The Red Wings' power play and penalty kill weren’t perfect in Seattle, but the special teams stood tall enough to earn a 4-3 overtime win against the Kraken
The Red Wings' power play and penalty kill weren’t perfect in Seattle, but the special teams stood tall enough to earn a 4-3 overtime win against the Kraken
Detroit’s special teams units were anything but against Seattle. Combined, the penalty kill went 1-for-2, and the power play gave up as many shots as it took.
Yet, even in a sour performance, the Red Wings didn’t drop a complete lemon. When it came down to crunch time — especially a penalty kill to end the third period that carried 16 seconds into overtime — the special teams stood tall enough for Detroit to take a 4-3 overtime win.
“I think there was some confidence with the penalty kill,” Detroit coach Derek Lalonde said. “Going into this game, we were as high as seven in the league right now, and our special teams has catapulted us all year long, and we needed it in that type of situation. So it was huge,and obviously we score right after it.”
In the special teams battle, Detroit stepped to the plate first with a power play 6:14 into the game after Kraken forward Kailer Yamamoto — once a trade acquisition of the Red Wings — cross-checked Red Wings defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere. But on the ensuing man advantage, the offensive chances for Detroit were fleeting. Besides a couple of shots in the first minute of the power play, the Red Wings spent a lot more time skating backward on defense than they should have. Arguably, shots by Seattle forwards Yanni Gourde and Alex Wennberg were as good or even better than those Detroit created with an additional body.
Needless to say, it wasn’t a performance the Red Wings could hang their hat on, but they never drew another penalty to right their wrong.
Meanwhile, the Kraken earned their own power play at 16:37 in the first period after Detroit defenseman Ben Chiarot cross-checked Jared McCann. While Chiarot would become the overtime hero to end the game, he played the fool against McCann as Seattle’s best goal scorer cashed in with a blistering one-timer to tie the game at one.
While Detroit’s penalty kill went 1-for-2 on the night, it also suffered another special teams gaffe by way of a 6-on-5 goal during a delayed penalty. Just over seven minutes into the third period, Kraken forward Jaden Schwartz scored off a cross-ice feed after the ensuing motion caused Red Wings goaltender Alex Lyon to fall down. The goal tied the game at three, this time. For the second time, special teams had the chance to help Detroit pull ahead, but its blunders let Seattle pace within striking distance.
Such a situation was a rarity for the Red Wings, whose penalty kill had not let up a goal since a 5-4 loss to Dallas on Jan. 23. Across eight games and 18 power plays, Detroit earned a perfect sheet. But against Seattle, in a game they could’ve really used it, the penalty kill proved fallible.
But as much as these struggles indicate a poor performance by the special teams units, the Red Wings’ night had a sweet finish with a penalty kill between the third period and overtime. Detroit defenseman Olli Maatta crunched McCann with a cross-check with 1:44 left in the third period. At about the last time the Red Wings wanted to be at a disadvantage, they found themselves on the defensive with a penalty kill. And given their track record over the previous 58 minutes, it seemed as though they’d be looking at a tough loss where one of their most consistent elements completely fell apart.
None of that happened though, as the penalty kill found its usual form. The Kraken took a couple of shots that Lyon turned away, and they couldn’t cash in at 4-on-3 to open the first 16 seconds of overtime either. Instead, 4-on-4 play gave way to Chiarot’s overtime winner from the slot, and the Red Wings will return home from their four-game road trip with a 2-2-0 record and a two-game win streak.
“Like I talk about all the time, you’re gonna be faced with a situation when that’s obviously a very critical moment, but we’re gonna have more critical moments later on,” Lyon said. “So for me, it’s just a learning opportunity to say ‘alright, here’s an opportunity to get better at this.’ Whether it’s playoffs or down the line, you're gonna face adversity like that. It’s just the nature of the game and the way it goes.”
While it matters that special teams have been so effective for Detroit, it’s more important that they can click in the clutch. There’s hardly a more meaningful time for an effective penalty kill than the last minutes of regulation with the score tied on the road. And no matter the pressure that the penalty killers might’ve faced with the game on their backs, they carried that weight against a pesky Kraken team.
In the future, the Red Wings will assuredly want their PK to reach back to its previous excellence, rendering this game a momentary lapse for a usually steady unit. Even so, the unit got back on track in a meaningful moment for Detroit, turning a lemon into lemonade in Seattle.
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