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A D-lightful victory

December 15, 2017, 11:59 PM ET [4 Comments]
Bob Duff
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
You could say that the Detroit Red Wings found Friday’s 3-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs to be delightful.

You could also suggest that they found it to be D-lightful and you would not be incorrect.

Defensemen Danny DeKeyser and Trevor Daley both scored their first goals of the season. For DeKeyser, it was his first point of the campaign, and for Daley, his first goal in a Wings uniform.

Entering the game, only the Buffalo Sabres (one goal) had received less production from their back end than the five goals counted by the Detroit rearguard.

“We want to do that all the time,” Detroit coach Jeff Blashill said. “It hasn’t resulted in enough points for sure.

“Certainly, from our D, we need some more offense. But it’s something we’ve emphasized from Day 1 of camp.”

Auston Who?
The Leafs lost their third straight game minus scoring leader Auston Matthews, and Daley had a little fun at their expense.

“He was out?” Daley laughed. “He’s a great player. If he could sit out more, that would be great, too.”

Born and raised in Toronto, Daley never gets tired of beating his hometown team.

“Absolutely,” Daley said. “All the time. It never gets old.”

Short Bread
For the second straight game, the Wings scored while shorthanded and this time, it was Daley’s game winner. Detroit now holds a share of the NHL lead with six shorthanded goals.

“It feels like they’re playing better than five-on-five, honestly,” Wings forward Tomas Tatar said. “I don’t know what it is but I don’t think I ever saw that many two-on-ones, breakaways on the PK. Good for us, that helped us for sure, not only we killed the penalty but when they score, it’s huge. It’s just a bonus.

“They’re doing a really good job this year.”

The Wings have already scored more shorthanded goals this season than they did in the previous two seasons combined. Last season, the Wings had three shorthanded goals - two by Frans Nielsen and one by Dylan Larkin. They netted a pair of shorties in 2015-16.

Breaking The Jinx
The Leafs had won five in a row from the Wings, closing in on their record for consecutive victories over Detroit of seven, set from Dec. 23, 1967 through Oct. 13, 1968.

Toronto was also playing its first regular-season game at Little Caesars Arena and the Leafs also had never lost in its first appearance in a new Detroit rink.

They won at Windsor's Border Cities Arena as the Toronto St. Patricks (2-1, Jan. 4, 1927), and at Olympia Stadium (2-1, Jan. 12, 1928) and Joe Louis Arena (4-1, Feb. 10, 1980) as the Maple Leafs.

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