By Dave Hart
LocalSportsJournal.com
Red Wings 3, Coyotes 2 (Overtime) – The Red Wings closed their six-game road trip in style, scoring three unanswered goals to defeat the Arizona Coyotes in overtime on Thursday night.
The victory closed out a successful 5-1-0 six-game road trip.
Detroit’s defensemen Danny DeKeyser scored the game-winning goal with 2:52 left in overtime.
The Red Wings erased a two-goal deficit with a pair of third period goals from Pavel Datsyuk (11:50) and Gustav Nyquist (14:20).
Mike Green chipped in with two assists, while Datsyuk and Nyquist each had an assist.
Detroit goaltender Petr Mrazek picked up the win in overtime, stopping 27 of 29 shots.
The Red Wings are now 23-14-7 on the season, good for 53 points and second place in the Atlantic Division.
Detroit will had back home to host the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday night.
Record: 23-14-7 53 pts
2nd Place in Atlantic Division (4 pts behind Florida)
Tied for 3rd Place in Eastern Conference (16 pts behind Washington)
6 pts ahead of Carolina and New Jersey for the last playoff spot
Magic # to clinch 25th straight playoff berth: 74 pts
Magic # to clinch Atlantic Division title: 81 pts
Magic # to clinch Eastern Conference: 95 pts
Next Game: 01/17/2016 vs. Philadelphia Flyers 7:30 p.m. @ Joe Louis Arena
Stats: Goals- Pavel Datsyuk (6), Danny DeKeyser (4), Gustav Nyquist (13). Assists- Datsyuk (14), Mike Green 2 (15), Nyquist (12). Goaltender- Petr Mrazek W (16-8-3) 27 saves on 29 shots.
Grizzles 109, Pistons 101 – Mario Chalmers’ game-winning basket with 0.8 seconds left in regulation gave the Memphis Grizzles their second buzzer beating victory over the Pistons this season.
The Grizzles, who closed the game with a 9-0 run during the final three minutes, were led by Chalmers with a game-high 25 points.
Stanley Johnson led the Pistons off the bench with 19 points, while Ersan Ilyasova added 17 points. Andre Drummond added another double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
The Pistons are now 21-18 on the season, good for a seventh seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
Detroit will host the defending NBA World Champion Golden St. Warriors on Saturday night and will retire Ben Wallace’s jersey number during a halftime ceremony.
Record: 21-18
4th Place in Central Division (7 games behind Cleveland)
7th Place in Eastern Conference (7 games behind Cleveland)
1 game ahead of Boston for the last playoff spot
Magic # to clinch a playoff berth: 43
Magic # to clinch Central Division title: 52
Magic # to clinch Eastern Conference title: 52
Next Game: 01/16/2016 vs. Golden St. Warriors 7:30 p.m. @ Palace of Auburn Hills
Stats: Stanley Johnson 19 points, Ersan Ilysova 17 points 9 rebounds, Reggie Jackson 12 points 6 assists, Marcus Morris 12 points 5 assists, Andre Drummond 11 points 11 rebounds.
