DETROIT -- Turning three third-period goals -- two on the power play from Alex DeBrincat -- into two big points to kick off a midweek back-to-back set, the Detroit Red Wings rallied for a 3-2 victory over the New York Islanders at Little Caesars Arena on Tuesday night.
“I thought we played pretty well for the whole game,” said DeBrincat, who recorded his second consecutive multi-goal game and fifth multi-goal performance of the season. “We had a lot of chances. First five was a little slow, but we got our legs under us and started to compete a little bit better. Axe with a huge goal for us there, and guys drawing penalties is big for us. I feel like we haven’t been on the power play too much, and getting those two tonight are big.”
Goalie John Gibson made 16 saves to win his sixth straight start for Detroit (19-12-3; 41 points), while netminder Ilya Sorokin stopped 18 shots for New York (19-12-3; 41 points).
“He just looks bigger, more confident and relaxed out there,” Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan said about Gibson. “There’s not a lot of garbage laying around. He’s making all the saves right now that he should be making. He’s settled in, which is a good thing for us.”
The Islanders were first to break the ice, as Emil Heineman one-timed Mathew Barzal’s pass off the rush from the high slot to put the hosts in a 1-0 deficit at 4:27 of the first period. Detroit did have a lengthy shift in New York's zone late in the frame and, although the Red Wings got a handful of looks, unfortunately nothing got behind Sorokin.
“I thought the first five, seven minutes took us a while to get skating and get into the game,” McLellan said. “The fact that we got scored on and didn’t go away, positive sign for our group. Getting stronger between the ears, perhaps.”
The scoreboard remained unchanged at the end of the second period, which included Sorokin making a big stop on John Leonard’s breakaway chance at 8:50 and Simon Holmstrom watching his shot from a tough angle ring off the right post at 16:30.
Leonard, a 27-year-old forward who was recalled from the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins on Monday morning, finished with two shots in 13:02 of ice time in his Red Wings debut.
“I liked his game,” McLellan said about Leonard. “You could see his speed and creativity. That line, again, was a factor in the game.”
Finally, at 2:03 of the third period, Detroit broke up Sorokin’s shutout bid when Axel Sandin-Pellikka skated down the right wing and flicked in a wrist shot from below the right face-off circle to tie it 1-1. The lone assist on the rookie blueliner's fourth goal of the season went to Lucas Raymond.
“It’s the little instincts there,” Sandin-Pellikka said. “I got some time there along the wall, went down, I think [Sorokin] was cheating a little bit for the backdoor tap-in. I saw a little spot there to put it and luckily, it went in.”
