Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Jordan Orth | Last updated Nov 21, 2024
The Detroit Red Wings and New York Islanders locked horns for the first of two meetings over the next four days. It was a goaltender battle between Alex Lyon and Ilya Sorokin, with both netminders being the highlight for their team in a low-scoring affair. By the night’s end, the Red Wings pulled off a 2-1 win, moving to 8-9-2, while the Islanders fell to 7-8-5.
Game Recap
The first 20 minutes of the game got off to a quick start for the Red Wings, as they would draw a penalty on the Islanders less than two minutes into the game. The penalty put the Red Wings’ third-ranked power play to work, but what stood out the most was the Islanders’ 31st-ranked penalty kill, which kept the high-powered Wings’ power play in check. The momentum swung in the Islanders’ favor a bit after the successful kill and cashed in on a turnover by the Red Wings in their defensive zone to get a goal off the stick of Simon Holmström when he redirected an initial shot from Scott Mayfield. This ended up being the only scoring that would be had in the first period, with the Islanders carrying a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes.
The second period was controlled by the Red Wings for the most part, having two more power play opportunities, but a mix of overhandling and a strong penalty kill from the Islanders would have them looking at an 0-for-3 night through 40 minutes of play while on the man advantage. The Red Wings controlled most of the offensive zone time just like they did in the first, but Sorokin was up to the challenge, stopping 11 shots in both of the game’s first two periods. Lyon was only tested six times in the period, but his best save came with less than 30 seconds left on a sliding save that he made with his left pad to keep his team at only a one-goal deficit going into the third period.
The third period was a back-and-forth battle between the two teams, with both Lyon and Sorokin standing tall until the Red Wings finally broke through with their first goal of the game with just under five minutes left when Jonatan Berggren took advantage of Alexander Romanov breaking his stick on a shot attempt. The play led to Berggren getting a nice lead pass from JT Compher to get off on a rush and beat Sorokin on a shot over his blocker to bring the Red Wings within one goal. Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin ended up being the driving force that led to the game-winning goal for his team, beating Ryan Pulock to a loose puck in the offensive zone and finding Lucas Raymond in the slot for a quick shot that once again beat Sorokin to give the Red Wings the lead with just under a minute left.
In the win, Lyon made 22 saves on 23 shots, while his counterpart Sorokin totaled 29 on 31 shots faced. Both teams return to the ice on Nov. 23, with the Red Wings welcoming the Boston Bruins to Detroit and the Islanders returning home to take on the St. Louis Blues.