Green out; Hronek's Chance To Shine

The loss of Mike Green will prove to be a gain for Filip Hronek. Green is out of the lineup Tuesday as the Detroit Red Wings face the Colorado Avalanche. “He’s had a reactivation of the virus that he had earlier in the season,… Wings coach Jeff Blashill told Detroitredwings.com of Green. “Right now, we expect him to be out 7-10 days. We’ll re-evaluate when we get back home. “He’s got an appointment set up and we’ll see where it goes from there. I don’t have any more information than that.… At Tuesday’s morning skate, rookie Hronek was slotted into Green’s spot in Detroit’s top defensive pairing alongside Danny DeKeyser. Hronek also took reps in Green’s spot with the No. 1 power-play unit. “With every minute here, I’m getting more comfortable,… Hronek said. “I feel better. “I’m playing with good players, so that’s helped me for sure. It’s easier now than it was before.… The intention all along was to give Hronek more of a chance to play key minutes over the final month of the season and without Green, it’s become almost mandatory. “He’s going to continue to get those minutes,… Blashill said. “I just think as a group, a bunch of guys got to step up. Obviously, can Madison Bowey continue to take steps here? I thought last game was better than his first game. Can he continue to take steps? “Can Fil … he played 22 minutes last game, he’s not going to play a whole bunch more than that. Does his game continue to get better and better? We just need continued growth from those guys.… The Wings will welcome back Trevor Daley (back) to the defense and Thomas Vanek (hip) from the walking wounded. “Dales comes back in, so it gives us a real good veteran coming back in the lineup, so you’re missing one but you have another,… Blashill said. The Wings hope that Hronek can find his footing down the stretch and evolve into an NHL regular in much the same way that left-winger Tyler Bertuzzi did last season. When we traded (Nick) Jensen (to Washington), we knew some of those minutes were going to go to Fil Hronek, so a little bit of this is learning on the fly,… Blashill said. “We think he’s had pretty good preparation over the full year last year and half year this year and we think he’s ready for it, similar to what we thought Tyler was. “That doesn’t mean it goes without growing pains, there will be growing pains, especially on the back end, it’s a harder position. When you make mistakes, they’re more glaring then up front, but we think ultimately Filip is going to grow into a top-four defenseman on a winning team. We think he can help you win. “In the meantime, we just need to make sure there’s more steps forward than backward and I think he’s done a good job being mentally tough, too.… Follow me on Twitter @asktheduffer