VANCOUVER -- A 22-year-old looking to find his way in the NHL helped drag the Detroit Red Wings out of an ugly tailspin. Carolina Hurricanes Gear . Tomas Tatar scored his first goal of the season in just his fifth game late in the second period Wednesday as the Red Wings snapped a four-game slide with a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks. After Daniel Alfredsson tied the score 1-1 midway through the second, Tatar gave Detroit its first lead of the night with 62 seconds left in the period. With the Canucks collapsing in their own zone, Tartar fired a weak shot from just inside the blue-line that found its way through Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo. "I just tried to shoot it on net and the puck somehow ended up in," said Tatar, who has been in and out of the Detroit lineup all season. "This is a big relief." Vancouvers best player on the night, Luongo was screened on the play by Canucks defenceman Christopher Tanev. "I didnt see it until the last second, but I have to find a way to find those," said Luongo, who finished with 25 saves. "Its a pretty (lousy) way to lose a game on a goal like that. "At the end of the day I have to try and find that puck." The Red Wings (7-4-2) came in wanting to tighten up defensively after a couple of poor outings and did just that as Jimmy Howard was forced into just 19 saves. "Its one of those games where its little bit more difficult to keep your focus when youre not seeing as much action," he said. "Ive got to give the guys a lot of credit tonight. They did a great job in front of me." Daniel Sedin scored for Vancouver (9-5-1), which finished with a season-low 20 shots and saw its four-game winning streak come to an end. Henrik Sedin set up Vancouvers first goal to extend his point streak to 10 games (three goals, nine assists). "We didnt generate enough offence," said Canucks head coach John Tortorella. "We certainly didnt sustain a forecheck. We just looked lethargic. For some reason we lacked some energy tonight." Trailing 1-0 after the first period in a game that was short on excitement, Alfredsson tied the score at 11:37 of the second with his third goal of the season. The former Ottawa Senators captain picked up a loose puck in the slot and fired a shot off the post that rebounded in off Luongos leg. Thats when Tatar, a second round pick back in 2009, stepped up with his first of the season late in the period. "We were playing pretty good but we had nothing to show for it," said Alfredsson. "Then we get the first one and then a flukey play where their defenceman ended up being a screen and we get lucky there. "Thats a huge goal for us, to go into the third with the lead and I thought we handled that really well." The Red Wings were happy to see Tatar get rewarded. "You never know whats going to happen in this league when you throw pucks on net," said Howard. "Hopefully he feels a little pressure off his back. We can see how he plays in practice." No longer conference rivals thanks to realignment, the Canucks and Red Wings combined for just 31 shots and few scoring chances through two periods in a defensive matchup that was played between the blue-lines most of the night. "We believe weve gone through enough details that we should know how to play and we should be able to do it on a nightly basis," said Red Wings head coach Mike Babock. "Tonight was a good step for our team. Now weve got to match it." Vancouvers power play, which has just four goals all season and came in ranked 28th in the NHL, got an opportunity early in the third but was unable to muster any realistic scoring chances. Canucks forward Alexandre Burrows, playing in his second game back after breaking his foot in the season opener, then fanned on a chance in the slot right in front of Howard. Tortorella reunited Burrows with the Sedin twins to start the third period. Ryan Kesler, usually Vancouvers second-line centre, had been playing on the top line since about the midway point of the Canucks recent seven-game road trip. Luongo kept Vancouver in it with a big pad stop on Detroits Justin Abdelkader off a feed from Tatar on a 3-on-1 break with five minutes to go to keep his team in it. "I thought (Luongo) played real well," said Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock. "We could have had a lot more and we had good opportunities. He was solid for them tonight." Kesler then just missed Howards far post with shot in the dying seconds. "I hit that shot nine out of 10 times and I just missed it," said Kesler. "Its frustrating." The Sedins teamed up to energize an otherwise dull first period with the opening goal at 14:12. Daniel Sedin glided over the Red Wings blue-line and made a drop pass to Henrik Sedin, who cut into the slot. Daniel Sedin moved to the bottom of the faceoff circle and one-timed the return feed past a helpless Howard for his