DETROIT _ A disastrous second period ended with the Detroit Red Wings booed off the ice on a rare night at home.
They gave up three goals in the second period en route to a 4-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights Thursday at Little Caesars Arena. It was the first home game in nearly two weeks, with the next not until March 20.
It was the sort of night that drives a coach crazy _ the opponent's goals weren't so much earned as gifted. First it was Alex Tuch intercepting Niklas Kronwall's pass in the neutral zone and snapping the puck glove-side on Jimmy Howard, 2:24 into the game.
A one-goal deficit that early shouldn't deflate a team and it didn't. The Wings pushed back and forced saves from Marc-Andre Fleury.
The second period, though, was awful. William Karlsson poked the puck away from Anthony Mantha, and that combined with Mike Green going for a change enabled Cody Eakins to take off on a breakaway and make it 2-0. Worse? It was during a Wings' power play.
A lack of defensive coverage allowed Eakin to score again at 17:48 of the second period, when he had all the room he wanted to maneuver in Detroit's zone. Tuch got it to 4-0 before the second period ended. It's the second time this season the Wings have been shut out.
