The Detroit Red Wings righted the ship last night, beating the divisional foe Florida Panthers 5-2 to earn their 8th win in their last 10 games under new coach Todd McLellan.
It was the perfect response to Tuesday's disappointing 6-3 loss to the lowly San Jose Sharks in Detroit.
A trio of power play goals helped the Red Wings' special teams remain the hottest in the NHL, while captain Dylan Larkin continued his torrid scoring pace in a complete reversal of his drought from late November to late December that saw him go 15 games without a goal.
Not only did Larkin score one of Detroit's power play goals, but he also capped the scoring with an empty net goal late in the 3rd period. His 2nd goal was his 20th of the year, and he now joins former captain Henrik Zetterberg in team history.
He's the 1st Red Wings player since Zetterberg to score at least 20 goals in 4-straight years:
Larkin was named the official successor to Zetterberg as team captain; the 2008 Conn Smythe Trophy winner stepped away from the game in 2018 due to his ongoing back injury, and the Red Wings proceeded for the next 2 years without an official captain.
It was during Larkin's 3rd year in the NHL and Zetterberg's last year that the former expressed admiration and appreciation for how the latter played and approached the game.
Zetterberg even assisted on Larkin's 1st NHL goal in October 2015 at Joe Louis Arena:
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