Red Wings-Sharks Tweetcap: a blue-collar 4-2 win for Detroit over the pesky, plucky Sharks

The Detroit Red Wings and San Jose Sharks met for the second and final time in the 2025-2026 regular season on Friday, and the surprising Sharks came into the match-up having won 4 of their past 5 games. San Jose boasted a very respectable 24-19-and-3 record, and Macklin Celebrini continues to establish himself as one of the NHL’s best players, never mind an elite young talent.

In the crowded Atlantic Division, however, the Red Wings are in an every-game-is-a-playoff-game mode, and they had to pounce upon the Sharks as best as they were able to keep pace with their division rivals.

On Friday night at Little Caesars Arena, the Red Wings arguably won despite themselves, earning a 4-2 victory over a plucky, fast and physical San Jose Sharks team. After Alex DeBrincat opened the scoring 6:18 into the 1st, the Sharks pulled ahead by the start of the 2nd period, and Detroit struggled somewhat to counter the Sharks’ 2-1 lead until J.T. Compher broke through 6:55 into the 2nd…

And it took until 4:41 of the 3rd for Dylan Larkin to score off a pool shot on Yaroslav Askarov to give Detroit a lead it would not relinquish…With the workmanlike, superb Marco Kasper sealing away a win that John Gibson helped the Wings earn with a 19-save performance.

PREGAME: John Gibson and Yaroslav Askarov led their respective teams out onto the ice at LCA…

The Sharks posted their team’s lineup just before puck drop…

And the Red Wings actually posted their lineup first:

1ST PERIOD:

The teams dressed the following starters and lineups:

PENALTY: Mario Ferraro accidentally high-sticked Albert Johansson at 5:44 of the 1st period.

GOAL: On the power play, the Red Wings cycled around the back boards, James van Riemsdyk laterally passed the puck to Lucas Raymond, who chugged through the right side of the slot and faked out Yaroslav Askarov, and Raymond slid the puck across to Alex DeBrincat, who fired the puck into an open net at 6:18.

Detroit 1, San Jose 0: DeBrincat (25) from Raymond (37) and van Riemsdyk (8) at 6:18 1st period, PPG.

GOAL: Macklin Celebrini blasted a shot through traffic and the puck rolled over John Gibson and behind him, where Will Smith jammed the puck home at 9:54 of the 1st period.

Detroit 1, San Jose 1: Smith (13) from Celebrini (48) and Klingberg (8) at 9:54 1st.

2ND PERIOD:

GOAL: San Jose went end-to-end off a smart outlet pass by Sam Dickinson, Nick Leddy chugged up over the Wings’ blueline and skated deep, and he laterally passed the puck to Colin Graf, who tipped the puck with the tip of his stick, right through John Gibson at 1:58 of the 2nd.

Detroit 1, San Jose 2: Graf (14) from Leddy (4) and Dickinson (5) at 1:58 2nd period.

GOAL: Off a turnover at the San Jose blueline by John Klingberg, Marco Kasper powered through the Sharks’ defense, sent the puck across to J.T. Compher, and Compher stuffed the puck into an open net at 6:55.

Detroit 2, San Jose 2: Compher (6) from Kasper (4) at 6:55 of the 2nd period.

PENALTY: San Jose’s Sam Dickinson got called for hooking Albert Johansson off a spectacular set of dekes, dangles and jukes by the Wings’ #20 as he blazed up the slot. Dickinson sat at 18:20.

3RD PERIOD:

GOAL: Off a really broken play, James van Riemsdyk jabbed the puck back against the grain to Lucas Raymond, Raymond fed captain Larkin at the left side of the goal, and Larkin jabbed the puck off the goalpost, and then JUUUUUUUST inside the goal past Yaroslav Askarov at 4:41 of the 3rd. Replay confirmed it.

Detroit 3, San Jose 2: Larkin (24) from Raymond (37) and van Riemsdyk (9) at 4:41 3rd.

PENALTY: Michael Rasmussen accidentally high-sticked Graf at 11:34 of the 3rd period.

GOALIE PULL: Yaroslav Askarov was pulled by the Sharks with 2:17 remaining in the 3rd period.

GOAL: LUcas Raymond saw Marco Kasper available and slid the puck up to #92, who slithered a shot into the middle of the empty net at 18:28 of the 3rd period:

Detroit 4, San Jose 2: Kasper (4) from Raymond (38) at 18:28 3rd period, ENG.

STATISTICS: Here are the Game Summary and Event Summary:

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George Malik

My name is George Malik, and I'm the Malik Report's editor/blogger/poster. I have been blogging about the Red Wings since 2006, and have worked with MLive and Kukla's Korner. Thank you for reading!