.
New Jersey then cycled in the Wings’ zone, pumped the puck to the point, and Hamilton’s shot was tipped to the corners, where Kukkonen cycled, Gagner and Hronek broke up the chance, and Detroit changed 9:30 into the 1st;
Veleno, Hirose and Gagner at least displayed some forecheking prowess, though they could not attain possession and control in the offensive zone;
Seider looked vulnerable vs. Sharagovich;
Bertuzzi, Larkin and Raymond struggled, too, but re-set, cycled and Bertuzzi got to a loose puck, fed Raymond…
Studenic chipped the puck deep, Mercer cycled, and Greiss had to hold on with 10:59 gone in the 1st.
New Jersey was leading in shots 9-2 and attempts 13-3.
When play resumed, the Larkin line drew in for a defensive zone faceoff, with Seider and DeKeyser, and Detroit chugged up ice and went offside in an ugly exchange.
New Jersey won the next draw, chipped and chased, and when Larkin fed Raymond, he was closed upon immediately, no longer getting the time and space he was a month ago.
New Jersey just looked sharper and more energetic 12 minutes into the 1st.
Bertuzzi stole the puck deep and Larkin jabbed a point shot by Hronek into Schmid;
Larkin fed Hronek, and Erne tipped the puck JUST wide of Schmid;
Bastian dumped, the Devils chased, and Larkin, out long, worked with Namestnikov and Erne to charge the puck from end to end.
Namestnikov cycled with Suter, he fed Leddy, he slid the puck deep, Namestnikov set Erne, to Suter it went and Schmid made a good stop;
Leddy set up, cycled for Namestnikov, to Suter, and Hamilton stung himself blocking a shot with his hand;
Namestnikov then got another shot attempt off, and Schmid made the stop.
Detroit’s Lindstrom and Staal then helped with Barber blasting a shot wide of Schmid on the right wing side;
DeKeyser and Seider cycled, gave the puck up, and New Jersey’s McLeod and Siegenthaler centered the puck, but Hirose and Veleno cleared the puck;
DeKeyser got hit hard by McLeod, and the Devils negated icing, so Seider fed Hirose in the slot, and Detroit cleared and changed with 5:24 remaining;
Larkin skated into 3 Devils and was blocked off as a result;
And the 3rd TV timeout hit with 5:08 remaining.
Shots were 10-5 NJD, attempts 15-9 NJD.
Greiss had to blocker away a Devils shot off Hamilton as play resumed, and the Larkin line worked the puck deep, cycled it with Hronek and Leddy, and Hronek got a shot off on Schmid that was stopped;
Bertuzzi hit the glass with the rebound, and NJD skated into the Wings’ zone, Detroit cleared the zone and DYLAN LARKIN SAW SCHMID BUMBLE A PUCK OFF THE END BOARDS AND SLAMMED IT INTO AN OPEN NET.
Dylan Larkin is having a great season. Filip Hronek’s dump-in turns into a goal for the Red Wings
Video: @BallySportsDET pic.twitter.com/mywbzJcEwD— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) December 19, 2021
Alley-oop!
What a play by @hronek_filip and @Dylanlarkin39. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/wRIR2m7fKm— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
???? pic.twitter.com/0SzTleG6D7— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
Dylan Larkin made it 1-0 at 15:39 of the 1st period. Hronek assisted via a dump-in.
On the post-goal shift, Erne, Namestnikov and Suter pushed hard, but the Devils chipped and chased and Staal and company had to clear the zone;
New Jersey cycled deep, DeKeyser was fed by Namestnikov at the other end off a good push, and DeKeyser fired the shot wide of Schmid, affording New Jersey an icing.
As play continued, Barber tried to feed Seider, and instead, the Devils walked up 3 on 2, Greiss had to make a stop, and Oesterle was hammered at center ice, working as a forward.
New Jersey continued to work the puck deep into the Wings’ zone, and Hughes, Ty Smith and Sharagovich cycled, Hronek fumbled a puck, and Greiss had to cover up with 1:54 remaining/18:06 elapsed.
