The good news for the Detroit Red Wings is that they picked up six of a possible 10 points on their five-game road trip that included three stops in the state of California.
The bad news is that their road trip finale against the Vegas Golden Knights was the first time they've been shut out since head coach Todd McLellan took over in December 2024.
Golden Knights goaltender Akira Schmid stopped all 24 shots that the Red Wings fired his way for just his second career shutout; his stops included six saves on Alex DeBrincat, who had his six-game point streak snapped, as well as three attempts from Dylan Larkin.
Afterward, Larkin said it was simply a matter of not converting on their chances despite playing well overall in a tough environment.
“We showed we can play on the road and in this building especially, I thought that was a winnable game," he said. "We just didn’t get the offense, the bounces or the puck going into the net that we needed."
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Larkin also pointed to the strong performance by John Gibson, who turned aside all but one of the 34 shots he faced, as well as Detroit's improved penalty kill.
"Gibby played unbelievable, which is a positive sign," he said. "The PK was good again, but it’s a good learning lesson. We got to execute better and when we get our chances, we got to bury down.”
It was one of Gibson's best performances since being acquired by the Red Wings in late June from the Anaheim Ducks, though he ultimately wasn't rewarded.
“I thought we played well, you got to credit them," he said. "They make it hard to score, block a lot of shots and play well defensively."
"That was a hard-fought game.”
The Red Wings are now set for a pair of weekend games on home ice at Little Caesars Arena, beginning on Friday evening against the New York Rangers followed by a Sunday matinee against the Chicago Blackhawks.
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