Thoughts and Highlights

• An early penalty to Patrik Nemeth put the Red Wings on the defensive almost immediately and St. Louis didn’t take long to convert. Trevor Daley failed to box out in the crease and a cross-ice pass through his legs landed on the tape of Brayden Schenn who netted the game’s first goal to put the Blues up 1-0
• Just minutes later, Trevor Daley was hit for delay of game, but the Red Wings were able to kill that one off. The threat did not end however, as the Red Wings played comically poorly in their own end, allowing the Blues to maintain position despite changing their defense and a shot from the middle was redirected home by Zach Sanford for a 2-0 lead.
• After the early Blues flurry, the Red Wings leveled things out a bit but still had a dearth of Grade A scoring chances. Shots were 9-7 St. Louis in the first period.
• The breakthrough in the second came on the power play, with Filip Hronek being teed up in the circle by Mike Green, unleashing his cannon of a shot:

• That was short lived joy however, as the Blues countered just over a minute later, with Ryan O’Reilly notching the goal and making it 3-1 Blues.
• That said, the Red Wings played good hockey in the second period and set the stage for a wild third period.
• Just 1:44 into the third period, Detroit struck back as Larkin demonstrated nice puck control and shooting to beat Binnington up top and draw the Wings back within 1:

• You could really feel the energy surge through the Red Wings, as they remain a confidence-based team. Just a goal in the third and the team was buzzing in a period that saw Detroit largely dictate play.
• Val Filppula gets his first goal in his second Red Wings stint thanks to Alex Pietrangelo’s foot at around the midway point of the period:

• Detroit finally took the lead on a bizarre goal right off the draw, with Larkin winning it to the right side and Bertuzzi releasing a quick shot that beat Binnington blocker-side:

• Despite battling all the way back, the Red Wings’ momentum was stonewalled when they committed a stupid too-many-men penalty and gave the Blues an opportunity they didn’t waste. Ryan O’Reilly got his second goal and fourth point of the night on the PP and tied the game at 4.
• Ninety seconds into OT, the Blues scored to win it as Andreas Athanasiou was caught flat footed and David Perron’s shot beat Jonathan Bernier in the top corner.

Gif of the Game

Motor City MVP