DETROIT — You know you are playing at your worst when your opponent’s fourth line contributes four goals to beat you 5-0.

Unheralded Max Shabanov scored twice, added an assist and was plus-four, to help the New York Islanders blank the Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena. The three points doubled his point total for the season. Five-foot-nine Russian Shabanov is a 25-year-old rookie who came over from the KHL this season. His linemates Casey Cizikas and Callum Ritchie combined for a goal and three assists.

Shabanov humbled defenseman Moritz Seider on one goal

“Their fourth line? I mean their whole team had a good night,” Detroit captain Dylan Larkin said. “And like I said, we didn’t win races. We were slow and not even a credit to them really. I mean they played their game but we didn’t make it hard on them at all.”

Max Shabanov splits the D for a BEAUTY! 😤 pic.twitter.com/B2Vh36HfeN

— NHL (@NHL) November 21, 2025

 

We’ve seen this before. Too often.

After seemingly getting back on track with wins against the New York Rangers and Seattle Kraken, the Red Wings fell into old bad habits.

“I wish I could sit up here and give you an answer,” Detroit coach Todd McLellan said. “I don’t have the answer. Our group tonight, that was disappointing, obviously. Very disappointing. We had a lot of momentum coming into the game and we were out executed. The puck was foreign to us. Anything that we did get away clean, we seemed to bobble it or double clutch it. Scoring opportunities that we did have, we did nothing with and we gave up two goals on faceoff coverages.”

This was the first shutout the Islanders pinned on the Red Wings in Detroit since 2013.

“We were slow. We didn’t have it,” Larkin said. ” I thought the game was hard. It was where they were winning races and we weren’t and they were above us and we just didn’t grind through that. And then we gave up goals where there was lack of execution and things we talked about before the game.”

Top Line Kept in Check

Detroit’s Super Line of Alex DeBrincat, Larkin and Lucas Raymond — thriving since McLellan put them together — couldn’t generate production in this game. Looking to find a spark, McLellan put DeBrincat back with Patrick Kane. But that didn’t yield success either.

McLellan saw this as a team loss, but Gibson wasn’t at his best. After the Islanders first 12 shots, they led 4-0. Gibson has given up 10 goals in his last two outings. In his first 12 appearances with Detroit, he has given up four or more goals seven times.

Despite the loss, the Red Wings remain in first place in the Atlantic Division. That may be the only positive of the night for the Red Wings.

“You can play really good in this league and not win,” Detroit center J.T. Compher said. “And we didn’t even give ourselves a chance to do that tonight.”

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