Red Wings beat slumping Panthers 2-1, keeping fading hopes alive of ending 9-year postseason drought

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Detroit Red Wings right wing Alex DeBrincat, second from left, is congratulated after scoring against the Florida Panthers during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

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Florida Panthers center Eetu Luostarinen, front, and Detroit Red Wings right wing Vladimir Tarasenko chase the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

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Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice, standing, watches during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Detroit Red Wings, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

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Detroit Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan, standing, watches during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

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Detroit Red Wings defenseman Albert Johansson, right, skates with the puck as he is pursued by Florida Panthers center Rasmus Asplund (74) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

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Detroit Red Wings goaltender Cam Talbot knocks the puck away during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

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Florida Panthers defenseman Seth Jones (3) looks to pass the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Detroit Red Wings, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

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Detroit Red Wings defenseman Jeff Petry (46) goes for the puck as he is chased by Florida Panthers left wing Jonah Gadjovich (12) and center Eetu Luostarinen (27) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

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Detroit Red Wings defenseman Justin Holl passes the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

By LARRY LAGE

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DETROIT (AP) — Alex DeBrincat and J.T. Compher scored in the second period and Cam Talbot finished with 32 saves to help the Detroit Red Wings keep their fading playoff hopes alive with a 2-1 win over the Florida Panthers on Sunday night.

The Panthers put their goaltender on the bench to add an extra skater and Anton Lundell scored with 39.9 seconds to pull them within a goal.

Detroit has just six games remaining in the regular season to rally into a wild card to end a nine-year postseason drought.

The defending champion and short-handed Panthers have lost five straight for the first time since 2017.

Following a sluggish first period, DeBrincat scored on a power play for his 35th goal of the season and Compher put Detroit up 2-0 midway through the period.

Vitek Vanecek stopped 22 saves and gave Sergei Bobrovsky the night off one day after he made 19 saves in a 3-0 loss at Ottawa.

The Panthers had a flurry of shots late, but couldn’t put the puck past Talbot to tie the game.

Takeaways

Panthers: After clinching a spot in the postseason on Saturday, the team hopes star forward Matthew Tkachuk has enough time to get healthy and play for the first time since he was injured playing for the United States at the 4 Nations on Feb. 15

Red Wings: A four-game point streak with three wins has allowed the franchise to preserve its slim playoff chances.

Key moment

DeBrincat missed an open net early in the second period and made the most of another chance on the same shift to score.

Key moment

Talbot stopped 10 shots in the opening period, keeping Florida scoreless before the pivotal second period.

Up Next

Florida hosts Toronto on Tuesday and the Red Wings play at Montreal the same night when they will have a chance to close in on the second team in the Eastern Conference wild-card race.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl