The Detroit Red Wings continued their winning streak, securing a 4-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers at Little Caesars Arena on Sunday. Dylan Larkin and rookie Emmitt Finnie each scored twice, propelling Detroit to their fifth consecutive win after an initial 5-1 loss to Montreal.
Larkin also contributed two assists to finish with four points. The Red Wings captain now has a point in all six games this season. He joins Gordie Howe and Steve Yzerman as the third Red Wing to have a season-opening point streak of at least six games.
The game remained scoreless through the first period, despite Detroit holding a 7-3 shot advantage. The Red Wings then opened the scoring at 8:51 of the second period when Ben Chiarot found Larkin, who fired a one-timer past Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner. Shortly after a successful penalty kill, Finnie scored his first NHL goal, putting Detroit ahead 2-0.
Edmonton responded less than a minute later when Noah Philp deflected a point shot from Vasily Podkolzin past Red Wings goalie John Gibson, cutting the lead to 2-1. However, Larkin restored Detroit's two-goal lead with a shot from the right faceoff circle late in the second period.
In the third period, Leon Draisaitl narrowed the gap again for the Oilers, scoring off a cross-seam pass from Brett Kulak at 7:33. Despite the Oilers' efforts, they couldn't find the equalizer. With less than a minute remaining, Finnie sealed the win for Detroit with an empty-net goal.
John Gibson made 16 saves on 18 shots for the Red Wings, while Stuart Skinner stopped 21 of 24 shots for the Oilers.
The Oilers struggled to generate high-danger scoring chances, with the Red Wings holding a 6-0 advantage in that category. Connor McDavid's goal drought extended to six games. He was denied a potential scoring opportunity by Gibson, and Larkin stole the puck from him on the same shift. Draisaitl also had a chance to tie the game late but lost control of the puck.
Edmonton has now lost three straight games. They conclude their five-game road trip against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. The Red Wings begin a two-game road trip against the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday.
