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Detroit Red Wings playoff hopes rest on needed Washington Capitals loss

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3 months ago

April 17, 2024

StackGiant

Red Wings center Dylan Larkin scores the winning goal and celebrates with right wing Alex DeBrincat (93) during the overtime period of the Red Wings' 5-4 win on Saturday, April 13, 2024, in Toronto.

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TORONTO — It felt, Dylan Larkin stated, like he was respiratory by his eyes.

There was 2:45 to play in regulation, the sport was tied, and the Detroit Crimson Wings wanted at the very least a degree to maintain their playoff chase alive. A penalty to Patrick Kane meant coping with the Toronto Maple Leafs’ energy play, and Auston Matthews chasing his seventieth objective.

Larkin did not wish to miss a second of making an attempt to disclaim Matthews, of denying the Leafs, of stoking his personal staff’s hopes.

“I believe I used to be on the ice for a lot of the penalty kill there on the finish,” he stated, “so I used to be respiratory by my eyes and simply making an attempt to intestine it out.”

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Intestine it out: It is what the Wings did as a gaggle to emerge from Scotiabank Enviornment on Saturday with a 5-4 victory in additional time — sealed by Larkin — that stored them within the chase for a playoff spot as they head into Monday’s sport towards the Montreal Canadiens. The Wings’ finale comes Tuesday at Montreal, and sooner or later they are going to need assistance from exterior, however for them to get two factors on the highway — that was price having fun with, as arduous as the duty to advance stays.

“We all know what’s at stake,” Larkin stated. “We stored saying, we’d like the 2 factors. To get up to now, I’m not pleased we’re on this place, preventing for our lives, however in Pittsburgh and at residence towards Washington, we’ve been preventing for our lives right here. The sacrifice, the angle of the fellows has been unbelievable. We obtained rewarded for all of the arduous work we’ve completed the final stretch right here the place we haven’t been getting rewarded.”

The Wings reached 87 factors with the victory, however remained on the surface of the playoff image as a result of the Washington Capitals additionally gained to succeed in 87 factors, and maintain the tiebreaker with 30 regulation wins to Detroit’s 27. The Wings want the Capitals to return up quick in one in all their final two video games to advance.

That is not one thing the Wings can management, however they’ve managed their feelings and never let themselves get rattled, from sport to sport, interval to interval. They had been up 4-1 after the primary interval Saturday and it was 4-4 after the second.

“You’re simply form of within the second and this group has completed all of it yr lengthy,” coach Derek Lalonde stated. “I really like their mentality. They keep poised in a whole lot of conditions. As nice as we had been on the finish of the third, to get that kill, and to get an influence play in additional time, I liked our method within the third. It was a really emotional rollercoaster: We get the 4-1 lead, after which our second interval – we simply careworn about staying on process within the third. I believed our third interval was glorious and we obtained what we deserved: Two full factors.

“This group, I get it, we’re not good like anybody else battling for this final playoff spot. The self-evaluation within the offseason, there’ll be loads to take a look at. It’s been a singular up-and-down season. However it might be actually arduous, actually arduous, to knock this staff’s compete and psychological toughness. That’s fairly spectacular.”

Larkin led the best way, and fittingly, put the sport away in additional time when he noticed Patrick Kane had the puck on his stick and knew to go to the web. The additional time objective was ninth of Larkin’s profession, tying him with Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan for second most in franchise historical past, behind Sergei Fedorov’s 12.

“It was one of many largest of my profession and I’m hoping this yr to have some extra massive objectives,” Larkin stated. “You may’t really feel any higher. I knew Kaner was going to search for that play and I knew I simply needed to have my stick on the ice and he was going to hit it. I didn’t even see it go in, however I noticed Kaner, how excited he was, see all of the boys rush over. What a sense.”

Contact Helene St. James at[email protected]. Comply with her@helenestjames.

Learn extra on theDetroit Crimson Wings and join ourCrimson Wings publication. Her newest e book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Crimson Wings on the NHL Draft,” is on the market from Amazon,Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Customized copies out there by way of her e-mail.