Poor first period dooms Red Wings in 5-1 loss to Penguins
Pittsburgh - The Red Wings aren't doing themselves any favors in this supposed playoff chase. The Wings failed in an attempt to move up in the Eastern Conference standings Tuesday, losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-1. Another poor start, as the Wings fell behind 3-0 after one period doomed the Wings, who stayed at least two points below the wildcard cutoff line, pending results later Tuesday night.
Dylan Larkin's 30th goal, a power play goal 3 minutes 17 seconds into the second period, cut the lead to 3-1. But Pittsburgh's Justin Brazeau deflected Connor Clifton's shot from the point at 12:23 past goaltender Cam Talbot, restoring the Penguins' three-goal lead. Rickard Rakell, Anthony Mantha and Egor Chinakhov scored first period goals for the Penguins, who chased goaltender John Gibson after one period.
Gibson allowed three goals on 14 shots and was replaced by Talbot to begin the second period. The Wings almost made a dramatic late comeback in Saturday's loss against Philadelphia, but there was no such dramatics in this game. Pittsburgh goaltender Stuart Skinner made several good saves to preserve the big lead, then Noel Acciari pushed the Penguins' lead to 5-1 on a scramble in front of Talbot, at 12:09 of the third period.
tkulfan@detroitnews. com @tkulfan This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit Red Wings lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins, 5-1