The Wings won the next faceoff, but Bertuzzi iced the puck with 1:46 remaining/18:14 elapsed, and New Jersey brought out its top line, held the line, and Tatar shoved Seider off the puck, worked it to the point, and Severson’s shot was tipped off Larkin wide;
Siegenthaler fired a shot wide;
Zacha’s shot was tipped wide;
DeKeyser cleared for Larkin, he worked it deep, but Raymond was checked hard, and Detroit changed with less than a minute remaining;
New Jersey then got a weird goal off a McLeod shot that just shanked off the blade and knuckled on Greiss, who could not stop the shot.
Mike City
?
Motor pic.twitter.com/jK8WYzjWEF— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) December 19, 2021
More of Motor Mike in Slow Motion in Motor City. pic.twitter.com/6UiCFdGten— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) December 19, 2021
McLeod with the knuckle puck right out of D2 pic.twitter.com/UaaztHtaB8— Devils on MSG (@DevilsMSGN) December 19, 2021
McLeod scored with 19:11 gone in the 1st, from Vesey and Siegenthaler.
On the post-goal shift, Pius Suter raced in on his countryman Schmid, hacked, whacked, and jabbed the puck, and Suter was shoved away from Schmid before he could whack the puck into the net, with the Devils getting away with one (period), literally and figuratively.
All square after one. @Dylanlarkin39 with the #RedWings goal. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/W9pG8RJu8e— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) December 19, 2021
Detroit and NJD tied 1-1 after 1. Stats: pic.twitter.com/lAnYRhWqzR— George Malik (@georgemalik) December 19, 2021
Shots 13-10 NJD; attempts 21-15 NJD; hits 11-5 NJD; giveaways a HIDEOUS 12-1 DET; takeaways 1-0 DET; blocked shots 4-3 DET; faceoffs 8-7 NJD (47%).
Who gets us on the board next?#LGRW pic.twitter.com/1mlQoFOFQZ— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
In the 2nd period…
The 2nd period began with the McLeod line drawing in vs. Veleno for the second time, and McLeod won the puck and the Devils chipped and chased, cycled as Hronek made a bad drop pass, but Leddy fed the puck out to center, McLeod stole it and dumped, chased, Leddy was hit very hard but played the puck to Hirose, to Veleno, and Gagner cycled deep, to the line and Hronek fired a shot in on Schmid.
Larkin drew in for a faceoff in the offensive zone, he was kicked out, so Raymond substituted, and Detroit lost the faceoff, but Raymond stole the puck, swept it to Bertuzzi, and he tried and failed to feed Larkin in the slot;
So Ty Smith dumped the puck in for NJD, Seider and Larkin worked it out to center, Hughes took the puck to Tatar, he buttonhooked, Hamilton was tied up and Detroit chipped and changed 1:20 into the 2nd.
Suter battled Zacha, Hughes tried to work the puck deep and Detroit iced the puck at 1:34.
Detroit won the deep defensive zone draw, but they iced the puck straight away, affording the Devils another deep offensive zone faceoff.
New Jersey lost it to Suter, and he worked with Raymond and Erne for a moment;
Seider afforded Detroit time to fully change lines, and New Jersey regained the puck, chipped, Greiss worked it out to Erne and out, Detroit dumped, chased, got the puck, lost the puck, and Studenic skated into the slot and was stifled by Greiss sliding wide.
New Jersey set up at center, Lindstrom blocked a pass, Criscuolo, Oesterle and Barber worked as a makeshift fourth line, and Oesterle did a good job of helping the Wings maintain possession until Nick Leddy’s pass was deflected out of play.
Veleno finished the four-line rotation some 2:10 into the period;
And Veleno, Hirose and Hronek worked the puck deep, but were blocked off via a center ice regroup;
Griess played the puck to Leddy, he fed Hirose at center, and Detroit chipped the puck in as Larkin’s line missed it;
So Hughes, Tatar and Zacha went the other way, and Greiss had to gobble up a dump-in;
The linesmen were eject-happy, so Larkin got some help on the defensive zone draw, and he skated up ice with the puck in tow, fed Bertuzzi, and his stick was lifted, affording the Devils a break-up of the 2-on-1;
Bertuzzi then cycled up to center, in, Raymond fed Larkin, and his shot was blocked by Siegenthaler;
New Jersey had more trouble working the puck up ice in the 2nd period than they did during the 1st period. Detroit’s sticks were everywhere.
