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Detroit Red Wings lose in defensive battle to Boston Bruins

Vaseline November 24, 2024

Detroit — Another fierce defensive battle, but this time the Red Wings found themselves in the loss column.

The Wings dropped a defensive-minded 2-1 decision to the Boston Bruins at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday after winning a similar effort against the New York Islanders two days earlier.

Brad Marchand broke a 1-1 tie with his sixth goal in the third period. Marchand gained possession of the puck behind the net, turned almost to the spot and shot over goaltender Cam Talbot after 11 minutes and 30 seconds.

BOX SCORE: Bruins 2, Red Wings 1

“We played hard, we competed and we just came up short,” captain Dylan Larkin said. “There’s a lot to learn in this game. We matched up their competitors, they get the first goal (goal) and we respond and it’s a tight game. We freeze the puck there and they get a faceoff goal, which a focus is not to give up those goals, and we did that.

“That’s the difference.”

Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman made 18 saves, but the Wings had several shots off the crossbar.

“Crossers are crossbars, but you have to create good bounces for yourself and control the net,” Larkin said. “We did enough of that to get rewarded, but it just didn’t happen tonight.”

Marchand’s tripping penalty at 6:38 gave the Wings one last excellent opportunity on the power play. But the Wings were unable to extend the match, with Moritz Seider’s shot from the post coming closest to a goal.

The Wings failed to score on four power play attempts Saturday as the unit had cooled off from a blistering pace.

“The power play was slow,” coach Derek Lalonde said. “We had good momentum and then it got to the flanks and stopped, allowing them to get position. When we clicked on the power play it was tic-tac-toe and fast moving and we got very slow again. .”

Talbot was once again one of the Wings’ best players, saving 27 shots and making several dazzling stops throughout the night. But there wasn’t enough offense to back him up.

The Wings (8-10-2) have won two of their last eight games (2-5-1). Boston (10-9-3) won its second straight game under new coach Joe Sacco.

Lucas Raymond (his fourth goal) and Boston’s Justin Brazeau (power play, fifth goal) traded goals in the first period.

Boston outscored the Wings 29-19, including 13-4 in the third period, and kept the Wings in check for the final 20 minutes.

“Our inability to manage the puck there in the third (period),” Lalonde said of a key difference in the game. “We just couldn’t get out of our zone. When we move north, we are out of our zone as a team. It didn’t hurt us that much until it did.

“We had a pretty good game the first thirty minutes or two periods.”

Raymond tied the score with just 57 seconds left in the first period. Seider started the game with a fine breakaway that put the Wings in position, and moments later Vladimir Tarasenko brought Raymond into the circle, where he whistled for his second goal in two games.

Boston opened the scoring with Brazeau’s power-play goal at 8:33. Longtime Wings foe Tyler Johnson shot the puck forward, where it bounced off bodies before landing behind Talbot, giving the Bruins a 1-0 lead.

The Wings allowed just three goals in their last two games, but still came away with two points in the standings.

“We can control it much better,” Seider said. “We gave them more from the outside and they don’t get many opportunities in the inner field. That is certainly a positive point that we can certainly take from the match.”

The Wings head to Long Island on Monday to take on the Islanders before returning home for three straight games.

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