Patrick Kane once again demonstrated why he is so vital to the Detroit Red Wings, setting the tone of their most recent game.
The Wings were five minutes away from leaving Capital One Arena in Washington empty-handed before Kane’s goal extended the game against the Washington Capitals beyond regulation Tuesday. The Wings settled for one point after losing 4-3 in overtime, placing them barely outside the postseason picture with ten games remaining.
Alex DeBrincat scored in the second period, breaking a 12-game goal drought, and David Perron converted on a power play to lead 2-1 entering the third period. But the Capitals scored twice in the first five minutes of the third period. Kane tied it at 3-3 with 5:20 remaining in regulation. DeBrincat and J.T. Compher’s forechecking provided an opportunity for Kane to score his 17th goal and 40th point in 41 games.
The Wings started brightly, duplicating the solid defensive performance that highlighted their previous game, a 1-0 loss to Nashville. Robby Fabbri had a fantastic chance that Charlie Lindgren saved in the first minute of the power play. The first half of the first period saw little offensive activity from either team, but in the second half, the Wings were forced to deal with the Capitals’ rising power play (33.3% in March) after Perron was called for hooking. Moritz Seider stopped Alex Ovechkin’s initial effort, while goalie Alex Lyon denied Ovechkin’s slap shot half a minute later. Lyon made seven saves in the first period, including a left-pad gem against Hendrix Lapierre.
Nic Dowd scored from the high slot with a shot through traffic early in the second period, but the Wings tied it up three minutes later. Compher sent the puck to Jeff Petry, who skated close to the boards while Compher drove the right side, and DeBrincat headed to the net. Petry made a fantastic ball to DeBrincat, who scored his 24th goal of the season. It was DeBrincat’s first goal since February 27, when the Wings defeated the Capitals 8-3 at Little Caesars Arena.
Washington embarked on a second power play with five minutes remaining in the second period. Seider stopped another Ovechkin shot, Lyon denied John Carlson, and Christian Fischer made a diving poke check to stop T.J. Oshie. The Wings scored their second goal with less than two minutes remaining, and Perron converted with 42.8 seconds left in the second period, digging for the puck during a frenzied scramble to put Detroit ahead 2-1.
Connor McMichael knotted it 35 seconds into the third period, scooping the puck as it came out from behind the net and sneaking it behind Lyon. At 4:49, Dylan Strome won a draw against Copp, giving the Capitals the lead. The puck returned to Carlson near the blue line. Lyon blocked the attempt, but Strome scored on the rebound using his backhand. Strome scored again at 1:55 in overtime.
