DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings have 66 points as of Jan. 22, building momentum with a strong stretch of recent success.
On Wednesday, Jan. 21, Dylan Larkin scored at 4:07 of overtime to secure a 2-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena.
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Goalie John Gibson made 30 saves, earning his seventh straight win and improving to a 16-2-0 record in his last 18 starts.
The game-winning goal came after Moritz Seider knocked down a Leafs defender -- setting up Larkin for a one-on-one chance at the net.
“That’s diesel right there,” Larkin said of Seider. “He has a diesel engine... He plays like that starting in training camp every day really. Strong stick, strong skater. He almost put it in the corner, but I caught up to it and was able to finish it off.”
It was Larkin’s 12th career overtime goal, tying Sergei Fedorov for the most in franchise history.
Detroit entered the night having won all three meetings against Toronto this season.
This marks the first time since the 1995-96 season that the Red Wings have swept a season series over the Maple Leafs.
The overtime thriller followed another nail-biter on Jan. 18 against the Ottawa Senators.
In that game, Detroit rallied from an early deficit but lost a lead, forcing overtime.
Alex DeBrincat scored 36 seconds into OT to give the Wings a 4-3 win.
DeBrincat, who also had an assist, capitalized on a loose puck to set up a 2-on-1 rush with Andrew Copp before beating Senators goalie James Reimer with a wrist shot from the left circle.
“We didn’t have a great start,” Debrincat said. “But we fought back to keep this run going.”
With 13 shootout and overtime games under their belt this season and 10 wins, the Red Wings keep fans on edge.
Call them heart-attack kids if you will, but two points earned is two points earned.
In recent years, the team often eased off the gas when trailing, but this season’s squad shows grit, resilience and relentless drive to keep pushing no matter the score.
Much of the credit goes to the coaching staff, and the players will tell you that as well.
“I think our team is pushing for more, and maybe not satisfied with where we’re at,” Larkin said. “That’s Todd (McLellan) and Yawns (Trent Yawney) coming in and creating that environment of pushing and pushing, and we’ve responded well to it. It’s been kind of interesting -- we’re in this position and we’re pushing harder than we have before.”
One year ago, the Wings were second-to-last in the Atlantic Division.
Now, Detroit sits second in the division, behind the Tampa Bay Lightning, who hold games in hand.
The Wings are aiming for their fourth straight win tonight as they face the Minnesota Wild at 8:30 p.m.