Raymond scores late in 3rd and OT to keep Red Wings playoffs alive with 5-4 win over Canadiens

DETROIT (AP) — Lucas Raymond scored with 25 seconds left in overtime after tying it with 1:17 remaining in regulation, lifting the Detroit Red Wings to a 5-4 comeback win over the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night that keeps their playoff hopes alive.

“All tonight did is give us an opportunity,” said J.T. Compher, who scored two goals for Detroit to cut into deficits. “All this did was give us a chance to finish the job.”

The Red Wings will make the playoffs if they win at Montreal and Washington loses at Philadelphia on Tuesday night.

Detroit coach Derek Lalonde said his team has surpassed preseason expectations, putting it in a position to earn a spot in the playoffs on the final game of the regular season.

“It's here now,” he said. “It's going to be a challenge.”

Detroit drew iron on two shots in overtime before Raymond's shot from the right circle got past Sam Montembeault, triggering a celebration with every teammate on the ice and screaming fans in the stands.

“I kind of blacked out to be honest,” Raymond said.

Brendan Gallagher scored two goals and Montembeault stopped 30 shots for the Canadiens, who scored two early goals and were ahead 4-1 late in the second period.

Compher pulled the Red Wings within a goal midway through the first period and scored again to cut their deficit to two late in the second. Alex DeBrincat made it 4-3 midway through the third.

“They got a couple goals, a couple octopuses on the ice and the building really got going," Gallagher said. "They’re desperate.”

Detroit made up for Alex Lyon giving up two goals on the first three shots he faced, allowing two more goals in the second period and finishing with 17 saves against a team far removed from playoff contention.

The Red Wings were in 25 straight postseasons, the third-longest run in NHL history, and the streak stopped in 2016 when they played at Joe Louis Arena. Fans, desperate to cheer for a playoff team again, filled Little Caesars Arena for the final regular-season game at home.

Gallagher's first goal was set up by Lane Hutson, a 20-year-old defenseman from Holland, Michigan, in his NHL debut.

“Having all my family here, it’s really special," said Hutson, a 2022 second-round pick.

Justin Barron followed with a goal less than two minutes later for the Canadiens.

Rafael Harvey-Pinard restored Montreal’s two-goal lead early in the second period and Gallagher’s second goal made it 4-1 late in the period.

“We did a pretty good job of silencing the crowd for the majority of the game,” Gallagher said.

The Canadiens have missed the playoffs three straight times since losing in the 2021 Stanley Cup final and are aiming to avoid a third consecutive last-place finish in the Metropolitan Division.

UP NEXT

The Red Wings and Canadiens close the regular season on Tuesday night in Montreal.

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Detroit Red Wings left wing Lucas Raymond (23) celebrates his goal against the Montreal Canadiens in overtime after an NHL hockey game Monday, April 15, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Detroit Red Wings left wing J.T. Compher (37) shoots on Montreal Canadiens goaltender Sam Montembeault (35) in the second period of an NHL hockey game Monday, April 15, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Montreal Canadiens defenseman Justin Barron (52) celebrates his goal with Rafael Harvey-Pinard (49) against the Detroit Red Wings in the first period of an NHL hockey game Monday, April 15, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Detroit Red Wings goaltender Alex Lyon (34) deflects a shot as Jeff Petry (46) defends Montreal Canadiens right wing Joel Armia (40) in the first period of an NHL hockey game Monday, April 15, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Montreal Canadiens right wing Brendan Gallagher (11) celebrates his goal with Joel Armia (40) and Lane Hutson (48) in the first period of an NHL hockey game Monday, April 15, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Montreal Canadiens defenseman Mike Matheson (8) passes around Detroit Red Wings right wing Christian Fischer (36) in the first period of an NHL hockey game Monday, April 15, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Detroit Red Wings left wing J.T. Compher (37) celebrates his goal against the Montreal Canadiens in the second period of an NHL hockey game Monday, April 15, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Detroit Red Wings left wing Lucas Raymond (23) celebrates with Moritz Seider (53) after his goal against the Montreal Canadiens in overtime during an NHL hockey game Monday, April 15, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Kraken fired coach Dave Hakstol on Monday after the third-year franchise took a significant step back following a playoff appearance in their second season.

Hakstol was a finalist for the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year last season as Seattle finished with 100 points and reached the Western Conference semifinals in its second year.

But the Kraken failed to match expectations this season and spent most of the year trying to climb back into playoff contention after a terrible start, and failed to build on the success of that playoff run. Seattle finished tied for fifth in the Pacific Division after going 34-35-13 with 81 points, and was officially eliminated from playoff contention with two weeks left in the regular season.

Hakstol went 107-112-27 in his three seasons in charge of the Kraken.

Seattle general manager Ron Francis hinted that changes could be coming less than a week after the season ended. Given the chance to confirm Hakstol would get a fourth season, Francis instead hedged and said a review was underway to analyze the entire coaching staff.

A week later, Hakstol was out.

“I thank Dave for his hard work and dedication to the Kraken franchise,” Francis said in a statement. “Following our end-of-the-season review, we have decided to make a change at our head coach position. These decisions are never easy, but we feel this is a necessary step to help ensure our team continues to improve and evolve.

Francis also said assistant coach Paul McFarland would not return.

Hakstol was rewarded with a two-year extension after last season when Seattle reached the second round of the playoffs and kept Hakstol under contract through the 2025-26 season. But Seattle was unable to maintain the style of play that led to its success last season and couldn’t overcome significant injuries to Andre Burakovsky, Brandon Tanev and Philipp Grubauer early in the season. Seattle also played most of the final portion of the season without top defenseman Vince Dunn due to neck injury.

Seattle started this season 8-14-7 including an eight-game losing streak, before a big turnaround in late December and January that pushed the Kraken back into the playoff conversation. But the Kraken went just 13-16-3 after the All-Star break and a painful overtime loss at home to Vegas on March 12 brought an end to any reasonable playoff aspirations.

Scoring goals was a problem that the Kraken couldn’t solve all season. Seattle was 29th in the league in goals scored, 29th in shooting percentage and 18th on the power play, negating a season of strong defense and goaltending.

Hakstol was a surprise choice when Seattle hired him to be the first coach in franchise history. His first stint as a coach in the NHL started strong in Philadelphia in 2015-16 with two playoff appearances in his first three seasons. But it fell apart in the fourth season and he was fired 25 games into that year with the Flyers at 8-11-6 and just 22 points.

It was a rough inaugural season for Seattle as the team dealt with the expectations of trying to match what Vegas did in its expansion season while balancing COVID-19 restrictions that impacted much of that first season. Seattle finished at 27-49-6 in that first season but rebounded in Year 2 when the Kraken finished with 100 points, toppled defending champion Colorado in the first round of the playoffs and took Dallas to a Game 7 in the Western Conference semifinals.

Todd McLellan and 2019 Stanley Cup winner Craig Berube are among the experienced NHL head coaches available, pending more movement around the league in the coming weeks.

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

FILE - Seattle Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol, top center, reacts on the bench during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the San Jose Sharks in San Jose, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2024. The Seattle Kraken fired coach Dave Hakstol on Monday, April 29, 2024, after the third-year franchise took a significant step back following a playoff appearance in their second season. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

FILE - Seattle Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol looks on from the bench against the Colorado Avalanche during the third period of Game 4 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series Monday, April 24, 2023, in Seattle. The Seattle Kraken fired coach Dave Hakstol on Monday, April 29, 2024, after the third-year franchise took a significant step back following a playoff appearance in their second season.(AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)