Red Wings top Coyotes, 5-3
DETROIT -- Dylan Larkin collected a goal and an assist and Anthony Mantha netted his team-high fifth goal as the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Arizona Coyotes 5-3 on Tuesday.
The Red Wings (6-6-1) won for the second straight game, while the Coyotes (1-11-1) saw their bid for two straight wins dashed.
Detroit wasted no time in establishing superiority. Gustav Nyquist picked off a clearing attempt by Coyotes defenseman Alex Goligoski, skated into the high slot and drilled the puck through traffic past screened Arizona goalie Scott Wedgewood (35 saves) just 1:31 after the opening faceoff.
The Wings made it 2-0 at 2:37 when Luke Glendening's wrist shot from the right faceoff dot sailed over the blocker of the sprawling Wedgewood.
The Coyotes played with more urgency in the second period and were rewarded for it at 11:36 when Clayton Keller dropped the puck to Jason Demers at the point and the defenseman blasted a shot past Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard (30 saves).
The rally didn't last long. Anthony Mantha chipped Andreas Athanasiou's pass into the roof of the net behind Wedgewood to make it 3-1 Wings at 13:03.
Before the period was over, Dylan Larkin's cross-crease pass intended for Mantha deflected off the stick of Coyotes defenseman Luke Schenn and past Wedgewood at 19:03. It was Larkin's second goal of the season and first since Detroit's Oct. 5 season opener against the Minnesota Wild.
Catching the Red Wings on a bad line change, the Coyotes scored at the two-minute mark of the third period when Nick Cousins swatted a backhand shot past Howard from a goalmouth scramble.
They drew within a goal of the lead when Brendan Perlini deflected Keller's shot past Howard. But it was all for naught. Darren Helm scored into the empty net at 18:34 to complete the scoring.
NOTES: Coyotes C Clayton Keller (8-7-15) and Vancouver Canucks RW Brock Boeser (2-7-9) are the only rookies leading their teams in scoring. ... The Coyotes own an NHL-worst minus-23 goal differential. ... The Coyotes are the NHL's worst penalty-killing team at 66.7 percent (20-for-30). ... Red Wings D Danny DeKeyser (sprained ankle) missed his 10th successive game. ... D/RW Luke Witkowski and LW David Booth were healthy scratches for the Red Wings. ... Coyotes healthy scratches were LW Anthony Duclair and D Joel Hanley. ... D Niklas Hjalmarsson (upper body) was out injured, while G Antti Raanta (lower body) and D Jakob Chychrun (lower body) are on injured reserve. ... The next point for Coyotes C Max Domi will be his 100th in the NHL. ... The Red Wings completed a season sweep of the Coyotes, also winning 4-2 on Oct. 12 at Arizona.