Play sort of continued at a chippy pace, and Vladislav Namestnikov broke in and drove to the goal, and was tripped by the Devils’ defenseman, sending Bahl to the box.
Bahl headed off at 5:23 for holding.
On the power play, Detroit lost the initial faceoff, and New Jersey cleared the zone, Detroit re-set and skated in, but were broken up rush-wise;
Erne, Bertuzzi, Raymond, Larkin and Bertuzzi were stifled by Vesey on the next line rush;
Bertuzzi helped Larkin feed the puck through center to Raymond and in, he wrapped to Bertuzzi, Larkin fed Seider, he fed Raymond, and Erne passed instead of shooting…
But Hamilton cross-checked Bertuzzi at 6:34, affording Detroit a 5 on 3 for 49 seconds.
Larkin lost the initial faceoff, Bertuzzi and Seider and Raymond held it in, Seider set up Raymond, he worked it across and Hronek was blocked;
Bertuzzi fed Hronek, to Seider, to Raymond, blocked, and McLeod cleared the zone.
Greiss played it up to Larkin through center he went dropped to Raymond to Seider to Raymond down low Larkin walked to Hronek wide of the net PP 5 on 4.
Seider fed Larkin to Hronek, he put the puck off the post and Schmid;
Larkin at center skated in from Seider, to Bertuzzi, to Seider, shot wide, and up came Vesey and McLeod and GREISS MADE A HUGE SHORTHANDED STOP to keep the game tied.
Detroit charged up and in, Larkin fed Hronek, he dropped to a Devil, Hirose checked Kuokkanen, and the Devils killed the remainder of the penalty. Greiss had to make another stop before all was said and done.
Detroit got too cute on its power play and tried to pass in a perfect marker.
As play continued with 10:47 left in the 2nd period, Namestnikov was manhandled in the corner of the Devils’ zone, sans call, and New Jersey went the other way, Hughes and Tatar exchanged passes, and they were blocked off by the Red Wings’ backcheckers.
New Jersey then brought 5 men into the Wings’ zone, Mercer and Hamilton were blocked, Barber fed Seider deep, he swung back and fed Gagner, the puck came loose to Criscuolo and he was blocked, Barber tried to jab in the puck loose and he was stopped…
With Staal sent to the box as the first TV timeout hit at 10:23.
Shots in the 2nd period are 3-3, and 16-13 NJD overall. Attempts 29-27 NJD.
When play resumed, Detroit afforded New Jersey a chip-out, Hronek set up and fed Oesterle, who looked really good at forward, Criscuolo and Suter wrapped and Staal sent another shot wide, Lindstrom was blocked off, Suter fed Lindstrom, who held the line, Detroit cycled deep right wing side, and Staal held the puck in chipping it deep;
Suter battled the puck vs. Sharangovich, Namestnikov fed the slot and DYLAN LARKIN SCORED THE 2-1 GOAL OFF THE BENCH TO THE SLOT TO THE BACK OF THE NET.
#RedWings captain Dylan Larkin with his second of the game! #LGRW @Dylanlarkin39 | @pius_suter | @Vladdy18 pic.twitter.com/DtQaXM8tby— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) December 19, 2021
? pic.twitter.com/D6YGVxKZqk— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
Dylan Larkin again! ?? pic.twitter.com/4EdhZXwdpR— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 19, 2021
Dylan Larkin made it 2-1 from Namestnikov and Suter at 11:48…
And Moritz Seider tagged up and helped Tyler Bertuzzi convert for a 3-1 goal 39 seconds later.
BERT!
His 11th of the year. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/kJNk4oqHaS— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
Tyler Bertuzzi gets the goal thanks to rookie Moritz Seider’s wizardry. #LGRW@tylerbertuzzi pic.twitter.com/PaPfEya9hW— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) December 19, 2021
Moritz Seider makes the play to set up the Red Wings’ third tally. Continues to put together an impressive rookie szn. pic.twitter.com/9ckFIvmZeR— Shayna (@hayyyshayyy) December 19, 2021
all within a second lmao pic.twitter.com/sOn391gTO6— Kyle M. (@KyleWIIM) December 19, 2021
Tyler Bertuzzi made it 3-1 from Seider at 12:27.
Greiss had to gobble up the puck on the post-goal faceoff and chip-and-chase by New Jersey, ushering in a TV timeout.
