Dylan Larkin Scores, Named 1st Star In Season Debut During 5-3 Red Wings Win

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Former Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin made sure his season debut was a memorable one.

Despite being booed repeatedly when he first hit the ice and touched the puck during his opening shift, Larkin quickly turned many of those boos into cheers. He scored in the first period and added an assist in the Red Wings' 5-3 win over the Ottawa Senators at Little Caesars Arena.

Larkin, who missed all of Training Camp and the preseason, along with the first two games of the regular season, was named the game's first star.

Meanwhile, the Red Wings were playing without forwards J.T. Compher, Marco Kasper, and Mason Appleton, along with unsigned RFA defenseman Simon Edvinsson; William Wallinder made his NHL debut on the blue line and skated in 9:07 of ice time. 

The Senators struck first as Tim Stutzle beat John Gibson with a quick shot at the 2:44 mark of the first period, only to have Alex DeBrincat respond 32 seconds later with his first goal of the season.

Just after their power-play expired, the Red Wings took their first lead of the season thanks to Larkin, who buried a centering feed from Viktor Arvidsson at 13:14. 

Just 2:01 into the second period, Arvidsson scored his second goal in as many games, burying a rebound of Larkin's chance past Senators goalie Samuel Ersson.

Justin Faulk then added a highlight-reel tally minutes later, weaving his way through multiple Ottawa players and beating Ersson up high while falling to the ice. 

Not long afterward, Ottawa began making a game of it thanks to a power-play tally from Drake Batherson, which would eventually be followed by a goal from William Eklund midway through the third period. 

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However, despite pulling Ersson, the Senators weren't able to come up with the equalizer. DeBrincat added his second of the game into the empty net with 50 seconds left in regulation, sealing Detroit's win. 

Gibson finished the contest with 21 saves for Detroit, while Ersson made 31 saves. 

There were multiple fights that broke out at the end of the second period, as DeBrincat squared off with Shane Pinto, Ben Chiarot against Ridley Greig, and Emmitt Finnie against Jordan Spence.

Ironically, despite his fight, Finnie wasn't penalized, meaning that it won't go into the books as his first official bout in the NHL. 

The Red Wings are back in action on Friday against the visiting Seattle Kraken at Little Caesars Arena. 

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