sixth of the season. Notes: Daniel Sedin now has seven points (four goals, three assists) in his last five games. ... Kesler saw his five-game goal scoring streak come to an end. He came in with five goals and three assists over that span. ... The Canucks complete a three-game homestand on Saturday against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Prior to the game, Vancouver will retire Pavel Bures No. 10 jersey. The Russian sniper played for the Canucks from 1991 to 1998, collecting 254 goals and 224 assists in 428 games. ... The Red Wings continue a four-game road trip on Friday against the Calgary Flames. Carolina Hurricanes Pro Shop . The club says its first-choice centre back "underwent medical tests on Wednesday morning" which confirmed he has injured his right hamstring. The injury was caused in the second minute of Tuesdays 4-1 league win over Real Sociedad in the Camp Nou when teammate Sergio Busquets accidentally struck Mascherano just above the knee with an outstretched boot. Fake Hurricanes Jerseys .Ryan Anderson had 14 points for the Pelicans, who trailed 78-63 after three periods before trimming the deficit to 86-83. Jrue Holiday had 13 points and Eric Gordon added 12 for New Orleans.Mike Scott and Jeff Teague each had 11 points for Atlanta. https://www.cheaphurricanes.com/ . Mike Vecchione tied it at 2 with 4:01 left in the first, Saskatoon native Eli Lichtenwald gave the Dutchman the lead 57 seconds later, and Daniel Ciampini capped the spree with 2:57 to go. IRVING, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys are moving on without franchise sacks leader DeMarcus Ware. Now they have to figure out how to rebuild their defensive line. The Cowboys released Ware on Tuesday, a salary cap move that owner Jerry Jones called "extremely difficult" after the worst season of the star pass rushers career. Ware broke Harvey Martins 30-year-old franchise record for sacks in 2013, but got to the quarterback a career-low six times and missed games for the first time in his nine-year career with a thigh injury. The 31-year-old Ware also had off-season elbow surgery and was set to count $16 million against the salary cup. Negotiations on a reduced salary failed, so his release saves about $7.4 million and gives Dallas about $9 million to spend at the moment. "A decision like this, involving a man who is a cornerstone player in the history of your franchise, is extremely difficult," Jones, also the teams general manager, said in a statement announcing the decision just as free agency opened. "We were also in very strong agreement that playing for the Dallas Cowboys would be one of the options we would both be exploring." Still, Ware has likely played his last down for an owner who always had a tough time letting aging superstars go. Without Ware and with 2013 team sacks leader Jason Hatcher already headed for free agency, all the projected starters from a year ago are gone from a defence that gave up the most yards in franchise history and finished last in the league in total defence. Rod Marinelli is taking over for the demoted Monte Kiffin as defensive co-ordinator after both joined the staff last year. Marinelli was in charge of the injury--riddled front last season. Hurricanes Jerseys 2021. . Anthony Spencer, who like Ware had to make the transition to defensive end in a four-man defensive front, missed almost all of last season with a knee injury and is a free agent. Dallas released defensive tackle Jay Ratliff in the middle of last season. Nick Hayden signed as a free agent last year to be a backup but ended up starting all 16 games because of injuries and the uncertainty surrounding Ratliff. The most accomplished player on the Cowboys defensive front right now is George Selvie, who wasnt even on the roster when training camp started last year. Dallas added him when injuries hit. The switch away from a 3-4 defence forced Ware to play with his hand on the ground closer to the offensive line rather than a stand-up outside linebacker who could get a faster start on the snap. Still, Ware looked good in training camp and even intercepted a pass by Eli Manning on the first play of last season. But he never did find his form as a pass rusher after fading late in 2012 and finished third on the team in sacks behind Hatcher and Selvie. "DeMarcus Ware, through his performance on the field and his outstanding character, is someone who is held in the highest regard within the Dallas Cowboys family," Jones said in the statement. "He is worthy of our greatest respect, and we want what is best for him and his family." A first-round pick under coach Bill Parcells in 2005, Ware finished with 117 sacks, three more than Martin. He set a club record with 20 sacks in 2008 during a seven-year streak of at least 10 sacks per season. The four-time All-Pro is ninth in club history with 710 tackles. ' ' '