RECAP: Detroit rallies for important point, drops 3-2 overtime decision in Dallas

DALLAS -- Erasing a two-goal deficit in the third period and grabbing an important point in the finale of their four-game road trip, the Detroit Red Wings ultimately dropped a 3-2 overtime decision to the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center on Saturday night.

“A good battle back,” said David Perron, who had one shot and two hits in 13:46 of ice time in his first game back in the Winged Wheel sweater after being acquired from the Ottawa Senators ahead of last week’s 2026 NHL Trade Deadline. “Lots going on recently, obviously, but we found a way and kept pushing. It was nice to get rewarded as a group to have one point there.”

Goalie John Gibson made 21 saves for the Red Wings (36-23-8; 80 points), who saw their winless streak reach three straight games and earned three of a possible eight points on this road stretch. Meanwhile, netminder Jake Oettinger’s 22-night helped the Stars (42-14-10; 94 points) stretch their point streak to 15 consecutive games.

“We kept it close,” Detroit head coach Todd McLellan said. “Whether it was the goaltender or the penalty kill, obviously they have a real good power play, and we applied some pressure. Maybe they had their way in the first period or period and a half, but then they backed off and we took advantage of it. We got some timely goals, and we’ll take them any way we can get them. It was a real character night for a lot of our players to compete as hard as they did and at least get us a point. We’ll take it. Time to get home.”

The Red Wings didn’t register their first shot on goal until there was 3:53 left in the first period, by which point they had trailed 1-0 for 12:50 following Wyatt Johnston’s game-opening tally.

“We want to get out fast,” Lucas Raymond said. “We want to come out of the gates jumping and get pucks to the net. I think that was the one thing that we were missing early, just that shot mentality especially getting in front of their goalie. We want to have good starts, but that’s not always going to be the case. You got to find ways to be successful and win games, especially this time of the year.”

Dallas’ dangerous power play, which entered the night with the second-best success rate (30.1 percent) in the NHL, converted when Michael Bunting snapped home a shot from the slot off a Justin Hyrckowian feed that not only extended the club’s streak to 12 consecutive games with a man-advantage goal but made it 2-0 at 2:19 of the second period.

“We spent eight minutes of the first two periods on the penalty kill,” McLellan said. “So that alone pretty much takes you out of the game. They gain so much momentum. They’re so dangerous on it, and you overuse players. With that being said, they don’t give chances up for free. They checked very well, so we didn’t earn very many of them."

With 1:24 to go before the second intermission, J.T. Compher nearly scored his second goal in as many games as his redirection of Ben Chiarot’s shot went off the post and rolled across the Stars’ goal line but stayed out.

“It starts with shots,” Raymond said. “We got to get the shot volume up. That increases our chances at scoring, to get that volume up, and also creates a lot out of it. We got to start there. We got to get it to the net and I think when we do that, we’re a really good hockey team.”

Simon Edvinsson got Detroit on the board in the front half of the third period, joining the rush and snapping a shot from the high slot that slipped past Oettinger – the 27-year-old goaltender made the initial stop but the puck squeezed out and through his five-hole -- to cut it to 2-1 at 6:51.

The assists on Edvinsson’s ninth goal of the season, which are the most among all Red Wings blueliners, went to Moritz Seider and James van Riemsdyk.

Pulling Detroit even and forcing the extra session, Raymond was in front of the net when he batted the puck in for his 21st goal of the season to make it to 2-2 at 16:34 of the final frame. Emmitt Finnie and Alex DeBrincat each picked up an assist.

Thomas Harley delivered the game-winning goal 2:06 into overtime, finishing a breakaway with a quick snap shot to secure the 3–2 final for the hosts.

“We’re so excited to get home to Detroit,” Raymond said. “Get home to Little Caesars Arena and play in front of our fans. They’re unbelievable night in and night out. We’ve had some stretches down the year where we’ve been pushing for a playoff spot and that just elevates the crowd. Like I said, excited to get home, play in front of our fans and protect our building.”

NEXT UP: The Red Wings will begin a pivotal four-game homestand when they welcome the Calgary Flames at Little Caesars Arena on Monday night.

WHAT WAS SAID

McLellan on generating offense and creating chances against the Stars

"As night wore on, like I said, we knew we had a full 60 that we had to put the work in for and it worked well for us in the third.”

Raymond on heading home with a point

“It’s a huge point, for sure. We wanted to get two, but it’s tight this time of the year. They’re a good team over there. Obviously, we put ourselves in a lot of bad spots especially on the penalty kill and then didn’t really get it done on the power play. We’ll take the one point and move on.”

Perron on playing his first game back since Jan. 20 following sports hernia surgery

“It felt good. It’s a good team over there. They’re a mature team. They play tight. They play hard and might as well get thrown into the fire against a group like that that’s obviously looking at being a Stanley Cup contender and all that.”