Michal Postava’s first NHL start came with a little bit of everything: a loud building, a high-powered opponent and, in the end, a Red Wings win he helped drag across the finish line.
The rookie goaltender was the difference Monday, Oct. 27, as Detroit rallied for a 4-3 shootout victory in Edmonton. Postava was sharp all night, then shut down Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in the shootout. Lucas Raymond scored for the Wings in the tiebreaker, and Detroit left with a 2-1-1 mark on its four-game road trip.
Postava stopped 25 shots in regulation and overtime, looking composed from the opening minutes through the final rushes. That poise mattered against an Oilers team that came in leading the NHL in goals per game (4.36) and boasting the league’s top two scorers in McDavid and Draisaitl.
Detroit had to claw back after Edmonton took the lead late in regulation. Colton Dach redirected Ryan Shea’s point shot at 16:32 of the third period to put the Oilers ahead 3-2, and video review confirmed Dach’s stick was below the cross bar, making it a legal goal. But the Wings kept pushing after Postava was pulled, controlling the puck in the offensive zone and finding the equalizer.
Dylan Larkin delivered that moment with 17 seconds left in regulation, tying the game 3-3 at 18:43. Raymond set him up with a centering pass, and Larkin snapped in his second goal of the season to force overtime after an eight-game goal-scoring drought.
Detroit’s other goals came from Viktor Arvidsson on the power play and Emmitt Finnie at even strength. Edmonton got goals from Vasily Podkolzin and Isaac Howard, who scored his first NHL goal on the power play.
The night started with Edmonton on the board first. In the opening period, Draisaitl threaded a pass into the slot and the puck seemed to change direction off a stick - or sticks - before Podkolzin got a touch for his eighth goal. The Wings had two power-play chances in the period and couldn’t convert, and they still managed to edge the Oilers 6-5 in shots.
Detroit answered in the second period when Arvidsson buried a power-play goal, his fourth on the man advantage and fifth overall. Raymond found him from a sharp angle down low, and Arvidsson finished with a one-timer past Jarry. Late in the frame, Podkolzin had a chance to add another after Draisaitl set him up through the slot, but his shot went off the post.
The third period turned into a scramble. Edmonton opened with back-to-back power plays and cashed in on the second one, as Howard scored at 4:18 off a feed from Kasperi Kapanen. The Oilers had their lead for only 30 seconds, though, before Arvidsson won a battle behind the net and fed Finnie for his fifth goal, pulling Detroit even at 2-2.
Larkin’s tying goal set up overtime, where Postava stayed busy again. McDavid and Draisaitl kept drifting around the net looking for openings, but Postava held firm. Edmonton outshot Detroit 4-1 in the five-minute session, but the rookie kept the game alive until the shootout.
There were also lineup changes for the Wings. Defenseman Albert Johansson did not play, likely because of an injury, and Todd McLellan went with 12 forwards and six defensemen. Carter Mazur entered the lineup, while Andreas Englund and Anton Johansson formed the third defensive pair.
For Postava, the night was also a continuation of a fast rise. He first appeared in the NHL on Thursday, Oct. 22, in Vancouver, when he entered in relief in the third period after John Gibson was sidelined by eye irritation.
He had been strong in Grand Rapids before Detroit recalled him last week after Daniil Tarasov was hurt in the shootout loss to Seattle. Tarasov remains day-to-day.
The game also brought Mike Babcock back into view behind Edmonton’s bench. He coached the Wings to the Stanley Cup in 2008, with McLellan then serving as an assistant on that staff.
Babcock took Detroit back to the Final in 2009 before the Wings lost in seven games to Pittsburgh. He coached the club for 10 seasons from 2005-15, going 458-223-105 with a 67-56 playoff record before later moving to Toronto.
In the end, the Red Wings survived a night against one of the league’s most dangerous offenses because their first-start goalie was steady, their captain finished the job, and their shootout was spotless when it mattered most.
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