But, as Dylan Larkin noted, it’s only natural to peek at the standings, especially when things are going as well as they have been the past 2½ weeks for the Detroit Red Wings.

After Tuesday’s loss to San Jose, the Detroit Red Wings got what they were looking for Thursday night in the first game of a four-game road trip.

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Dylan Larkin scored two goals and the surging Detroit Red Wings beat the Florida Panthers 5-2 on Thursday night. Larkin, Jonatan Berggren and Patrick Kane had power-play goals for Detroit, which also got a goal from Marco Kasper. Cam Talbot stopped 40 shots for the Red Wings, who have won eight of their last nine games.