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Athanasiou Makes His Points |
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Every dayers.
That’s what Mike Babcock would call them when he was coaching the Detroit Red Wings, referencing the players he could count on to show up and bring everything they had to the ice on every given day.
“Any player that wants to go from being a good player to a great player has to show up every single night and compete like crazy,” explained Detroit coach Jeff Blashill to Detroitredwings.com. “That’s what all the great players in the league do.”
That’s the sort of commitment Blashill is looking to get from his core of young forwards. He already has it from Dylan Larkin, and it looks like Anthony Mantha has also finally got the message. There’s even signs that Andreas Athanasiou may be willing to give up his occasional cheating ways in search of instant offense in order to become a complete NHL player.
As Athanasiou and the Wings take the ice Friday in Winnipeg to face the Jets, in 52 games he has already equaled his 2016-17 output of 29 points in 64 games. He’s picked up the pace of late, with goals in the past two games and 3-2-5 totals and a plus-four rating over the past five games.
“I think Andreas has improved his game from a year ago in a consistency perspective of winning puck battles and winning puck races and those types of things,” Blashill said. “Certainly that’s where with a guy like Andreas or any of our young players, that’s where our growth will come from. Making sure it’s an every shift, every game thing.”
Back in the fall, when the NHL season got underway, Athanasiou wasn’t part of the Detroit Red Wings. A contract dispute kept him at home.
He eventually signed, and after missing the first 10 games of the season, got into action and quickly found his legs, scoring four goals in his first 11 games. But then he went goalless for 15 games. He also endured a 13-goal drought without lighting a red lamp from Jan. 20 to Feb. 18.
The learning process continues for Athanasiou, who possesses world-class speed but is still discovering ways to make an impact with his burst when he’s not in possession of the puck. Overall, the numbers indicate that he is steadily starting to figure it out.
“I think I’m just playing my game and I think getting a little bit more opportunity to produce a little more,” Athanasiou said. “I think it just comes with that.”
Green Confirmed
As was anticipated yesterday, defenseman Mike Green will return to action Friday following a seven-game absence due to a neck injury.
“I expect Mike Green to play tonight,” Blashill said.
Others may not be so lucky. Although he declined to elaborate, Blashill suggested at least one player might not answer the bell.
“We might have a little illness issue, so not everyone’s necessarily available,” Blashill said.
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