DETROIT — The Red Wings confirmed Friday morning that forward Andreas Athanasiou will be sidelined for one to two weeks with a knee sprain which was sustained in a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night:
#RedWings Andreas Athanasiou is out 1-2 weeks with a knee sprain.
— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) November 11, 2016
If you missed the play last night, you can watch it here (lol Canucks):
Vancouver still trails 2-0, now through 40 minutes. Shots favour the #Canucks 25-16. pic.twitter.com/0cWQA3nBnJ
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) November 11, 2016
The Red Wings are now down a man, but have one healthy Drew Miller who is ready to be plugged into the lineup whenever. With Thomas Vanek on LTIR, the team could afford to make another call-up from Grand Rapids, but if you ask me, the Griffins have quite a busy schedule coming up, so the odds of the Wings recalling a forward seem slim.
The Griffins play Friday, and Saturday night, so there definitely will not be a call-up in time for their tilt in Montreal. If the team is thinking of pulling up a guy from the AHL, it will likely happen before Tuesday, when the Lightning come to town. Thomas Vanek will be eligible to come off of LTIR that same week, on the 18th, when the Wings are in D.C. to face the Capitals. It could be entirely possible the team rolls with what it has until then, assuming Vanek is feeling good enough to play.
So, I wouldn’t expect a call-up, and if there was to be one, it would be before the Tampa game, on a very temporary stint for who gets the call.
UPDATE:
Okay, so… We were wrong. SORRY. Pleiness confirms that the Red Wings are recalling Anthony Mantha (literally seconds after we posted the article, too). He is a force when he plays against the Habs after all:
With Andreas Athanasiou is out 1-2 weeks with a knee sprain the Wings will recall Anthony Mantha.
— Chuck Pleiness (@wingsfrontman) November 11, 2016
