The Detroit Red Wings will be without two key centers when they face off against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night in Saint Paul, Minn.
Andrew Copp and Michael Rasmussen will not make the trip because of injuries, Detroit coach Todd McLellan said. Copp was placed on IR because of an undisclosed injury sustained Saturday. Rasmussen is sidelined after taking a hit to the head Sunday from Anaheim Ducks forward Trevor Zegras, who received a three-game suspension from the league on Monday.
McLellan said the players’ absence would create additional playing time for others. Christian Fischer and Tyler Motte could help fill the void, and on Monday the team recalled center Sheldon Dries from AHL affiliate Grand Rapids.
Dries, 30, has skated in 122 career games, and if he plays Tuesday, it will mark his Red Wings debut. He has 16 goals and 10 assists in parts of five seasons with Colorado and Vancouver.
“An unfortunate thing for one leads to (an) opportunity for the other,” McLellan said. “Cliche — a coach is going to say that — that’s just what we do. But that’s the truth.
“We have what we have, and we have enough.”
The Wild are riding a three-game winning streak, including a 4-3 overtime win on the road against Detroit in their most recent game Saturday. They have won six of their past eight games but also face adversity with injuries, namely the absence of top forward Kirill Kaprizov, who is sidelined because of a lower-body injury.
A big part of Minnesota’s recent success has been the performance of defenseman Brock Faber and forward Matt Boldy. Both players shined on the international stage as they played prominent roles for Team USA in the 4 Nations Face-Off.
This will be the first game for Faber and Boldy back in Minnesota since the tournament.
“It was nice to see (Faber) respond like that in a high-stakes environment in a best-on-best tournament, playing against the best and being relied upon five-on-five and on the penalty kill,” Wild coach John Hynes said. “It was nice to see that. … He and (Boldy) both did a good job and rose to the occasion and really got better and better as the tournament went on.”
The experience could make both players even stronger down the stretch in the regular season.
“Now when you come back here, now you’re playing, say, a top-six role or a top-three role, it’s understanding that is the intensity level and the game you need to bring regardless of who you’re playing with or what situation you’re in,” Hynes said.
Lucas Raymond leads the Red Wings with 63 points (22 goals, team-high 41 assists) in 57 games. Dylan Larkin ranks second with 53 points (24 goals, 29 assists) in 57 games, and Alex DeBrincat is third with 49 points (26, 23) in 57 games.
After Kaprizov, the Wild’s next-leading scorer is Boldy with 50 points (21, 29) in 57 games. Marco Rossi is third on the team with 49 points (20, 29), also in 57 games.
Filip Gustavsson is expected to start in net for Minnesota. He is 22-11-3 with a 2.63 goals-against average and a .915 save percentage this season.
Detroit will start either Cam Talbot or Alex Lyon in net. Talbot is 16-11-3 with a 2.88 GAA and a .906 save percentage, and Lyon is 11-6-1 with a 2.74 GAA and a .902 save percentage.
The Red Wings traded goaltender Ville Husso on Monday to Anaheim for future considerations. Husso was 1-5-2 with a 3.69 GAA and an .866 save percentage in nine games this season.
–Field Level Media
