Kubalik won it from near the right post after receiving a backdoor pass from David Perron on a power play. A video review initiated by the NHL Situation Room confirmed the play was on side.
"I ended up in front, and I knew that 'DP' just looked at me and I was hoping he was going to just put it there," Kubalik said. "It ended up in the net, so it worked pretty well and I'm very happy about that. We deserved this. We earned it."
Alex Nedeljkovic made 27 saves for the Red Wings (7-3-2), who have won three straight games, including 3-0 against the New York Islanders in Detroit on Saturday.
"Down 2-0 in the first can be tough mountain to climb, but we stuck with it," Nedeljkovic said. "We have an identity that we're trying to form here, and we felt good to get flashes of it so far this year. It's just about doing it every single night. Even if you're not getting the results, it's still playing the right way. That's how you're going to win most nights."
Nedeljkovic gave up eight goals in his last start, an 8-3 loss at the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 31.
"That's what bothered me the most against Buffalo," Perron said. "We're going to lose games, but we kind of let it get away from us. If you want him to feel good about his game, you have to help him out more than what we did there. You can lose a game, maybe at that point 5-3, 6-3, that's fine. You can't go to eight. That just kills his confidence. What a rebound game by him."