National Hockey League
Detroit 3, Montreal 0
When: 7:00 PM ET, Friday, October 14, 2022
Where: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Referees: Jake Brenk, Kyle Rehman
Linesmen: Trent Knorr, Kilian McNamara
Attendance: 19515

Ville Husso made 29 saves in his Detroit Red Wings debut, a 3-0 season-opening victory over the visiting Montreal Canadiens on Friday.

Making his NHL debut, 2019 draft pick Elmer Soderblom scored the eventual game-winning goal in the third period for Detroit, which had Derek Lalonde behind the bench in his first game as an NHL head coach.

Michael Rasmussen had a hand in all three goals, scoring the second one and assisting on the other two.

Jake Allen made 37 saves for Montreal, which began its season with a 4-3 win over the Maple Leafs on Wednesday.

After two scoreless periods, Detroit broke through with 17:27 remaining.

Following some pressure in the Montreal zone, Allen made a save on a wraparound attempt by Rasmussen, but the rebound went in front of the goal to Soderblom, who beat the goalie for a 1-0 lead.

With 2:26 left, Montreal decided to pull Allen for an extra attacker.

But the Canadiens couldn't generate any serious chances before Detroit put the game away with 1:01 remaining on an empty-net goal by Rasmussen. The goal developed when the Red Wings got the puck out of their zone, and Andrew Copp fed a pass from center ice into the Montreal zone to Rasmussen.

The Red Wings made it 3-0 with 47.9 seconds left when Olli Maatta fired a shot from center ice into an empty net.

That was more than enough for Husso, who was acquired from St. Louis in July.

Detroit carried the play in the first period, outshooting Montreal by a 25-10 margin.

The 25 shots were more than Detroit had in a period during any game last season.

The second period was more even, with Detroit outshooting Montreal 9-8.

Each team was 0-for-3 on the power play, while Detroit outhit Montreal, 38-24.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Montreal   Detroit
N/A Points Michael Rasmussen 3
N/A Goals Michael Rasmussen 1
N/A Assists Michael Rasmussen 2
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Jake Allen .974 Save Percentage Ville Husso 1.000
Jake Allen 37 Saves Ville Husso 29
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Montreal 29 0 0-3 3-3 6 38
Detroit 40 3 0-3 3-3 6 27
Upcoming Games
  • Detroit will play their next game on the road against New Jersey. The Red Wings have a W/L % of .000 after a win and 1.000 after a loss.
  • Montreal will play their next game on the road against Washington. The Canadiens have a W/L % of .000 after a win and 1.000 after a loss.