John Gibson carries Red Wings to win in Ottawa
John Gibson made 35 saves and James van Riemsdyk had a goal and two assists as he Detroit Red Wings skated to a 5-3 road win over the Ottawa Senators on Monday.
The result ended a brief two-game (0-1-1) winless streak for the Wings and a two-game winning streak for the Senators.
The Senators outshot the Red Wings by a 38-20 margin, but Gibson looked sharp against the offensive pressure. He stopped 35 of 38 shots to earn his 14th win of the season.
Andrew Copp, Dylan Larkin, Lucas Raymond, and Michael Rasmussen all scored for the Red Wings.
Claude Giroux, Dylan Cozens, and Brady Tkachuk scored Ottawa's goals. Tim Stutzle recorded two assists and now has 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists) over a 13-game points streak.
Hunter Shepard stopped 10 of 12 shots over 40 minutes in his first appearance of the season. It was a relief effort for Shepard, as Ottawa starter Leevi Merilainen was pulled after allowing three goals on eight shots during the first period.
Copp started the Wings' early scoring barrage at the 7:06 mark. Larkin then scored a power-play goal 13:51 into the first period, and van Riemsdyk added a late dagger with just 17 seconds remaining in the frame.
The Senators fought back with the first two goals of the second period. Fabian Zetterlund's terrific wrap-around backhand pass set up Giroux's goal 7:33 into the second frame, and Cozens then deposited a rebound on a power play at the 14:10 mark.
Just when it seemed Ottawa had taken the momentum, Raymond responded 92 seconds after Cozens' goal, converting a perfect snipe of a wrist shot from the circle for his 12th marker of the season.
Tkachuk again made it a one-goal game 6:55 into the third period after Stutzle set up Tkachuk with a tremendous pass in front of the net.
Ottawa had three power plays following Tkachuk's goal, but instead of finding the equalizer, the Senators fell further behind. Rasmussen scored the Wings' first short-handed goal of the season on a 2-on-1 chance 12:53 into the third period.