McInnes had tinkered with his team selection and formation after the disappointing defeat to Celtic last month but went back to basics in midweek.
Goalkeeper Scott Brown was restored between the sticks and the fearsome attacking trio of Hayes, McGinn and Pawlett reunited behind Adam Rooney, which resulted in a return to the form of earlier in the season.
Ash Taylor's second half header from a Barry Robson cross separated the sides in the Scottish Premiership clash at Pittodrie and McInnes said: "We had to show an improvement from Saturday as that wasn't good enough.
"John (Hughes) and his side are our biggest challengers for second spot, and it was important to win."
The former St Johnstone boss admitted his side had suffered a hangover from their recent defeat to Celtic, saying: "There has been a feeling of disappointment since the Celtic game and performances since then haven't been good enough.
"It says a lot that second is seen as a disappointment to them, but there's a lot to be pleased about.
"We want to finish second but there's still a lot to do and I don't think we were convincing towards the end of last season. There's always demand on an Aberdeen player to keep winning, and that's what we'll try to do."
Source: Sky Sports