Coyotes top Red Wings for sixth consecutive victory

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Arizona Coyotes won their sixth consecutive game by defeating the Detroit Red Wings 3-1 at Gila River Arena on Saturday.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Vinnie Hinostroza each had a goal and an assist, and Darcy Kuemper made 22 saves for the Coyotes (32-28-5), whose winning streak is their longest since they won six straight from Feb. 16-28, 2012.
"I thought we came out a little slow, but then we got going and played good and played the way we wanted to play," Ekman-Larsson said. "We want to keep it going. It's a lot of fun right now."
WATCH: [All Red Wings vs. Coyotes highlights]
The win kept Arizona one point behind the Minnesota Wild for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference. The Wild defeated the Calgary Flames 4-2.
"I thought we played well. We limited their chances, we got some key goals, but I don't even look at the standings, to be honest," Coyotes coach Rick Tocchet said.
Dylan Larkin scored for the Red Wings (23-33-9), who have lost seven in a row (0-5-2) for the second time this season. They also went 0-5-2 in their first seven games, from Oct. 4-Oct. 18. Jimmy Howard made 41 saves.
"It's still not good enough," forward Justin Abdelkader said. "We didn't generate enough and gave them a lot of odd-man rushes and chances. We've got to make sure we're playing a lot tighter defensively and protecting the puck better. And we didn't do enough in the offensive zone."
Josh Archibald put the Coyotes ahead 1-0 at 5:58 of the first period, beating Howard with a slap shot from the right circle. Ekman-Larsson, whose pass set up Archibald's goal, gave Arizona a 2-0 lead at 15:40 with a wrist shot that deflected into the net off Howard's right shoulder.

Larkin cut it to 2-1 at 7:35 of the second period, beating Kuemper with one second left on a power play.
Hinostroza's goal made it 3-1 at 4:37 of the third, With Howard on the other side of the net, Detroit forward Tyler Bertuzzi skated over to make the save on Hinostroza's initial shot, but the puck deflected into the slot and Hinostroza scored on a backhand.
The arena horn sounded before Hinostroza scored, but the goal was upheld because neither referee blew his whistle to stop play.
"I haven't seen that very often, if ever in my life. The horn went, the lights flashed, (but) the referee never blew the whistle. In the end, the referee said basically that until the whistle ends the play, play continues," Detroit coach Jeff Blashill said. "It's unfortunate, but we didn't play well enough (to win)."
Kuemper has won seven consecutive starts, allowing two goals or fewer six times, He is 15-4-4 since Jan. 1. The Coyotes, who haven't reached the playoffs since 2012, are 4-0-0 on a seven-game homestand and have won nine of their past 11.

"Since he took the (starter's) role, he's been a different guy in the sense that he knows that it's [his] net," Tocchet said of Kuemper, who became the starter when Antti Raanta went down with a lower-body injury on Nov. 27. "For eight years, he's been a backup and doesn't know when he's playing. He's taken it to a different level. He's confident, but the guys are confident in him, too."
Arizona allowed two goals or fewer for the eighth time in 11 games.
"This time of the year, it's all about getting points" Ekman-Larsson said. "We have so many guys playing good hockey right now, making plays. Early on in the season, we didn't have that. It's a great feeling."

They said it

"It's another loss. We've got to come out and make sure the details in our game are great. We've got to make sure we're working through it and giving it our all. The only way we're going to get out of this is work through it." -- Red Wings forward Justin Abdelkader on Detroit's losing streak
"It definitely keeps us motivated, but the playoffs don't start tonight. There's still a lot of games left to play. We've just got to keep worrying about our business and we know every point the rest of the way is going to matter." -- Coyotes goalie Darcy Kuemper on the playoff race

Need to know

Red Wings forward Anthony Mantha played despite not practicing Friday because of the flu. …Ekman-Larsson played in his 640th game, tying him with Keith Tkachuk for sixth in Coyotes history. … Hinostroza has five points (one goal, four assists) in his past two games. … Archibald's goal was his 10th, giving the Coyotes 10 players with at least 10 goals.

What's next

Red Wings: At the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday (9 p.m. ET; ALT, FS-D, NHL.TV)
Coyotes: Host the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday (9 p.m. ET; FS-A, PRIME, NHL.TV)