Matthew Tkachuk has hat trick, Panthers beat Red Wings 3-1 to end 4-game losing streak

DETROIT (AP) — Matthew Tkachuk had his sixth career hat trick and the Florida Panthers beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-1 on Friday night to snap a four-game losing streak.

Eight points behind Boston for the final wild-card spot in the East, two-time defending champion Florida is in danger of becoming the first Cup-winning team to miss the playoffs the following season since Los Angeles in 2014-15.

Tkachuk had his first hat trick since Jan. 9, 2024, against St. Louis. He has eight goals in 16 games this season. He made his season debut Jan. 19 after recovering from offseason surgery to repair a torn adductor muscle and sports hernia.

Sergei Bobrovsky made 27 saves after the Panthers chose not to deal the 37-year-old goalie before the deadline Friday.

Alex DeBrincat scored his team-high 33rd goal for Detroit. John Gibson made 20 saves.

Detroit captain Dylan Larkin suffered an apparent leg injury when he fell awkwardly in the Florida zone midway through the third period. He skated slowly back to the boards and went immediately into the locker room.

Tkachuk scored 35 seconds into the third period on a power play to give the Panthers a 2-1 lead. Parked near the left goalpost, he redirected Sam Reinhart's shot from the left circle past Gibson.

Tkachuk added an empty-netter from his own zone with 1:52 left.

Panthers: Host Detroit on Tuesday night.

Red Wings: At New Jersey on Sunday.

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

Detroit Red Wings left wing J.T. Compher, left, is pressured by Florida Panthers center Carter Verhaeghe (23) while passing the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, March 6, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider (53) shoots on goal against Florida Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola (77) during the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, March 6, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

Florida Panthers center Anton Lundell (15) and Detroit Red Wings right wing Alex DeBrincat (93) battle for the puck while avoiding a referee, left, during the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, March 6, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

Detroit Red Wings center Andrew Copp (18) avoids Florida Panthers center Evan Rodrigues (17) to move the puck during the second period of an NHL hockey game Friday, March 6, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

Florida Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola (77) tries to clear the puck against Detroit Red Wings center Marco Kasper (92) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Friday, March 6, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

MIAMI (AP) — Ronald Acuña Jr. scored easily from third base for Venezuela at the World Baseball Classic, and about a half-dozen of his teammates hopped over the dugout railing to start a celebration.

It was a 1-0 game. In the first inning. Didn't matter.

“For our people, baseball is joy,” Jessalyn Suarez, an office manager from Miami, said as she walked into the ballpark about an hour earlier. “Today is joy. Today is not about anything else.”

She was like many other Venezuelan fans Friday — wearing her team's jersey, her country's flag knotted loosely around her neck, the country's yellow-blue-red color scheme painted on her face and the faces of some of her friends.

Unusual political times didn't seem to matter. Thousands of Venezuelans — the stadium was maybe one-third filled for Venezuela vs. Netherlands on Friday, with the overwhelming majority of fans cheering for “La Vinotinto” — showed up to watch their national team play on U.S. soil, two months after American forces executed a military operation in Venezuela to capture deposed leader Nicolás Maduro and bring him to New York to face drug trafficking charges.

“Nobody is thinking about him today,” Jesus Otero, a retired heavy machine operator from nearby Hialeah, said as he watched batting practice. “He's not here.”

In the end, the Venezuelan fans left happy: Their team won the opener 6-2.

There were a few Netherlands caps and shirts in the crowd — but for the most part, the party was very Latin.

At 10:30 a.m. outside the ballpark, more than 90 minutes before first pitch, fans arrived as music from Elsen Pro, Bacilos and Carlos Vives blared over giant speakers. At a gas station across the street from one of the parking garages, someone was selling Venezuela jerseys, caps and flags, all packed up into a couple of duffel bags that were serving as display cases.

Inside, fans cheered from the very first pitch. Many had their phones out to grab video of the team being announcing, taping what was being shown on the huge screen in center field. The upper deck was almost entirely empty, but the lower deck — especially on the third-base side, the one where Venezuela's dugout was — was bustling.

“Venezuelan baseball fans are very motivated and involved with everything that happens with the team,” said Nelson Zurita, a Venezuelan who calls Chile home but flew to Miami for the tournament. “They are aware of every transaction in the anticipation to the Classic. The country will always be focused on sports but especially baseball. ... The players do not want to mix politics with baseball, but the country is completely behind them.”

There were no signs of protests outside the ballpark Friday; there was a presence of police officers and sheriff's deputies, but that seemed largely for standard security and traffic-control reasons. Fans were going through the usual sorts of ticket-checks and bag searches that are in place for Miami Marlins games and other events at the ballpark.

WBC officials said the night game Friday — Nicaragua vs. the Dominican Republic — was a sellout, with more than 35,000 people in the ballpark. The announced attendance for the Venezuela-Netherlands game was 19,542.

“The presence of this team provides some relief from the everyday political stress,” Zurita said. “The emphasis instead is on the Classic. Baseball breathes new life.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Venezuela's Ronald Acuña Jr. (21) runs to first base after hitting a double to center field during a World Baseball Classic game against the Netherlands, Friday, March 6, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)

Venezuela's Ronald Acuña Jr. (21) celebrates after scoring during the first inning of a World Baseball Classic game against the Netherlands, Friday, March 6, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)

Venezuela fans cheer the team during a World Baseball Classic game against the Netherlands, Friday, March 6, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)