Red Wings spoil Jordan Staal’s 1,000th NHL game, down Hurricanes

Jordan Staal was given a proper pregame tribute Monday by the Carolina Hurricanes.

Honored for playing his 1,000th NHL game, Staal watched as his family — wife, kids and parents — received flowers and wine. He watched as videos were played on the big board at PNC Arena, including one from his oldest brother, Eric, of the Montreal Canadiens.

Before the game, the Canes players all wore Staal No. 11 jerseys in the warmup to honor their captain. On the ice, and then standing by the bench during the pregame ceremony, was brother Marc of the Detroit Red Wings.

“It was a really cool moment,” Jordan Staal said.

What Staal wanted more than anything Monday was a victory to celebrate — but the Canes couldn’t get him one as the Red WIngs handed Carolina a second straight loss, winning 3-1 behind 37 saves from goalie Jonathan Bernier.

The Canes (27-10-4), who were in first place in the Central Division, made it interesting late. Nino Niederreiter jumped on a loose puck in the slot and went top shelf to finally beat Bernier with 6:06 left in regulation.

Staal and Warren Foegele earned assists on Niederreiter’s 15th of the season. But the Canes couldn’t beat Bernier again.

Adam Erne and Filip Zadina scored in the first 2:34 of the third period after the teams were scoreless in the first 40 minutes. The Canes used a coach’s challenge after the first score, claiming Erne was offside as he entered the zone, but lost the challenge and were penalized for delay of game.

Zadina then scored on a power play and Bernier took it from there as the Wings, last in the Central Division, followed up a shootout win Saturday with a victory in regulation.

Sam Gagner scored the final goal after the Canes pulled goalie James Reimer for an extra attacker.

That it was mostly a slog of a game might have been predictable. Games scheduled on the day of the NHL trade deadline can be that way, with players going through a stressful day and some changing teams, leaving teammates behind. That included Anthony Mantha, traded Monday by Detroit to the Washington Capitals.

The Canes began the day in first place in the Central with 57 points, with one game-in-hand over Tampa Bay, which also had 57. Carolina will ends its eight-game homestand with two games against Nashville, then have a tough stretch -- sets of two road games each against Tampa Bay, Florida and Dallas.

Erne scored off a pass from Michael Rasmussen, who circled the net and backhanded the puck. The Canes then challenged the score, claiming Erne was offside entering the zone, but the initial ruling was upheld after review. That resulted in a delay-of-game penalty against Carolina.

Soon, there was another. Defenseman Brady Skjei attempted to clear the puck but flipped it over the glass. The Wings did not score in their 47 seconds of a 5-on-3 advantage but quickly scored 5-on-4 as Filip Zadina took a pass from Rasmussen and beat goalie James Reimer.

Earlier game updates:

Second period: Goalies tested

Neither team has scored in the first 40 minutes but both had great breakaway chances in the second period, forcing the two goalies to make super saves.

The Wings’ Luke Glendening had the first, cruising all alone down the slot, but the Canes’ James Reimer made the stop.

Vincent Trocheck then had a shorthanded breakaway after a Jordan Staal penalty. But Wings goalie Jonathan Bernier denied Trocheck, who has scored 16 goals this season, and Warren Foegele was wide trying to follow up the rebound.

The Canes have 23 shots to the Wings’ 20 after two periods, and 22 scoring chances to the Wings’ 16 (naturalstattrick.com).

First period: Canes struggle

The first period ended scoreless after the Wings controlled the pace of play most of the period and the Canes finally generated some offense late.

Goalie James Reimer was the Canes’ best player in the first, turning back 10 shots and fighting his way through a few offensive flurries by the Wings in front of the crease. The Canes were anything but sharp in their zone, struggling to cleanly corral pucks or clear the zone.

Of the Canes’ 10 shots, four came in the last 35 seconds of the period.

Jordan Staal, in his 1,000th game, was in the starting lineup and Jaccob Slavin attempted to backhand a pass to him and set him up for a shot on the first shift. But the puck was knocked away, a play indicative of the Canes’ play much of the period.

Neither team had a penalty in the first.

Game setup: Staal honored

Before Monday, Jordan Staal of the Hurricanes had played 999 regular-season games in the NHL.

Staal had been on the ice for 18,668 minutes. He had taken 2,083 shots. He had scored 238 goals, including 17 shorthanded, and had 328 assists. He also had won 8,420 faceoffs.

Now, it’s time for game No. 1,000, a good round number. Staal will hit that milestone Monday against the Detroit Red Wings at PNC Arena. Drafted in 2006 by the Pittsburgh Penguins, he will join Phil Kessel as the only two players from that NHL draft to play 1,000.

The Canes players all wore No. 11 jerseys with “Staal” on the back during the pregame warmup, a tribute to the captain. The Canes had a long tribute to Staal before the game, with his family and parents on hand.

Staal spent six years with the Pens, playing 431 games. Before Monday, he had played 568 with the Canes and has been the Canes captain the past two seasons -- he also spent one season as a co-captain with Justin Faulk.

“Wearing the ‘C’ is really cool,” Staal said on a media call Sunday. “I didn’t think I would like it as much as I do. This team makes it that much easier, but I enjoy playing with these guys, leading by example and doing all those things that I grew up doing, my values and the way I carry myself. I take pride in that and enjoy doing that in the day to day.”

The lineup

Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said Monday that James Reimer would be the starting goalie against the Wings. Reimer last played April 1 in Chicago, winning 4-3, and has a 14-4-1 record with a 2.71 goals-against average and .905 save percentage.

Brind’Amour said Monday morning that one change among the skaters would have defenseman Haydn Fleury going back into the lineup and Jake Bean being a healthy scratch. That changed just before 3 p.m. when the Canes traded Fleury to Anaheim. Bean stays in.