Dominik Kubalik enjoyed the game, and not just because his three-point night helped the Detroit Red Wings to another victory.
Sunday’s 5-1 success against the Anaheim Ducks at Little Caesars Arena was notable for how well the Wings performed on special teams, but also for how Ben Chiarot singlehandedly mowed down Ducks on one shift. Chiarot shoved second-line center Ryan Strome into the boards, skated to the net, and sent second-line winger Frank Vatrano flying into the glass.
“I was lucky,” Kubalik said, smiling. “I was watching. I was waiting with my D-man there and I was watching when he was running around and killing people. I caught myself watching. I was laughing like, oh my god, he’s going again.”
Chiarot was responding to a what he felt was a missed call.
“I think he felt he got a little hit from behind there,” coach Derek Lalonde said. “He joked after the second that a few years ago, that probably would have been 15 minutes of penalties after taking a hit like that. Instead he did it the right way and went physical and basically won the shift. That was a positive.”
The hits happened in Detroit’s zone, with Ville Husso getting an action-packed look.
“Especially for those skill guys, he’s hitting them and making the night for them hard,” Husso said. “He’s a great D-man, plays physical, always in the right spot. Just a good D-man for us.”
Chiarot was one of general manager Steve Yzerman’s free-agent signings over the summer. The 31-year-old is closing in on 500 NHL games.
“I just remember when I play against him, he’s obviously hard to play against,” Kubalik said. “I know that he wants to play the body, which is good. He’s a great D-man who is making plays, making the right decisions. He’s just doing the right things and it’s nice to see when he’s throwing bodies like that around.”
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.