Red Wings vs. Senators: Dylan Larkin Turns Boos Into Cheers as Detroit Hands Ottawa Its First Loss

The first time Dylan Larkin touched the puck on Tuesday night, Little Caesars Arena booed him. About 13 minutes later, that same building was cheering him.

Larkin scored the go-ahead goal and set up another in his season debut, Alex DeBrincat scored twice, and the Detroit Red Wings beat the Ottawa Senators 5-3 for their first win of the season. The loss was the first of the year for Ottawa, which had opened 2-0-0.

The Elephant in the Arena

There is no pretending this was a normal season debut. According to the AP, Larkin's trade request became public several months ago, he is no longer the team's captain, and he missed the start of the season because of an injury. Fans gave him a chilly reception during introductions at last week's home opener, too.

Larkin said he saw the boos coming. "I knew that was going to happen and I understand that's happening," he said. "I just want to go out there and help win games with my play."

Trading Blows Early

Ottawa struck first at 2:44. Tim Stützle went around Axel Sandin-Pellikka and, with Detroit's Ben Chiarot in Gibson's line of sight, snapped one past John Gibson's blocker for his third goal of the season. Detroit needed just 32 seconds to respond, as Nate Danielson fed DeBrincat at the bottom of the left circle and he beat Samuel Ersson at 3:16. Carter Mazur picked up the second assist, his first NHL point, per NHL.com.

Then came Larkin's moment. At 13:14, DeBrincat found Viktor Arvidsson down low, Arvidsson flipped it across to Larkin, who had the top of the crease to himself, and Larkin finished it for a 2-1 lead. According to NHL.com, it was the first time Detroit had led all season. The boos were gone.

The Turning Point

The start of the second period decided this game. Nikolas Matinpalo went off for holding 48 seconds in, and Arvidsson snapped in the rebound of a Larkin shot at 2:01 for a 3-1 power-play lead. At 4:30, William Wallinder hit Justin Faulk with a stretch pass, and Faulk split the Ottawa defense and beat Ersson with a wrister from the high slot for 4-1. Wallinder's assist was the first point of his NHL career, per NHL.com.

Two goals in 4:30, and the Senators were chasing all night. Ottawa captain Thomas Chabot did not sugarcoat it. "We didn't really play for the first 25 or 27 minutes of the game," he said. "We took some not-so-great penalties and gave them momentum."

Ottawa Makes It Interesting

The Senators did not go away. With Anton Johansson in the box for holding, Drake Batherson, set up by William Eklund at the left post, changed speeds on a wrist shot and lifted it over Gibson's stick at 6:08 to make it 4-2. The period ended with a scrum at the horn that sent DeBrincat, Larkin, Chiarot, Shane Pinto and Ridly Greig to the box with roughing minors.

At 10:30 of the third, Eklund made it a one-goal game when a Fabian Zetterlund shot kicked off the end boards and he pounced on it from a sharp angle. "We are a very good team when we play our game," Eklund said. "We did that in the second half of the game, but it was too late."

It was too late because Detroit kept its head. Batherson took an interference penalty at 18:17, and DeBrincat scored into the empty net on the ensuing power play with 50 seconds left to seal it. Coach Todd McLellan liked the composure. "I liked that we didn't panic when they got back into the game," he said. "We did our job and held our ground."

Who Delivered

Dylan Larkin: A goal, an assist and 11 faceoff wins in 20:41. NHL.com noted it was the 11th time he has picked up a point in his season debut, now third in Red Wings history behind Gordie Howe (18) and Steve Yzerman (12) and one clear of Sergei Fedorov, Alex Delvecchio and Nicklas Lidstrom (10 each).

Alex DeBrincat: Two goals, an assist and a plus-2. He was involved in Detroit's first two goals and its last.

Lucas Raymond: Three assists. He has now registered a point in eight straight games against Ottawa going back to Jan. 7, 2025, per NHL.com.

Justin Faulk: A goal, an assist and a plus-3.

John Gibson: 22 saves on 25 shots.

Tim Stützle: A goal and an assist for Ottawa, plus five hits in 21:37.

Stats That Matter

• 36-25: Detroit's advantage in shots on goal. Ersson made 31 saves.
• 2 for 5: Detroit's power play, which produced the third goal and the clincher. Ottawa went 1 for 5.
• 32 seconds: How long Ottawa's first lead lasted.
• 2: Goals Detroit scored in its first two games combined, both losses at home. It scored five in this one.
• 18: Penalty minutes for each team in a chippy game.

What It Means

Detroit is 1-2-0 and finally has something to feel good about after home losses to the Rangers (2-0) and Winnipeg (3-2). McLellan saw a different team. "I thought we were a lot heavier and harder than we were in our first two games," he said. The Red Wings host Seattle on Friday.

Ottawa drops to 2-1-0 on the second night of a back-to-back, a day after winning 4-1 in Boston. Ersson got the start after relieving an injured Linus Ullmark for the third period Monday, per the AP, and Ullmark did not dress. Greig made his season debut after serving a two-game suspension carried over from last season's playoffs and finished with an assist. Coach Travis Green pointed to fatigue. "I thought we looked a little tired, but there are going to be games where you are tired in this League," he said. The Senators host Philadelphia on Thursday.

Closing Take

Like a reality show contestant who wins over a hostile audience in a single episode, Larkin flipped the room in about 13 minutes. Whatever comes next in his situation, this night belonged to the player and the team at the same time. "It was good to be out there playing hockey again," Larkin said. "This was a great team win. We needed to get one for the team, the organization and the Red Wings fans."

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Game details from the Associated Press; postgame quotes and notes as reported by NHL.com.