Red Wings rookie Nate Danielson has goal and assist for first NHL points in 4-2 win over Kraken

DETROIT (AP) — Nate Danielson had a goal and an assist for his first two NHL points as the Detroit Red Wings' rookies fueled a 4-2 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night.

Lucas Raymond and Emmitt Finnie scored in a three-goal second period and Dylan Larkin added an empty-netter as the Red Wings began a four-game homestand. Danielson, Finnie and defenseman Axel Sandin-Pellikka, all rookies this season, combined for four points in the second period.

Danielson, the ninth overall pick in the 2023 draft, gave the Red Wings a 2-1 lead just 45 seconds after Raymond scored. Sandin-Pellikka's point shot deflected off Mason Appleton's stick and Danielson's shin pad before slipping past goalie Joey Daccord.

The 21-year-old Danielson, who played in his fifth career game, had a second goal later that period erased by an offside call on Finnie after a replay challenge by the Kraken. He fed Finnie with a slick pass into the slot for the go-ahead goal on a power play midway through the second.

Larkin's empty-netter gave him 600 career points, a goal set up by Raymond to give him his fourth straight multipoint game. The fifth-year standout has two goals and eight assists in his last five games.

Jordan Eberle scored on a power play with 58 seconds left in the first period and Ryker Evans tied the game at 2 in the second for the Kraken, who started a four-game road trip. Eberle became the fourth player to reach the 300-game mark with the Kraken, who joined the league as an expansion club four years ago.

Daccord returned to the net for the Kraken with 24 saves, after missing the previous five games with an upper-body injury.

The Kraken play at the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday, when the Red Wings host the New York Islanders.

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Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin, right, is unable to score against Seattle Kraken goaltender Joey Daccord during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

Seattle Kraken left wing Mason Marchment, right, collides with Detroit Red Wings defenseman Axel Sandin-Pellikka during the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

Detroit Red Wings center Nate Danielson, left, celebrates with teammates after, a goal that on review was overturned on an off-side call, during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Seattle Kraken, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

Detroit Red Wings center Nate Danielson, left, celebrates with teammates after scoring, a goal that on review was overturned on an off-side call, during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Seattle Kraken, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

It's far from clear if the weather is planning to cooperate, but spring arrives — technically, at least — Friday.

The vernal equinox arrives on Friday, marking the start of the spring season for the Northern Hemisphere and the fall in the Southern Hemisphere. On the equator, the sun will be directly overhead at noon. Equinoxes are the only times when both the North and South poles are lit by sunshine at the same time.

Equinoxes have been marked and celebrated around the world for centuries. In Japan, for example, Vernal Equinox Day is a public holiday. At the Mayan site Chichen Itza in Mexico, people gather during the equinox to watch the sun create a shadow pattern that resembles a serpent descending a pyramid called El Castillo.

But what is happening in the heavens? Here’s what to know about the Earth’s orbit.

As the Earth travels around the sun, it does so at an angle, making the sun’s warmth and light fall unequally on the northern and southern halves of the planet for most of the year.

But during the equinox, the Earth’s tilt is neither toward the sun nor away from the sun, so both the northern and southern hemispheres get an equal amount of sunlight. The sun rises almost exactly due east and it sets almost exactly due west.

The word equinox comes from two Latin words meaning equal and night. That’s because on the equinox, day and night last almost the same amount of time — though one may get a few extra minutes, depending on where you are on the planet.

The Northern Hemisphere’s fall — or autumnal — equinox can land between Sept. 21 and 24, depending on the year. Its spring — or vernal — equinox can land between March 19 and 21.

The exact time of the equinox is the moment the sun is directly overhead at the equator. For 2026, it's Friday, March 20, at 10:46 a.m. EST. From there, days will get a little longer every day in the Northern Hemisphere — and shorter in the Southern Hemisphere — until the solstice in June.

The solstices mark the times when the Earth's tilt is tipped most extremely either toward or away from the sun. This means the hemispheres are getting very different amounts of sunlight, and days and nights are at their most unequal.

At the Northern Hemisphere's summer solstice, the Earth's upper half is leaning toward the sun, creating the longest day and shortest night of the year. The summer solstice falls between June 20 and 22. This year it's the 21st.

The opposite happens at the Northern Hemisphere winter solstice: the Earth's upper half leans the furthest away from the sun, leading to the shortest day and longest night of the year. The winter solstice falls between Dec. 20 and 23.

These are just two different ways to carve up the year.

While astronomical seasons depend on how the Earth moves around the sun, meteorological seasons are defined by the weather. Meteorologists break down the year into three-month seasons based on annual temperature cycles. By that calendar, spring starts on March 1, summer on June 1, fall on Sept. 1 and winter on Dec. 1.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

FILE - Malik Shabazz Pizzaro, left, with the helpf froom urban park ranger June Yoo of the New York City Department of Parks and Recreationm reacts after balancing an egg on a Central Park wall as part of a vernal equinox celebration in New York, Thursday, March 20, 1997. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

Cherry trees begin to bloom near the Jefferson Memorial, Friday, March 13, 2026, at the Tidal Basin in Washington. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Cherry trees begin to bloom, near the the Washington Monument, at the Tidal Basin in Washington, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)