Red Wings Rumblings
The Red Wings have been bitten by the injury bug yet again. At practice yesterday, we learned that Elmer Soderblom and Erik Gustafsson could miss the remainder of the road trip. Gustafsson’s injury sounds a little more serious and he could likely be sidelined for an extended period according to head coach Todd McLellan. We can expect a call-up from Grand Rapids at some point today. Probably going to be a guy they feel comfortable sitting out, so I am not getting my hopes up for Nate Danielson or Amadeus Lombardi.
UPDATE: I was right! Brogan Rafferty and Austin Watson have been recalled from Grand Rapids.
Defenseman Jeff Petry, who hasn’t played a game since January 2nd, is skating with the team and is likely to return soon, but that won’t happen tomorrow in Vegas. Can’t say I’m excited about this at all. Obviously it’s great that he’s feeling better, but I doubt he will make this team any better. McLellan said Petry could be in line to play against Utah or Colorado.
This is where I would have “positivity corner” and remind everyone that the Wings could still make the playoffs, but I’m skipping that. Fact of the matter is that over the last 10 games, Detroit is the worst team in the NHL next to Philadelphia (both with records of 2-8-0). They are not playing playoff-caliber hockey and the schedule ahead of them is anything but a walk in the park. Still, I think the team took the right step this season. The biggest goof will be waiting to long to replace Derek Lalonde. Should have happened way sooner than it did, perhaps then we would be in a different position now.
Some NHL Items…
Ovechkin scores 888th goal, Caps clinch playoff spot
McDavid injured in OT loss
Have yourself a happy Friday and a good weekend, friends. We’ll keep an eye out for any roster moves ahead of tomorrow. Stay tuned.
