March 8, 2026; Newark, New Jersey, USA; Detroit Red Wings left wing Lucas Raymond (23) aims to pass the puck in the third period against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Salus-Imagn Image The Detroit Red Wings and host Tampa Bay Lightning are limping into their third matchup of the season after suffering a blowout loss in Florida on Tuesday night.
The Red Wings, who hold the top Wild Card spot, suffered another gruesome injury, this time to Andrew Copp, in a 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers.
Coach Todd MacLellan’s team, which is ahead of the Boston Bruins by just one point in the wild card standings and three points in the bubble, seemed headed for a meaningful victory as it took a 3-2 lead with 1 minute and 30 seconds left.
But Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe leveled the game with 90 seconds left.
With the score tied at 3-3, Detroit could have headed to overtime with at least a point to play, but the club got off to a greedy start with a 3-on-2 rush with 25 seconds remaining.
A turnover caused the play to be reversed by the Red Wings’ defensive ends, and Florida’s Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk lost to St. Louis on Friday. A shot that clipped the stick of new Wings defenseman Justin Faulk, acquired from the St. Louis Blues, manipulated the puck for Verhaeghe’s go-ahead goal with 15 seconds left.
It was a crushing defeat for a club that needs every point in a tight playoff race in the Eastern Conference.
“We have work to do and the first thing we need to do is bounce back from this loss,” said McLellan, who is 4-6-2 in his last 12 games. “Then we have to figure out how to plug the holes. … It’s another (game) where we should have at least a point. But we don’t. It’s a tough game to swallow.”
Copp’s injury follows one suffered by fellow forward Dylan Larkin in last Friday’s game against Florida. The captain (28 goals, 55 points) has missed the last two games.
Another lethargic showing in Tuesday’s 5-2 loss to Columbus dropped the Lightning to 1-6-0 in their last seven games. They played without two defensemen, Darren Raddysh (personal) and Erik Cernak, who were injured in a fight with Michael Kesselring in Sunday night’s 8-7 win over the Buffalo Sabres.
The rear defense suffered a major blow due to Max Crozier’s long-term injury and Emil Lilleberg’s facial fracture.
Cooper admitted his team was “in a rut” after Tuesday’s loss.
The Atlantic Division’s second-place team has been outstanding on offense and defense this season, but has made just 18 shots against Columbus and has been outscored 35-22 over its last seven games.
Cooper said his team was struggling to get out of its patented fast break.
“Tonight was unusually bad,” he said. ” … This little rut we were in lasted a lot longer than I expected. Maybe a little bit of frustration would set in. … Our rhythm wasn’t there, and obviously our execution was definitely not there. I think it was a bit of a roller coaster of emotions for us.
“If something goes wrong in the game, we compound it. … We put our heads down and kick some cans. We just have to make sure there’s no pity party here.”
JJ Moser scored his seventh point in the loss to Columbus, tying his career high for points set in 2022-23.
The two teams haven’t met since November, splitting their first two contests early in the season with each winning on home ice.
–Field level media
