On the wrong end of a four game losing skid that started after the Red Wings left Amerant Bank Arena after beating the Florida Panthers earlier this month, the Red Wings came back to Sunrise and beat themselves, losing a three goal lead to fall 5-4 in regulation.

The Panthers opened scoring after Sam Reinhart squeaked a shot in past John Gibson‘s armpit when the Red Wings couldn’t counter Florida’s rush. However, JT Compher tied things up 15 seconds later with a breakaway goal after Carter Mazur, in for Michael Rasmussen, collected the puck along the boards mid-ice before flipping it to Compher to take the puck the rest of the way home past Akira Schmid.

Detroit would score the next three goals, with Andreas Englund and Lucas Raymond both getting tip ins off of Panthers defenseman Seth Jones in the first and second periods respectively. Marco Kasper would score his first goal of the season in his second game back from injury to put the Red Wings up 4-1 a little over halfway through regulation.

However, Detroit couldn’t put the game away tonight. After putting up four goals over the first 59 minutes of the game, the Red Wings let in four unanswered over the next 21 minutes. Gustav Forsling started the Panthers comeback after scoring in the closing minute of the second period.

Michael Brandsegg-Nygård was called for high-sticking on Matthew Tkachuk to start the third period, and the Panthers would capitalize as time expired on the following power play.

Anton Lundell drew the Panthers within one off of Carter Verhaeghe’s shot when Gibson fell trying to reach out and cover the puck. Lars Eller batted the puck in over Gibson’s shoulder with 3:31 left in regulation to tie things up.

Lundell would put his second goal past Gibson less than a minute later to give the Panthers a 5-4 lead, and ultimately the win.

Takeaways

Detroit has now lost its fifth game in a row, this time coughing up a three goal lead on the way to the loss. While the Red Wings offense came alive tonight in the first half of the game, their defensive effort and attention to detail clearly slipped in the second half, allowing the Panthers to get under their skin to come back for the win.

Key Stat

Detroit has fourteen goals in their last six games. Nine of them have come in their two games against the Panthers, and tonight, the Red Wings weren’t able to win with four goals and the lead, and are now on a five game losing streak.

Key Moment

The Panthers, who had been itching for a fight and looking for energy found some life when Forsling pulled the Panthers within 2 with just 18 seconds left in the second frame. The Red Wings simply could not stop the bleeding once it started, and let the next three goals go in unanswered.

Up Next:

Deja Vu; The Red Wings conclude their road trip with a matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Benchmark International Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 P.M. EST on Detroit SportsNet.