Oilers lose third straight to surging Red Wings

DETROIT — 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 won five straight since opening with a 5-1 loss to Montreal.

Edmonton has a losing record after dropping a third straight game as superstar Connor McDavid extended his career-long, season-opening, goal drought to six games.

Detroit’s John Gibson stopped 16 shots, including one that denied McDavid midway through the third period. On the same shift, Larkin poked the puck away from the three-time MVP to take away another potential scoring opportunity.

Edmonton’s Stuart Skinner had 21 saves.

Leon Draisaitl was all alone with a chance to pull the Oilers into a tie late in the game, but lost control of the puck.

Shortly thereafter, Finne scored an empty-net goal to seal it.

Finne, a 2023 seventh-round pick, had the first goal of midway through the second period to put Detroit ahead 2-0 after Larkin broke a scoreless tie a few minutes earlier in the period.

Larkin, who has a point in all six games this season, resored the Red Wings’ two-goal lead late in the third period after Edmonton’s Noah Philp scored.

Detroit’s captain is the third Red Wing to have multiple season-opening point streaks of six or more games, joining Hall of Famers Gordie Howe and Steve Yzerman.

The Red Wings are off to a desperately needed strong start after extending their franchise-record post-season drought to nine years last spring.

The Oilers, coming off back-to-back losses in the Stanley Cup Final, didn’t earn a point for the first time against Detroit in eight games to end their longest active streak against an opponent.

Up next

Oilers: At Ottawa on Tuesday night.

Devils: At Buffalo on Wednesday night.