By Dave Hart
LocalSportsJournal.com
Red Wings 4, Islanders 2 – The Red Wings picked up a victory on the road over the New York Islanders on Monday night in their last game before the NHL All-Star break.
Muskegon native Justin Abdelkader and Danny DeKeyser netted goals during the second period to break a 1-1 tie.
Brad Richards opened the scoring for the Red Wings while Luke Glendening added an empty net tally.
Detroit’s goaltender Petr Mrazek picked up the win, stopping 27 of 29 shots.
The Red Wings are now 25-16-8 on the season, good for 58 points and second place in the Atlantic Division.
Detroit will return to action after the All-Star break one week from Wednesday on the road against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Record: 25-16-8 58 pts
2nd Place in Atlantic Division (3 pts behind Florida)
4th Place in Eastern Conference (15 pts behind Washington)
5 pts ahead of Pittsburgh for the last playoff spot
Magic # to clinch 25th straight playoff berth: 64 pts
Magic # to clinch Atlantic Division title: 72 pts
Magic # to clinch Eastern Conference: 88 pts
Next Game: 02/03/2016 @ Tampa Bay Lightning 8:00 p.m. @ Amalie Arena
Stats: Goals- Justin Abdelkader (14), Luke Glendening (4), Danny DeKeyser (6), Brad Richards (5). Assists-Pavel Datsyuk (18), Darren Helm (9), Dylan Larkin (18), Kyle Quincey (3), Henrik Zetterberg (24). Goaltender- Petr Mrazek W (18-9-4) 27 saves on 29 shots.
Pistons 95, Jazz 92 – The Pistons held on to defeat the Utah Jazz on Monday night.
Detroit, which led by 10 points heading into the fourth quarter, was outscored 33-26 during the final stanza.
Reggie Jackson paced the Pistons with 29 points, while Ersan Ilyasova added 16 points and eight rebounds.
Anthony Tolliver scored 12 points off the Pistons’ bench.
The Jazz were led by Rodney Hood with 23 points, while Gordon Hayward had 22.
The Pistons are now 24-21 on the season, good for a sixth place tie in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
Detroit will return home to host the last place Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night.
Record: 24-21
3rd Place in Central Division (8 games behind Cleveland)
Tied for 6th Place in Eastern Conference (8 games behind Cleveland)
2.5 games ahead of three teams for the last playoff spot
Magic # to clinch a playoff berth: 37
Magic # to clinch Central Division title: 47
Magic # to clinch Eastern Conference title: 47
Next Game: 01/27/2016 vs. Philadelphia 76ers 7:30 p.m. @ Palace of Auburn Hills
Stats: Reggie Jackson 29 points, Ersan Ilyasova 16 points 8 rebounds, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope/Anthony Tolliver 12 points each.
