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Pulkkinen couldn't score enough to save his spot

October 10, 2016, 7:26 PM ET [26 Comments]
Bob Duff
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Teemu Pulkkinen is the latest forward left to go to bed wondering if he’s spent his last day as part of the Detroit Red Wings organization.

One day after Martin Frk was claimed off waivers by the Carolina Hurricanes, fellow right-winger Pulkkinen, as well as forward Ben Street were also placed on waivers by the Wings.

Waiving Pulkkinen was not a move the Wings wanted to make but a series of scenarios conspired to make it so.

Firstly, the knee ailment plaguing Niklas Kronwall isn’t serious enough to place him on the injured list but will likely keep him out of the opening-week lineup, forcing the Wings to begin the season carrying eight defensemen.

“We think Nik Kronwall is going to play here in a week or two, so we’re not putting him on long-term IR,” Detroit general manager Ken Holland said. “We want to carry eight defensemen, so we’re only carrying 13 forwards and two goaltenders.

“When the roster is named tomorrow, we’re going to have the 13 forwards that we think – we being (assistant GM) Ryan Martin and myself and coach (Jeff) Blashill, and from talking to (special assistant to the GM) Kris Draper and the assistant coaches – that we think are going to give us the best chance to win games starting Thursday in Tampa.”

A shoulder injury that required off-season surgery and left Pulkkinen late to the party in training camp also put him behind the eight ball in the battle for a roster spot.

The good news for Wings fans is that by waiving Pulkkinen, the Wings will keep one of either Anthony Mantha or Andreas Athanasiou on their season-opening roster, a scenario that appeared unlikely when Detroit concluded preseason play Saturday against Toronto.

Pulkkinen, who led the AHL in goals with 34 in 46 games in 2014-15, couldn’t translate that minor-league scoring prowess into NHL sniper status. He’s scored 11 times in 70 NHL games with Detroit but just once in his last 20 games. The team did everything to get him going last season – playing him on the power play, where they hoped his right-shot one-timer would be beneficial, even skating him on the same line with Pavel Datsyuk but Pulkkinen could never find any consistency.

He wasn’t able to locate the open space he could find in the AHL and on the rare occasions that he did, Pulkkinen too often was too slow in his release and was unable to deliver the puck to the net. And the bottom line with Pulkkinen’s game is if he doesn’t score, there’s not much else he brings to the table to make him an NHLer.

“Teemu is a hard-working player,” Detroit coach Jeff Blashill said. “He’s done everything I have ever asked to do. I have an unreal amount of respect for him as a player and as a person. I really, really like him. He’s a big time competitor.”

But in the big leagues, they don’t keep you around because they like you.

“Teemu has to score goals,” Blashill said. “You hate to be results orientated, but when you’re not big and you’re not fast and your weapon is your shot you have to score goals. That’s what made him a difference maker at the American League level and I still think he can be a difference maker at this level.

“That time isn’t right now.”

Hockey people question whether Pulkkinen has the foot speed to be a consistent producer at the NHL level.

If that’s the case, Pulkkinen could join a long list of AHL scoring stars who never made the NHL grade as regulars, players like Willie Marshall, Jody Gage, Mal Davis, Donald MacLean, and Alexander Giroux, to name a few.

Come Tuesday at noon, Pulkkinen’s chance to prove he doesn’t belong on this list may come with a different NHL team.

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