Nicklas Lidstrom became just the eighth defenseman to crack the 1,000-point career barrier Thursday night, dishing out two assists as the Detroit Red Wings toppled the Los Angeles Kings 5-2 in Detroit.

Lidstrom, the first European-born defenseman to reach the 1,000-point plateau, assisted on goals in the second and third periods to reach the milestone. Lidstrom was credited with an assit on Tomas Holmstrom’s second-period goal at 8:47 in the second. In the third, Lidstrom tallied an assist at 3:24, on Henrik Zetterberg’s goal.

Detroit improved to 3-3-0 on the season on the milestone night for Lidstrom, who is eighth all time in points by an NHL defenseman.

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Ironically, the injury occurred during a game in which he scored the game-winning goal. But that’s of little comfort to Detroit, who will now be without one of its most talented players and the team’s second-leading scorer last season.

The Red Wings are better-equipped to deal with the loss of stars than most teams, though. With a deep roster that reloads seemingly every few seasons, don’t expect the loss of Franzen to knock this team off the Western Conference perch. It will certainly be a more difficult road to travel, but the Red Wings will find a way to finish at or near the top of the league standings, as usual.