When play resumed, the Veleno line did a good job of stealing the puck, with Gagner trying to feed Hirose for a goal, and Leddy holding the line and Hamilton kicked the puck out and Detroit went offside.
The Wings won the faceoff, however, and Namestnikov got a great chance on Schmid all alone 1-on-0, but Schmid made a fine stop;
With 6 minutes remaining in the 2nd, Seider broke through center, Namestnikov gave and went, and Namestnikov missed the net high and wide;
Lindstrom chipped, Detroit chased, and the Devils chipped the puck away off the glass, ushering in a TV timeout.
Shots in the 2nd were 6-5 Detroit, 18-16 NJD overall; attemptsat 14:23 of the 2nd were 33-33.
Detroit returned to play with consistency and determination on the puck, beginning to dominate possession and control thereof, affording themselves some good zone time and grind time opposite the Devils in their own zone;
When the Devils did enter the Wings’ zone, Staal and Lindstrom did a good job of breaking down a Devils rush, and Dougie Hamilton’s blast was stifled by Greiss;
New Jersey set up and Larkin raced in alone and HE SCORED A HAT TRICK.
Dylan Larkin raced in vs. Schmid off the Criscuolo pass to center ice, and coming off the bench, Larkin deked, Larkin dangled, and he chipped the puck through Schmid’s blocker to make it 4-1.
DYLAN LARKIN HAT TRICK!!!! pic.twitter.com/y971oBMF2M— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
HAT TRICK DYLAN LARKIN!!! ??? pic.twitter.com/Sb1N7ViYbg— NHL (@NHL) December 19, 2021
First career hat trick for Dylan Larkin ?
The Red Wings captain scored his third goal of the game on a breakaway
VIDEO: @BallySportsDET pic.twitter.com/BfbJ2p8YSj— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) December 19, 2021
? @DYLANLARKIN39 FIRST CAREER HAT TRICK! ? pic.twitter.com/LE31bRGd2A— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
Love to C it. ? pic.twitter.com/aMrYV0MuiA— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
Larkin scored at 15:47 to make it 4-1 from Criscuolo.
On the post-goal shift McLeod and Hronek fought.
Hronek got caught with a pop in the head and was dehelmeted but that was all the damage done.
McLeod got 4 minutes for roughing; Hronek got 2 minutes, so it was power play time.
On the power play, Detroit won the initial draw, Seider slid it deep for Erne, he fed Raymond, to Seider to Raymond off the heel, Raymond battled deep but NJD cleared the puck down ice.
Seider set up and skated out of the Wings’ zone, dropped to Larkin, he skated through center and in for Bertuzzi around to Raymond to Erne to Seider deep for Bertuzzi for Raymond to Bertuzzi across for Larkin one too many passes Raymond fed Erne but the puck was tipped out of play.
With 1:01 remaining on the PP, Gagner drew in for a deep offensive zone faceoff, and Ruff complained to the referee, Justin St. Pierre.
Gagner won the draw to Leddy, to Hirose right wing side to Suter jab stopped, Leddy was blocked off and the Devils cleared the zone and Greiss got HELPED BY THE POST?
Mercer with wheels to the front and backhands a shorthanded goal ? pic.twitter.com/FaKCo7z9VC— Devils on MSG (@DevilsMSGN) December 19, 2021
But the goal light went on and the New Jersey Devils celebrated, and the goal counted. Mercer from Severson at 17:25, 4-2.
Detroit continued on the power play, but could not convert as they got too cute again, and Seider, Rayond, Bertuzzi, Larkin and Erne struggled despite some good possession.
Tomas Tatar found Hamilton on the late man’s rush and he was stopped by Greiss;
The Devils dominated possession and control all of a sudden…
But Suter, Seider and Gagner skated in 3 on 1, and Gagner fed the puck right to Schmid’s glove 🙁
Gustav Lindstrom fired another easy shot into Schmid off the next faceoff;
With 53.8 left in the 2nd, Lindstrom, Erne and Gagner continued to cycle and Schmid made a third stop;
Veleno drew in with 45.2 remaining, won it to Erne, and his shot was stopped by Schmid;
Staal, Gagner, Erne and Veleno could not hold the offensive zone blueline so they changed quickly;
With 20 seconds remaining the Devils chipped and chased, but the Wings cleared and battled the puck deeper, Larkin regained it at center and Larkin backed up behind the net and took the 2nd period out.
