The Detroit Red Wings’ scoring issues showed up again Thursday night, and this time they left Vegas with a 2-1 loss to the Golden Knights.
Detroit got only one goal, and it came after two quiet periods. Sheldon Dries won a faceoff in the Vegas zone, Carter Mazur sent a wrist shot off the back boards behind the net, and Anton Johansson jumped into an open lane to hammer a shot past Golden Knights goalie Carter Hart.
That was enough to briefly put the Wings in front. It wasn’t enough to finish the job.
Vegas answered when Braeden Bowman’s high shot got past Daniil Tarasov, and the Golden Knights had already struck earlier on a play that started with Michael Rasmussen in the Detroit zone before he snapped a low shot by the Wings goalie.
The loss fit a familiar pattern for Detroit. The Red Wings have 15 players on their active roster with two goals or fewer this season, and when the top scorers don’t carry the load, the rest of the offense hasn’t been able to pick up the slack.
The third period gave Detroit a chance to change that, but the Wings came up empty on a pair of power plays late in the game. That was the key moment, and it loomed large in a one-goal loss.
There were a few individual bright spots. Dries picked up his first point with the Red Wings, and it was his first NHL point since March 31, 2023, when he was with the Vancouver Canucks. Mazur also kept his recent run going with three points, including a goal and two assists, over his past three games.
A couple of milestones are still sitting in front of Detroit players. Andrew Copp’s next point will be the 350th of his NHL career, and Justin Faulk is one goal away from 150 as an NHLer.
The result also extended Detroit’s skid against Vegas to four straight games, with the Red Wings now 0-3-1 in that stretch.
Tarasov has now seen Detroit score two goals or fewer in three of his five starts this season.
The Red Wings head back on the road Saturday to meet the Colorado Avalanche at 9 p.m. It opens a four-game road trip for Detroit.
In Other News...
Red Wings Face A Crucial Anton Johansson Decision On Defense
Anton Johansson has given the Red Wings enough reason to keep watching closely on the blue line. The rookie has flashed offensive upside, but the current setup next to Andreas Englund does not appear to be the cleanest fit for maximizing what Johansson can do with the puck. Detroit has already brought Jacob Bernard-Docker back into the mix, and his arrival gives the club another option as it tries to sort out the best way to support a young defenseman still finding his footing.
The timing makes the choice even more interesting, with Simon Edvinsson and Albert Johansson both potentially working their way back into the picture. Detroit has to balance development, lineup stability and the need to get the right pairs on the ice, and Johanssons spot is one of the more intriguing pieces in that puzzle. For now, the Red Wings are left weighing whether to keep riding the current look or make a change before the returning bodies force the issue. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings May Have Found Their Dylan Larkin Help Internally
Emmitt Finnie has given the Red Wings something they were not expecting to find this quickly: a young center who can step into a bigger role and make it look workable. With Dylan Larkin suspended, Finnie has moved into the top-line center spot and has already shown enough with his goals and assists to get the organization thinking differently about what it needs next.
That matters because Detroits trade conversations do not have to be so narrowly focused now. If Finnie keeps producing, the Red Wings may have a little more freedom to chase broader returns rather than treating every deal as a hunt for a young center, and that kind of internal development can change the whole shape of a deadline conversation. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Blue Line Debate Starts With Moritz Seiders Heavy Lift
Moritz Seider has become the central figure in Detroits blue-line discussion, and for good reason. The Red Wings have leaned on him heavily, and when he has been paired with Ben Chiarot, the workload has been substantial enough to shape how the whole defense is viewed. Even so, the numbers suggest the duo has been more steady than dominant, with Seider carrying a larger share of the load and Chiarot asked to handle a role that stretches beyond what he typically provides.
That matters because the pairing has not existed in a vacuum. Detroit has shuffled its defense looks, and other options have flashed better underlying results alongside Seider before the lineup changed again. The result is a familiar kind of roster debate for a team trying to sort out its back end: Seider remains the anchor, but the question is whether the Red Wings can find a partner who lets his best traits show up more often. [Read more 🡒]