The Detroit Red Wings concluded their road trip with a 3-1 loss to the Phoenix Coyotes at Jobing.com Arena in Phoenix on Monday night.
That is the bad news. The good news? The longest road trip of the season for Detroit is over after five games in 13 nights, and they are still on top of the Eastern Conference with 72 points.
Boyd Gordon and Martin Hanzel scored for Phoenix top open up a 2-0 lead before Johan Franzen struck before the second intermission for Detroit, but the Red Wings were unable to break through against Mike Smith thereafter, and Hanzel added an empty-net goal for good measure for Phoenix.
The Red Wings return home, where they are an NHL-best 20-2-1, for a six-game homestand starting on Wednesday against the Edmonton Oilers. Detroit just dropped a 5-4 decision to the Oilers in Edmonton on Saturday in a shootout. Wednesday's game is set to start at 7:30 p.m. eastern.
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