DETROIT (AP) — Dylan Larkin and rookie Emmitt Finne each scored twice to help the surging Detroit Red Wings beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-2 on Sunday.
Detroit has now won five straight games after opening the season with a 5-1 loss to Montreal. Meanwhile, Edmonton has a losing record following their third consecutive defeat. Superstar Connor McDavid extended his career-long, season-opening goal drought to six games.
Detroit’s John Gibson made 16 saves, including a key stop denying McDavid midway through the third period. On the same shift, Larkin poked the puck away from the three-time NHL MVP, preventing another potential scoring opportunity for the Oilers. Edmonton’s Stuart Skinner finished with 21 saves.
Late in the game, Leon Draisaitl was all alone with a chance to tie the score for Edmonton but lost control of the puck. Shortly thereafter, Finne scored an empty-net goal to seal the victory for Detroit.
Finne, a 2023 seventh-round pick, opened the scoring midway through the second period to put Detroit ahead 2-0. Larkin had broken the scoreless tie just minutes earlier in the period.
Larkin, who has recorded a point in all six games this season, restored Detroit’s two-goal lead late in the third period after Edmonton’s Noah Philp had pulled the Oilers within one. The Red Wings’ captain is now the third player in franchise history to have multiple season-opening point streaks of six or more games, joining Hall of Famers Gordie Howe and Steve Yzerman.
This strong start is a much-needed boost for Detroit, which extended its franchise-record postseason drought to nine years last spring.
For the Oilers, this marks their first game without earning a point against Detroit in eight matchups, ending their longest active winning streak against any NHL opponent. The team is also coming off back-to-back losses in last season’s Stanley Cup Final.
**Up Next:**
– Oilers: At Ottawa on Tuesday night
– Red Wings: At Buffalo on Wednesday night
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