RECAP: Mrazek’s ‘excellent’ performance helps Red Wings blank Golden Knights, 3-0 

DETROIT -- Getting an important boost of confidence ahead of a four-game road trip that will open in the nation’s capital in two days, the Detroit Red Wings saw goalie Petr Mrazek stop all 18 shots he faced en route to a 3-0 shutout victory over the Vegas Golden Knights at Little Caesars Arena on Sunday afternoon.

“At the end of the night, looking up at the scoreboard was a real good thing for our team considering the opponent and the type of game they play,” Detroit head coach Todd McLellan said. “So, it was a pretty good night for a lot of our players and should give us a little bit of confidence. Starting in goal, Petr’s performance was excellent.”

The Red Wings (32-29-6; 70 points) moved within two points of the New York Rangers, who are set to host the Edmonton Oilers at Madison Square Garden on Sunday night, for the Eastern Conference’s Second Wild-Card spot. Netminder Ilya Samsonov made 24 saves for the Golden Knights (39-20-8; 86 points), who were coming off a 4-3 shootout road loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon.

“When you’re battling for a playoff spot, that’s the best time of the year,” said Mrazek, who recorded his first shutout of the season and 26th of his NHL career. “We know where we are right now, but I’m not the only one excited. It’s around the room. Every day, we come to work knowing what we signed up for and what we have left. That’s exciting for us, and we’re looking forward to the challenge.”

The clubs went into the first intermission scoreless, but shots on goal favored Detroit, 8-5.

Albert Johansson broke the 0-0 stalemate at 7:58 of the second period, taking Vladimir Tarasenko’s pass and making a slick deke to his backhand, which fooled Samsonov, before tucking the puck into the open net to give the Red Wings a 1-0 lead.

J.T. Compher tallied a secondary assist on the 24-year-old defenseman’s second goal of the season.

“Obviously, his goal was a very nice goal,” McLellan said about Johansson. “A poised goal, so those are all good things. His overall play, I don’t think there’s anybody in the hockey world that would walk into the arena and go, ‘That guy’s a rookie.’”

Mrazek denied Ivan Barbashev on a partial breakaway early in the third period, arguably proving to be one of the 33-year-old netminder’s biggest saves of the afternoon. That’s because less than four minutes later, Lucas Raymond cut through Mark Stone and Zach Whitecloud and fired in a wrist shot from the slot to double the Red Wings’ advantage to 2-0 at 4:51 of the third period.

The lone assist on Raymond’s 23rd goal of the season, and his first since Feb. 22, went to Elmer Soderblom.

“You could feel a sense of relief for Lucas after he scored,” McLellan said. “When players who score often go on a dry spell, they put a lot of weight on their shoulders and begin to focus on that instead of some other things they need to be doing. I’m not sure if [Raymond] got to that point or not, but perhaps this will help him clear things up.”

Not long after captain Dylan Larkin made a goal-saving play by clearing a puck away from the crease, the aftermath of a shot from Mark Stone that squeaked through Mrazek, Marco Kasper tipped in Erik Gustafsson’s shot for the 3-0 final at 11:14 of the third period.

“I’m just trying to do my best whatever spot I’m put in,” said Kasper, who has scored 13 goals this season. “Every time I step on the ice, I’m trying to be the most competitive player on the ice – win all my battles, skate hard and just do the right things.”

Patrick Kane, who also assisted on Kasper’s third-period goal, played his 1,287th career NHL game. As a result, the 36-year-old forward moved past Phil Kessel for 10th place on the NHL’s all-time games played list among U.S.-born players.

“The other thing we did was that we took advantage of a team that got the crappy end of a schedule,” McLellan said. “We know how that feels on the road, but good teams find a way to do that, and we did it tonight.”

NEXT UP: Detroit will take on the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena on Tuesday night.

POSTGAME QUOTES

Mrazek on the importance of getting back into a rhythm of playing

“Playing three games in a row definitely helps after not having played for a while before. Once you’re playing, you get your confidence and swagger back. Every game that I’ve played, I’ve felt better and better.”

Kasper on holding Vegas to 18 shots

“They’re a really good team. We tried to just have a tight-checking game, don’t give them any space. They’re a good skating team. Just get the pucks deep, keep it away from their guys and their really good sticks.”