The Detroit Red Wings showed some life Friday night, notching a pair of power-play goals in the first period en route to a 5-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres

Alex DeBrincat and Lucas Raymond scored on the power play. where the Red Wings have struggled recently. Marco Kasper broke out of a slump to add an even-strength goal.

The win lifted Detroit into a tie with idle Ottawa for ninth place in the Eastern Conference. They are one point behind the New York Islanders and the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Detroit’s performance was in marked contrast to Tuesday’s home loss to Ottawa. That was a game in which the team’s desultory effort got the Wings booed off the ice.

Instead, it was Sabres fans who expressed their displeasure after the first period.

The Sabres, who lead the Atlantic Division, came out much stronger in the second period.

With the exception of a goal by Buffalo’s Tage Thompson, Red Wings goalie John Gibson was up to the task. He withstood a Buffalo barrage which saw the Sabres outshoot the Red Wings 12-3. He had 28 saves for Detroit.

The Red Wings held Buffalo at bay in the third period until Jacob Bernard-Docker scored with just over four minutes remaining. It was his first as a Red Wing in his 200th career game.

But the Sabres refused to fold, getting a goal from Rasmus Dahlin with 49 seconds left to keep it close at 4-2.

The Sabres then pulled goalie Alex Lyon and had six skaters until Patrick Kane put one in the empty net with just over a minute remaining.

Red Wings Takeaways

Dylan Larkin’s assist on DeBrincat”s goal gave him 633 points as a Red Wing, tying him for 10th all-time with Brendan Shanahan. … John Gibson has allowed three or fewer goals in 25 of the Red Wings’ previous 27 games, but Detroit had posted wins in just 15 of the 25. … Moritz Seider assisted on the first two goals, giving him a team-high 43 assists on the season. It was Seider’s 400th game as a Red Wing.

Key moment

DeBrincat’s goal came five seconds into the Red Wings’ first power play.

Key Stat

Former Red Wings goalie Alex Lyon. who’s garnered some Vezina Trophy talk in Buffalo, allowed all three goals in the first period.

Up Next

The Red Wings play host to Philadelphia on Saturday night. It’s the first of three games against the Flyers in the final 10 games of the season.