Red Wings-Devils stats after 2 periods of play. Detroit leads New Jersey 4-2. pic.twitter.com/VemY37CL0x— George Malik (@georgemalik) December 19, 2021
#RedWings captain @Dylanlarkin39 already has his first career hat trick and there’s still one period to play. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/Lr3D4it84D— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) December 19, 2021
Finish it off!#LGRW pic.twitter.com/7EoS5yiPCb— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 19, 2021
Shots in the 2nd 12-8 Detroit, 22-21 Detroit overall.
Attempts 40-39 New Jersey;
Hits 15-9 Detroit;
Giveaways 15-9 New Jersey;
Takeaways 5-0 Detroit;
Blocked shots 10-9 Detroit;
Faceoffs 21-16 Detroit (56%).
In the 3rd period…
The 3rd began at 10:02 PM, and the Devils chipped and chased, cycled the puck out to the front of the net, and Veleno could not clear, Gagner could not clear, Sharangovich was stopped by Greiss, and Oesterle eventually had to clear the zone working as a forward.
Detroit managed to cycle deep and DeKeyser chipped and chased, but the Devils cleared the zone and made a very poor icing decision as the top line came out.
Larkin could not win the offensive zone draw, however, and the Devils’ Tatar had his shot blocked out of play, affording New Jersey an offensive zone faceoff.
Greiss had to make a big stop off the offensive zone draw, on a point shot, and the Devils returned to Detroit’s zone in short order, cycling hard.
Lindstrom and Staal chipped, Larkin chased, Bertuzzi chased, but nobody got the puck, so New Jersey’s Mercer chipped it in, the Devils continued to pressure the Wings’ defense, and Lindstrom and Staal set up and got the puck out to Namestnikov.
He charged in, but his slot pass was blocked off Erne’s stick, and Leddy set up for Erne, over to Leddy, to Erne, for a wraparound, blocked, Namestnikov to Leddy, to Suter, cycling to Erne, to Hronek, firing and Suter was stopped as Schmid thought the puck was in the back of the net.
3 minutes into the 3rd period, all four lines had hit the ice as Barber, Criscuolo and Hirose worked together and battled heavily in the Devils’ zone;
DeKeyser and Seider helped out and DeKeyser’s shot hit a body, after Barber had been punched in the head;
Seider and Barber set up a shot for Barber that was stopped, Criscuolo battled, and the Devils iced the puck with 4:04 gone.
Veleno got off a decent chance off the faceoff win by Gagner, but Schmid made a smart stop;
Detroit seemed to do a good job of three-zone pressuring the Devils, too, but Jack Hughes did jab a puck in on Greiss that was stopped 4:25 into the 3rd.
Tatar then broke away from coverage on a faceoff win, Greiss had to stop a point shot, and Bertuzzi and Larkin chipped, Larkin chased, and the Devils took the puck to center, pushed it deep and changed;
5:20 into the 3rd, Detroit’s top line changed while doing a fine job in the neutral zone;
Suter, Namestnikov and Erne worked with Staal and Lindstrom next;
Greiss played a Devils chip-in to Lindstrom, and Detroit cleared the zone, but New Jersey pushed the puck back in;
So Seider set up, got chased out of the pocket, and worked it to center, chipping and affording Detroit a chase.
Criscuolo fed Leddy high slot and he slid the puck down low to Barber for a fine chip shot that Schmid stopped;
6:30 into the 3rd, New Jersey actually led Detroit 4-3 in shots in the 3rd period, and the shots were tied 25-25 overall.
When play resumed, Barber, Criscuolo and Hirose did an OK job of holding the Devils off the scoresheet, but they did get backed into their own zone, affording New Jersey a shot on Greiss;
As the 8-minute mark approached, Larkin broke in, fired a shot behind Raymond, and he was hit, affording the Devils a 3 on 2 that Raymond blocked off with an excellent stick check;
New Jersey continued to cycle, however, and Geertsen jabbed a puck in on Greiss, and then he tried to fight Tyler Bertuzzi.
