RECAP: Red Wings can’t sustain solid start in 6-3 setback to Kraken

DETROIT -- Despite controlling play early and finishing with a 41-25 edge in shots, the Detroit Red Wings dropped a 6-3 decision to the Seattle Kraken at Little Caesars Arena on Friday night.

“I really liked our start,” Detroit coach Todd McLellan said. “We probably didn’t get rewarded for the effort and the input into the game early, and I thought it cost us in the second because we got loose and impatient. We didn’t stick with it, and all of a sudden, the puck’s in our net and now we’re chasing the game.”

Detroit (1-3-0; 2 points) pulled goalie John Gibson after he allowed five goals on 15 shots, and netminder Daniil Tarasov stopped eight of nine in relief. At the other end, goaltender Philipp Grubauer made 37 saves for Seattle (3-2-0; 6 points).

 “This was a 30-man loss,” McLellan said. “Players, coaches, goaltenders, everybody.”

Detroit came out strong in the opening frame, forechecking aggressively and recording eight shots on goal in the first seven minutes. That steady offensive-zone pressure led to the night's first goal  — a power-play poke from the blue paint by Viktor Arvidsson  — to make it 1-0 at 9:19.

Arvidsson, who was assisted by Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider, has scored a man-advantage goal in three straight games.

Seattle (3-2-0; 6 points) answered 5:33 later, when Berkly Catton slipped in a backhand shot to tie it 1-1.

Four minutes into the second period, William Wallinder fired a point shot through traffic into the back of the net for his first career NHL goal. DeBrincat, skating in his 700th career NHL game, and Michael Brandsegg-Nygård assisted on Wallinder's milestone goal, which gave Detroit a 2-1 lead.

“I didn’t see it go in, so I was kind of shocked,” said Wallinder, who became the sixth defenseman in Red Wings history to record a point in each of his first two career games. “Everybody said congrats, so it was a great feeling. It’s a lot to take in.”

DeBrincat also made some personal history on the play. His primary helper was his 600th career point, making him just the ninth Michigan-born player in NHL history to get there.

“It’s an accomplishment for me, but it just shows how many good players I’ve played with,” DeBrincat said. “All the different linemates I’ve had up to this point.”

Unfortunately, Detroit watched things unraveled from there. Seattle scored four goals in a span of 9:26, and although the Red Wings held a 30-17 shot advantage heading into their dressing room at the second intermission, they trailed 5-2. 

“You’re only given 84 timeouts during the year,” McLellan said. “You want the players to grab it and settle things down. There’s lots of game left. We went from being in control to being out of control. We can put ourselves back into that situation. I thought we came out in the third and we started again with the same gameplan. I guess put it this way: we scored three tonight, that’s enough to win. Just think about that.”

Vince Dunn’s 5-on-3 power-play goal pushed Seattle further ahead at 11:53 of the third period. Brandsegg-Nygård then scored his first career NHL goal at 15:27, finishing a scramble in front of the net for the 6-3 final. 

“Kind of mixed feelings, to be honest,” Brandsegg-Nygård said. “We’re down by four goals, but of course I’m happy with having my first goal and having that done.”

NEXT UP: The Red Wings will take on the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Saturday night.

POSTGAME QUOTES

McLellan on Friday’s result

“It’s disappointing. We put a lot of time and work into doing things right, and we give it back. We got to go back to the drawing board.”

DeBrincat on the Red Wings outshooting their opponents

“I think we got to find a way to get in the goalies’ eyes a little bit more. We’re getting shots. We’re getting the puck back, but it’s not going in too much. We got to figure out a way to bear down in front and bury our chances.”

Wallinder on what was different in the second period compared to first

“I felt like we were not in the right spots – all over the place. Just need to go back to the basics and play it simple.”

Brandsegg-Nygård on what a game like Friday’s taught him

“It doesn’t matter how good you are on offense. You still got to defend and try to be together more.”