RECAP: Detroit sees Copp depart with lower-body injury, multiple leads slip away in 4-3 loss at Florida

SUNRISE, Fla. – On Tuesday night, not only did the Detroit Red Wings fall short in avenging last Saturday’s setback to the two-time defending Stanley Cup-champion Florida Panthers at Little Caesars Arena, but they also had to play without Andrew Copp after he sustained a lower-body injury with 6:42 left in the second period of an eventual 4-3 loss at Amerant Bank Arena.

“Obviously, he didn’t come back,” Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan said of Copp, who was helped off the ice after Tomas Nosek fell on him on a face-off. “He’s being evaluated now, and he’ll need more evaluation tomorrow. Doubtful for Tampa.”

Goaltender John Gibson made 22 saves for Detroit (36-22-7; 79 points), while goaltender Daniil Tarasov stopped 25 shots for Florida (32-29-3; 67 points).

“It’s never good to see a guy get injured and obviously, [Copp is] a big part of our team,” Marco Kasper said. “We lost Larks [last Saturday], and you don’t want to see that. Both are going to come back as soon as possible. In the game, I thought we played really well. The third period, they pressured a lot. We got a goal there, but we just got to make sure we close the game out. We definitely could’ve gotten a point, so really frustrating we lost that game.”

The Red Wings led the Panthers 11-5 in shot attempts when it was time for the first intermission, but it was the hosts who were up 1-0. That’s because right before the halfway mark of the opening frame, Jesper Boqvist moved up the left-wing half wall before his shot towards the net was tipped in by Vinnie Hinostroza at 9:48.

But the Red Wings tied it 3:54 into the second period when Patrick Kane jumped all over the rebound of Moritz Seider’s point shot that was initially stopped by Tarasov, getting the score to 1-1. Alex DeBrincat picked up the secondary assist on Kane’s 10th goal of the campaign.

“A lot of ups and downs tonight,” Kane said. “A lot of things going on with injuries and guys missing shifts. Not your usual game, a little bit chaotic, but I thought a lot of guys stepped up and did a great job.”

Then at 12:59, Justin Faulk took Copp’s pass and roofed a highlight-reel backhand from the left face-off circle for his first goal as a member of the Red Wings, who acquired the 33-year-old defenseman from the St. Louis Blues ahead of the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline last Friday, to give them their first lead of the night 2-1.

For Faulk, it also marked his 12th tally this season.

“Twelve years [in the NHL] and a lot of experience, but he should be able to fit in quickly,” McLellan said of Faulk. “If it were the other way around, we would have some concern but definitely give him credit for adapting quickly and for the guys working with him on the bench, getting him to understand what face-off coverages we use and some of the neutral zone stuff that’s happening fast.”

After Niko Mikkola’s shot from the blue line found its way in for the Panthers to tie it 2-2 at 5:10 of the third period, the Red Wings countered when Marco Kasper fired a snap shot past Tarasov on a breakaway to put the visitors back in front 3-2 at 6:32. The assists on Kasper’s seventh goal of the season went to Emmitt Finnie, who sprung Kasper, and Faulk, who notched his first multi-point game with his new club.

“Not trying to change too much and, like my game, I’m always trying to play hard,” Kasper said. “Even with Finns and Ray today, I think we complemented each other good played a hard game, fast-paced, which I think worked really well.”

Unfortunately, two unanswered goals in the game's final minutes from Carter Verhaeghe -- he scored his first with Tarasov on the bench at 18:30 before he netted his second, that one at even strength, with 15 seconds left in regulation -- prevented Detroit from pocketing even just one point.  

"That's something we always talk about, and it's something we're always trying to harp on, especially in the third periods," Kane said of game management. "Get up the ice, not sit back and get in on the forecheck. And, you know, it's something we're still trying to figure out."

And now, with Copp needing further evaluation and captain Dylan Larkin being “doubtful for this trip”, McLellan said it'll be up to the rest of the group to really embrace that next-man-up mentality.

“It’s a big ask, but nobody is feeling sorry for the Red Wings and nobody in the locker room should feel sorry,” McLellan said. “We have a job to do. First thing we have to do is recover from this loss and then we have to figure out how to plug some holes. I thought, when you look at the game tonight, after Copper went out, we had a pretty good effort. That doesn’t mean we can’t have that night in and night out without him.”

NEXT UP: Detroit will play the Tampa Bay Lightning at Benchmark International Arena on Thursday night.

WHAT WAS SAID

McLellan on the ending of Tuesday's game

“When we were up by one, face-off in our zone, a bit of a scramble. I understand individuals looking to shoot into an open net, but when you’re the last guy back with a forest in front of you, that puck has to find a way to at least gain the blue line. I would prefer not shooting for the net there – use the glass and get it out so we have a chance to regroup, but we took the shot. We kind of fumbled on it and it ended up in the back of our net. Then the winner, in my opinion, too many men on the ice but I’m not the referee.”

Kane on falling in Florida

“A tough finish. We’re in a great spot there, 3-2, coming down to the last couple minutes and just didn’t get the job done. It hurts.”

Kasper on closing out tight games

“I think we’ve shown we can play really well defensively too. I think we played good, like the whole game. The last two goals, unfortunately off sticks and skates. We just got to find a way. It’s the important thing at the end of the year, where we got to win those games. Moving forward, we got to do those things.”