And Geertsen drew a Devils power play at 8:31 as a result as Bertuzzi went for cross-checking.
On the penalty-kill, New Jersey won the deep zone draw but pushed the puck back to center before skating into the Wings’ zone;
DeKeyser and Suter cleared the Wings’ zone, chipped and changed;
New Jersey set up in Detroit’s end, Tatar fed Johnsson, to Smith, Severson put the puck off the goalpost, and New Jersey continued to cycle, with Staal, Lindstrom, Erne and Namestnikov struggling to contain the Devils.
Staal was tripped, sans call, and Namestnikov broke out and cleared the zone;
With 15 seconds left in the PP and 9:44 in regulation, the Devils set up and Greiss watched a shot go wide, and the rebound eluded Zacha;
Gagner broke away 1 on 1 vs Hamilton and he fired a shot off Schmid;
Bertuzzi, Suter and Leddy combined for a wrist shot in on Schmid, and that ushered in another TV timeout with 8:57 remaining.
New Jersey was out-shooting Detroit 7-3 in the 3rd period at 11:03, shots were 28-26 New Jersey overall.
When play resumed, Raymond fed Hronek for a shot that was tipped wide;
Larkin doggedly checked the Devils’ defense, and Raymond helped, but New Jersey managed to clear the zone and chip and chase.
Hughes fired a good shot in on Greiss, too.
The Devils won the next draw, but Detroit cleared the zone, and Detroit parried away a Devils attempt to break in the zone as well.
New Jersey was getting its fair share of “almosts” from time to time, and that was worrisome.
Namestnikov, Erne and Suter did a good job of cycling deep, but Tatar and Hughes skated into the Wings’ zone, and Greiss had to stop Tatar with 6:30 remaining;
The Devils chipped, Detroit dumped Hughes, got away with it, and New Jersey got away with their own trip as Raymond was dumped, but Dylan Larkin picked up the puck and fed Bertuzzi, who fired the shot over Schmid to make it 5-2.
Tyler Bertuzzi gets his second goal of the game and captain Dylan Larkin gets his fourth point. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/7SFwtpZhaQ— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) December 19, 2021
Tyler Bertuzzi scored at 14:07 from Larkin and Raymond to make it 5-2.
The Devils did not give up though!
New Jersey was plucky and pugnacious at times, attacking the Wings’ net strongly, and it took maximum effort from Detroit to stifle New Jersey’s energetic attack.
With 4 minutes remaining in regulation, the result looked like a fait accompli, however;
Tatar, Hughes and company deked and dangled and deked and dangled and Tatar deked and dangled some more, affording Danny DeKeyser the ability to block off his attempt.
Detroit was still being out-shot 10-7 in the 3rd and 31-29 New Jersey overall.
Play resumed with 3:36 left in the 3rd, and Detroit chipped and chased, Hamilton was checked by Namestnikov, and the Devils’ Studeneic cleared the puck.
The Devils charged into the Wings’ zone, and Detroit had to battle the puck out of trouble;
Erne, Suter and Larkin had a good little shift together, and Bertuzzi joined for Suter, Raymond joined for Erne, and Detroit set up at center, Bertuzzi battled, the Devils skated deep, Mercer cycled, and Bertuzzi and Larkin chipped the puck away.
Raymond, Larkin and Namestnikov were unable to stifle a Devils 3 on 2 and Greiss made a great stop on Mercer;
New Jersey’s next couple of attempts were blocked by the Red Wings’ backchecking forwards;
Leddy carried the puck out with 1:30 remaining, and Detroit chipped, New Jersey chased, Detroit carried the puck out again, and Oesterle surrendered possession at the Devils’ line.
New Jersey skated in 1 on 4 and Hughes got a shot off on Greiss with 56.2 remaining;
New Jersey won the deep offensive zone draw, and Lindstrom and Staal helped clear the zone;
Criscuolo, Barber and Hirose worked to clear their zone a couple of times, New Jersey iced the puck with 28.2 remaining, and Criscuolo took the draw deep…
New Jersey won it, but the Wings held firm, set up at center, and dumped and chased, one final time.
New Jersey cleared the zone, and that was pretty much the game. Except for Taro Hirose being called for tripping at 19:58, yielding nothing.
Statistics: Here are the Game Summary and Event Summary:
