RECAP: Red Wings fight back, but fall to Blue Jackets, 5-3, in 2025 NHL Stadium Series

COLUMBUS -- The 2025 NHL Stadium Series at Ohio Stadium on Saturday night had a little bit of everything: the second-largest crowd in NHL history, a memorable Opening Ceremony, in-game tributes to Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau; Stanley Cup Playoffs implications; but unfortunately for the Detroit Red Wings, they left feeling they deserved better after falling to the Columbus Blue Jackets, 5-3.

“Prior to the game, we talked about whatever the result was going to be, as long as we had a good effort, we should cherish what we just went through here,” Detroit head coach Todd McLellan said. “It’s a really unique experience. It was an incredible night. Well done to the League, city of Columbus. Obviously, the Blue Jackets deserve a lot of credit for the way they put this game on. It was real smooth and first class all the way through.

“I think the fans got a hell of a game to watch, and we’ll all tell those stories 10 years from now, but you’d love to end that story by saying, ‘Oh, by the way, we won.’ We can’t do that now. Hopefully, some of us get another chance to play in this and we can finish the story that way. I think we played well enough to win, but we have work to do as far as managing it.”

With the loss, the Red Wings (30-24-6; 66 points) watched the Blue Jackets (30-22-8; 68 points) jump two points ahead of them for the Eastern Conference’s first Wild-Card spot.

“It’s hard to come back in this league,” said Alex DeBrincat, who scored twice for his fourth multi-goal and 12th multi-point game of the season. “Obviously, puck bounces, outdoor game. It is what it is. We got to regroup and come back on Tuesday stronger.”

Taking the ice in front of 94,571 fans, Detroit and Columbus felt each other out throughout the first period, which ended scoreless.

It wasn’t until 5:31 of the second period when Denton Mateychuk broke the ice for the Blue Jackets, firing a wrister from the high slot through traffic that beat Red Wings goalie Cam Talbot (16 saves) to put them ahead 1-0.

Bringing Detroit even and continuing his scorching stretch, DeBrincat got a cross-ice pass from Patrick Kane and snapped it in backdoor for a power-play goal to make it 1-1 at 13:06 of the second period.

DeBrincat’s first goal of the night, which Moritz Seider also received an assist on, extended his point streak to nine consecutive games. His tally was also the Red Wings’ 18th outdoor-game goal in franchise history, passing the Chicago Blackhawks (17) for the second most in NHL history.

“I feel like it’s just going in for me right now,” DeBrincat said. “You have ways that go the other way as well, so try to just work hard and get the puck back. I think I’ve done a pretty good job of that. As a line, we’ve done a pretty good job of that, and are getting chances and scoring goals.”

Momentum shifted near the end of the second period, as Columbus lit the lamp twice in a 32-second span to grab a 3-1 lead. Dmitri Voronkov broke the tie with a power-play goal at 17:23, followed by a goal snuck in tight by Mathieu Olivier at 17:55.

Kane, playing in his seventh NHL outdoor game, buried a wrist shot from the top of the left face-off circle past Blue Jackets netminder Elvis Merzlikins (43 saves) to trim Detroit’s deficit to 3-2 at 3:34 of the third period.

Assisted by Simon Edvinsson and Albert Johnasson, Kane notched his 15th goal of the season. Saturday also marked Kane's 100th game with the Red Wings.

DeBrincat’s second goal of the night and club-leading 29th of the campaign tied it 3-3 with 3:24 remaining in the third period. The assists went to Erik Gustafsson and Kane.

“There were great vibes on the bench tonight,” said Kane, who earned his third three-point performance of the campaign. “Even down 3-1, I think we could have sulked in this type of environment, but everyone on that bench was standing up. They wanted it. Cheering your teammates on, trying to follow up one shift after another. The vibes were great on the bench tonight. We get ourself in that situation, that just gives us confidence that we can come back in those situations and tie it up.”

The tie proved to be short-lived, with Justin Danforth finishing his own rebound just 1:07 later to push Columbus ahead 4-3. Moments before Danforth scored, his stick hit Simon Edvinsson in the face while the players were battling for the puck, but no whistle was blown after the controversial moment.

“I got a stick in the face,” Edvinsson said. “I won’t say anything more about that. It’s a decision [the referees] made."

With 1:08 to go in the contest, Adam Fantilli’s empty-net goal locked in the 5-3 win for the Blue Jackets.

Although the Red Wings’ second straight setback was tough to absorb, captain Dylan Larkin felt Saturday’s marquee event was much more than just a game.

“We just lost to those guys twice, but what those guys have been through and knowing Zach [Werenski] personally, they’ve been through the ringer,” Larkin said. “This night was special. I hope Mr. and Mrs. Gaudreau had something to smile about tonight. I want both of our teams in the playoffs. I think those guys have quite the story going right now, and sometimes it’s bigger than the game.”

NEXT UP: Detroit will return home to host the Carolina Hurricanes at Little Caesars Arena on Tuesday night.

POSTGAME QUOTES

McLellan on learning how to win

“We have young players. We have older players. So, we’re trying as a group. We’ve gone on two seven-game winning streaks. We’ve kind of seen it all, but I do believe we have work to do in understanding the ebbs and flows of the games...We can fix it. It’ll take some time. That’s all called experience.”

Larkin on if they think about their stretch run from last season at all now

“We’ve been here before. There’s experience that we gained through that. I said it yesterday: we control our own destiny. We played well. We deserve better. We get back in that game, we got to find a way no matter what… They score the game-winner, and that’s a tough one for us.”

Kane on Saturday’s game

“I thought we played pretty well. The compete was there. The energy was there. Like I said, you could tell we were going to come back. Everyone wanted it on the bench for each other. Like I said, the vibes were great.”

Edvinsson on appreciating the atmosphere at Ohio Stadium

“It was a great setup by Ohio and the NHL. What a game it was. Of course, we want to get out of here with two points. Today, it didn’t happen.”

DeBrincat on the conditions throughout the night

“The puck was bouncing a lot. Overall, it was fine. Both teams are playing on the same ice, so that’s the game the way the game was.”