Detroit Defense Both Hero and Villain in 3-2 Loss to Penguins

Red Wings defender John Leonard scores twice while defensive miscues from rest of Detroit defense leads to blown two-goal lead in 3-2 loss to Penguins.

The Detroit Red Wings fell short on Thursday as they blew a 2-0 lead, eventually losing 3-2 to the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was a feisty matchup between two age old rivals as the two teams combined for 32 penalty minutes including a rare preseason brawl between Pittsburgh’s Connor Dewar and Detroit’s Carson Bantle. The Red Wings look to rebound with their third game in three days on Saturday when taking on the Buffalo Sabres once again. 

The story of their win on Thursday was the offense and the preview of the Red Wings’ potential third line for the season with Andrew Copp, Mason Appleton and Michael Rasmussen. Detroit’s defense was instead the story of their matchup Friday versus the Penguins as defender John Leonard was responsible for both of the Red Wings’ goals. 

The 27-year-old Massachusetts native also had his rough moments like a roughing penalty in the second and a blown coverage on a scoring chance by the Penguins in their end. This was the overarching story for the Red Wings backend on Friday as defensive lapses lead to all three of the Penguins goals. 

Justin Holl struggled defensively, failing to track a Penguins forward who broke free for a power-play breakaway. He also made poor decisions moving the puck in the second period, one of which led directly to a Penguins zone entry and another scoring chance. Antti Tuomisto had his share of trouble as well, losing track of a Penguins forward who slipped behind him for a dangerous opportunity that goaltender John Gibson had to stop. 

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Erik Gustafsson also had a tough night, committing a costly turnover in his own zone after being stripped of the puck, which led to yet another Penguins chance. On a Detroit power play, both Gustafsson and Holl were beaten by a streaking Penguins forward, who cut through them for a solo chance on net. Gustafsson also had difficulty clearing the front of the net, allowing multiple second-chance opportunities that forced Gibson to come up big. 

One of the few bright spots was Alexandre Doucet, who assisted on Leonard’s first goal with a nice pass intercept and pushing the puck up to Leonard for a breakaway chance. 

The Detroit defense will look to regroup on Saturday when deploying a more veteran-focused group versus the Sabres with Axel Sandin-Pellikka, Jacob Benard-Docker, Ben Chiarot and Albert Johansson.

Red Wings Play Third Preseason Game in Three Days Saturday on the Road Against Sabres
The Red Wings play their third preseason game in three days when taking on the Buffalo Sabres. 

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