Tracing the journey of the Detroit Red Wings from their founding in 1926 to their status as one of the NHL’s most decorated teams, this video covers the team’s history, legendary players, iconic moments and lasting impact on the city of Detroit and the world of hockey.
- The Detroit Red Wings lost to the Montreal Canadiens 5-1.
- Captain Dylan Larkin scored the Red Wings’ only goal.
- New Red Wings goaltender John Gibson was removed from the game late in the second period.
An early celebration for the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena ended meaningless as the Montreal Canadiens played through all the work the Wings put into camp. Game management? Not in evidence. Mental toughness? Please.
The Thursday, October 9, outing ended with the Wings embarrassed, 5-1. The boos already rained after the second half, in which John Gibson, brought in to strengthen the team in the net, also took advantage of Cam Talbot. In the third period, the fans began to chant: “Come on, Tigers.”
It was a big change from the start, when excitement energized the Wings: the individual introductions of the players, the big applause for rookies Michael Brandsegg-Nygård, Axel Sandin Pellikka and Emmitt Finnie in their NHL debuts. A tribute to Wings great Alex Delvecchio, who passed away in July. An early power play goal from Dylan Larkin, whose exuberance seemed infectious.
Then reality ruined the night.
The Habs, losers the night before in Toronto and fielding their backup goaltender, counterattacked midway through the period when Zachary Bolduc was outplayed by Brendan Gallagher, got behind the Detroit defense and had an open lane on John Gibson. The Habs took the lead in a two-on-one. Alex Newhook got Travis Hamonic to commit, leaving Oliver Kapanen open to make it 2-1 at 12:43. The dagger came with 6.7 seconds left in the first period, when Mike Matheson put the puck in the top slot, maneuvered it to his right and fired a shot at the net that eluded Gibson’s glove side. That gave the Habs three goals on nine shots.
Alex DeBrincat saw a golden opportunity early in the second half that hit the crossbar. Instead, Alexandre Carrier put the Habs ahead with a tip-in at 5:19. When Juraj Slafkovsky scored at 17:12, Gibson went to the bench having allowed five goals on 13 shots. Hamonic and his teammate Albert Johansson finished with -3 each.
Phew.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Read more about the Detroit Red Wings and subscribe to our Red Wings newsletter.