DETROIT – Dylan Larkin strolled into the interview room Saturday wearing a Michigan cap and proclaimed, “It’s a great day for sports.”
It was for Larkin. First, his Wolverines beat Ohio State. Then his Detroit Red Wings defeated the Buffalo Sabres 3-2 on Lucas Raymond’s goal 26 seconds into overtime.
The Red Wings don’t play in front of regular sellout crowds like they did at Joe Louis Arena during their Stanley Cup championship years, but the fans showing up at Little Caesars Arena are giving the team some “juice,” coach Jeff Blashill said.
“I think they’ve been awesome,” Blashill said. “I know the roads weren’t great today so it’s hard for everybody to get down here, but I thought the crowd was great tonight. The energy in this building has been great. I think that’s a huge reason why we’re 7-2-2. It gives so much momentum to our guys when the crowd is like that.”
The Red Wings (10-9-3) have won three in a row at home for the first time since Dec. 31, 2019 to Jan. 10, 2020. They are 7-2-2 at LCA.
“We play well here,” Larkin said. “The fans have been showing up, the atmosphere’s been great. We’re just get excited to be here. It was a long year without fans. We missed them a ton. To have them back and to play in this building, some of the loudest moments that I’ve heard here since it’s been open have happened this year. We got to keep going to make sure there’s louder moments and we’re right there in a playoff spot, where we want to be.”
Overtime began with Larkin winning the face-off back to Filip Hronek, who passed back to Larkin, who fed Raymond as he skated up ice with speed. Raymond entered the offensive zone and fired a wrist shot from the slot past Sabres goaltender Dustin Tokarski.
“Confidence and skill, and being good,” Larkin said of Raymond. “It was one-on-three, he got a shot, and he took it, and it went in. Our line was all over it all night and we didn’t get one, and then he got one when it counted.”
It was the rookie’s ninth goal and his team-leading 21st point.
“He’s got talent and confidence for sure,” Blashill said. “Not a lot of guys are scoring from there. He’s got a really good shot. I thought Razor got better as the game went along. I thought early he wasn’t moving his feet enough and I thought as the game went along, he got much better.”
Alex Nedeljkovic made 26 saves in his third consecutive start.
The Red Wings outshot the Sabres 41-28 in a game they nearly let get away from them after Jeff Skinner tied it with 1:37 remaining in regulation, but one Blashill said his team deserved to win.
Blashill and players have spoke all season about the need to score “dirty goals.” They got a pair of them 1:19 apart midway through the second period, from Carter Rowney and Pius Suter, to take a 2-1 lead.
“We haven’t been a good team screening the goalie and you’re just not going to score consistently if you don’t,” Blashill said. “Tokarski has been really good for them. He’s a real athletic goalie who can make big-time saves, saves on the back door and stuff like that, so you have to find ways to score dirty, especially when a (goalie) is feeling it.”
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