NHL Shuts Down Detroit Red Wings Through Holiday Break
The NHL announced today that due to continued COVID spread within the organization, the league has shut down the Detroit Red Wings through the holiday break.
Detroit’s facilities will be closed through at least December 26, the last day of the holiday break. Until then, players and staff have effectively been sent home.
As a result of the shutdown, Detroit’s game originally scheduled for Thursday against the Minnesota Wild is postponed. It’s the 40th NHL game to be postponed this season, further casting Olympic participation into doubt.
There are six Detroit players currently in COVID protocol – Filip Zadina, Carter Rowney, Givani Smith, Michael Rasmussen, Robby Fabbri, and Alex Nedeljkovic. Due to the nature of the release, it’s possible that more additions will be announced later tonight.
The Red Wings will come out of the holiday break with a 15-13-3 record and .532 points percentage, which is the fifth-best in the Atlantic Division.
Detroit’s shutdown was originally reported by Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli.
Filip Zadina Placed In COVID Protocol
The Detroit Red Wings placed forward Filip Zadina in COVID-19 protocol prior to their game Saturday against New Jersey, per a team tweet.
In his absence, the team will dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen.
Zadina has just four goals and six assists in 30 games this year but is shooting at an uncharacteristically low 5.6% rate. The 22-year-old forward is still developing and is expected to be a big part of this Detroit team in the future as they regain relevancy.
With Zadina out, Detroit now has six players on the COVID list — forwards Carter Rowney, Givani Smith, Michael Rasmussen, and Robby Fabbri, as well as netminder Alex Nedeljkovic.
The team was already stretched thin at the forward position with Taro Hirose and Riley Barber making their season debuts tonight.
Red Wings Place Three Players And Two Coaches In COVID Protocol
With the recent increase in COVID cases around the league, the last few days have had plenty of news about players and staff members entering COVID protocol and it appears today will continue that trend. The Red Wings announced (Twitter link) that goalie Alex Nedeljkovic, winger Carter Rowney and Givani Smith, head coach Jeff Blashill, and assistant coach Alex Tanguay have all been placed in protocol and will be unavailable for tonight’s game against New Jersey.
Detroit has been hit relatively hard by COVID-related absences this season as Tyler Bertuzzi, Marc Staal, and Danny DeKeyser have all missed time recently while Robby Fabbri and Michael Rasmussen are currently in protocol as well. The Red Wings have recalled winger Riley Barber and goaltender Calvin Pickard from Grand Rapids of the AHL in corresponding moves to be able to dress a full lineup against the Devils.
As for their coaching situation, the team announced in a follow-up tweet that assistant coach Doug Houda will be joined by a pair of coaches from AHL Grand Rapids – head coach Ben Simon and assistant coach Todd Krygier. As is the case with all other COVID protocol placements, each individual will need to miss at least ten days if follow-up testing confirms that they have indeed tested positive.