Markstrom, Flames shut out Red Wings for first win

DETROIT --Jacob Markstrom made 33 saves for the Calgary Flames in a 3-0 win against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday.

"The Red Wings have been playing really well, and I knew they were going to come out hot," Markstrom said. "I knew I had to be better than I was in my last game (24 saves in 3-2 overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks), and the defense helped by clearing the rebounds."
Elias Lindholm scored for the third straight game, and Johnny Gaudreau and Erik Gudbranson each had two assists for the Flames (1-1-1).
"I thought Jacob's saves slowed the game down for us," Calgary coach Darryl Sutter said. "Detroit has a lot of speed and energy, and they use this building to their advantage. Jacob helped us get past that."
Alex Nedeljkovic made 26 saves for the Red Wings (2-1-1).
"I thought we created enough chances to score in the first two periods, but we didn't finish any of them," Detroit coach Jeff Blashill said. "The third period just wasn't good enough."
Lindholm gave the Flames a 1-0 lead at 10:06 of the first period. Red Wings forward Robby Fabbri was injured blocking a shot and couldn't get off the ice, and eventually Lindholm scored five-hole from the low slot after receiving a pass by Gaudreau from behind the net.
It was the first time Detroit had trailed in regulation this season.

Andrew Mangiapane pushed the lead to 2-0 at 14:33 of the first, scoring on a backhand after getting the rebound of Gudbranson's initial shot.
"We played with some urgency in the first five minutes of the game -- I think we outshot them 5-0 -- and in the second period," Blashill said. "We needed that urgency for all 60 minutes."
Detroit outshot Calgary 14-4 in the second period but struggled to create dangerous chances. That included two opportunities on the power play, during which the Red Wings didn't register a shot on goal.
"We scored on the power play in the first two games, but everyone in this league looks at tape, so you can't expect the same things to keep working," Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin said. "We have the players in this lineup to be good on the power play, but we have to do that on the ice."
The Flames dominated possession for much of the third period, limiting the Red Wings to one shot in the first 13 minutes, and Matthew Tkachuk shot into an empty net at 17:42 for the 3-0 final.
"We knew the Red Wings hadn't lost in regulation, but we were pretty good tonight," Sutter said.
NOTES:Forward Tyler Bertuzzi, who leads Detroit with five goals, will not play against the Canadiens in Montreal on Saturday because he is not vaccinated against COVID-19. … Markstrom's shutout was his ninth in the NHL.