Red Wings' playoff dreams flickering away after 6-3 loss in Vegas

Ted Kulfan, The Detroit News on Mar 22, 2025

Published in Hockey

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LAS VEGAS — In this city where many hopes and dreams are dashed, the Red Wings saw their playoff aspirations take another massive hit.

Vegas sank the Wings further from the playoff picture Saturday with a 6-3 victory.

Alex DeBrincat's 32nd goal, at 9 minutes, 36 seconds of the third period, cut the Vegas lead to 5-3. But Vegas' Jack Eichel scored his 22nd goal, into an empty net, at 17:59 to restore a three-goal Vegas lead.

Lucas Raymond and Patrick Kane scored Wings power-play goals — but the Wings allowed two Vegas power-play goals themselves and several others on a variety of defensive lapses. Kane and Dylan Larkin each had two assists.

With the loss, the Wings (32-31-6, 70 points) fell nine points behind Ottawa (79) and five behind Montreal (75) in the race for the two Eastern Conference wild-card spots.

With only 13 games left for the Wings, the hope of ending an eight-year playoff drought is growing grim by the day.

The Wings continue this four-game road trip — they've lost the first two and are 2-9-0 in their last 11 games overall — Monday in Utah.

Tomas Hertl had a three-goal night for the Golden Knights (two of them on the power play), with Nicolas Roy and Mark Stone adding the other goals.

Goaltender Cam Talbot, making his first start since March 10, stopped 29 shots.

Raymond opened the scoring with his 24th goal, shooting a puck that appeared to glance off a Vegas defender's stick past goaltender Adin Hill.

But the Golden Knights roared back with three first-period goals (and had an apparent fourth erased on a Wings successful video challenge for offside).

Hertl scored his first goal, on the power play, jamming a pass from Stone past Talbot at 11:47. Hertl then gave Vegas the 2-1 lead at 16:32 of the first period, getting his stick on Brayden McNabb's shot from the point.

Roy scored somewhat of a backbreaker with his 10th goal, with just three seconds left in the first period. Roy got behind the Wings' defense, went down the middle of the ice, and slipped a backhander past Talbot.