Mason Appleton scored with 45 seconds remaining to give visiting Detroit its second win over Toronto in three days, 3-2, on Monday afternoon.
Appleton, who was signed as a free agent to a two-year deal this offseason, recorded his first Red Wings’ goal. He fired a shot from the left circle past Anthony Stolarz after Detroit squandered a two-goal lead.
The Red Wings recorded a 6-3 home win over Toronto on Saturday.
James van Riemsdyk, another free agent signing, also scored his first Detroit goal. Dylan Larkin added the other Red Wings goal while Cam Talbot stopped 39 shots.
Calle Jarnkrok scored for the third time in as many games for the Leafs. Matthew Knies added a goal and an assist.
Red Wings first line forward Lucas Raymond, who led the team in points last season, departed during the second period. He was checked into the boards and suffered an upper body injury.
The Maple Leafs controlled the play for most of the first period but the Red Wings emerged with a 1-0 advantage.
Larkin made the Leafs pay for two late penalties by scoring on a backhander off a rebound of an Alex DeBrincat shot. Larkin scored just a second after a 5-on-3 advantage expired. Raymond also collected an assist on the play.
Toronto killed two penalties in a scoreless second period, while Detroit successfully killed off one. The shots on goal were once again lopsided in the Maple Leafs’ favor, this time 11-4.
van Riemsdyk, who registered 16 goals with Columbus last season, made it 2-0 at 4:25 of the third period. Andrew Copp poked the puck out of his zone to van Riemsdyk, who slipped a low shot past Stolarz.
Knies put the Maple Leafs on the board at 7:29 of the period. Bobby McMann skated into the right circle and passed the puck to Knies, who tapped it in before Talbot could recover.
Jarnkrok’s goal tied the score with 6:18 remaining. He fired a shot from the right circle past Talbot’s catching glove after Knies backhanded a pass from behind the net.
Ben Chiarot and Emmitt Finnie assisted on Appleton’s decisive goal.
Toronto outshot Detroit, 40-15 and won 38 of 61 face-offs (62.3%), but 20 blocked shots by the visitors kept the Maple Leafs at bay.
–Field Level Media
