Riley Sheahan on the power play?
What?
It’s a fair question to ask - why would any team put a player who has scored zero goals through 32 games this season out on the ice while enjoying the man advantage?
Detroit Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill understands your concern and doesn’t mind explaining his thought process one bit.
“I get the zero goals,… Blashill acknowledged, “but I don’t think anybody’s lighting it up in terms of production, across the board.
“What purpose does he serve? He probably does as good a job as anybody we have available to us right now of getting in front of the goalie’s eyes, and I think we’re going to have a hard time scoring if we don’t get in front of the goalie’s eyes better.…
Minus the injured Justin Abdelkader, the Wings are shy of forwards capable of going to the net and causing a disruption there.
“Mantha I think is learning that,… Blashill said of rookie forward Anthony Mantha. “I think in time Anthony will be great at it. We’ll continue to work with him and he’ll continue to get power-play opportunities that way but you have to find a way to make sure you’re in front of the goalie’s eyes.…
Being a big-body presence is not the only quality that Sheahan can bring to the unit.
“He’s a pretty good faceoff guy on the right side,… Blashill said. “We didn’t have another guy - Larks (Dylan Larkin) hasn’t been great on the right side, so we’ve got to try to find a way to win the faceoff.…
Green Ailing? Defenseman Mike Green struggled to get off the ice after he was hit by Anaheim forward Ryan Kesler late in Detroit’s 6-4 win over the Ducks on Saturday.
All the Wings would say regarding Green’s condition was that it was an undisclosed injury and he was day to day. He made the trip to Carolina for Monday’s game against the Hurricanes.
Bertuzzi Improving Out since suffering a left high ankle sprain in a Nov. 25 game against the Montreal Canadiens, Detroit forward Tyler Bertuzzi has resumed skating and is beginning to progress toward a return to action.
“I feel good,… Bertuzzi said. “I’ve done a couple skates and I’m just easing back into it.…
He’s also on the road trip with the team, though he’s still a long way from being able to play.
“Yeah. Just ‘cause I’m skating,… Bertuzzi said. “We all think it’s better to get some more ice time in and some more treatment.…
Where Bertuzzi goes from here is still an issue that is to be determined.
“I’m still not really sure,… Bertuzzi said. “I’m just finally skating, feeling a little bit better and I’ll just keep moving forward.…
The next step would be to skate with the team in a practice or morning skate.
“I’m hoping maybe soon, maybe early after Christmas or maybe even before,… Bertuzzi said. “We’ll decide that.…
Naturally, being out for so long, conditioning will be an issue in his return to the lineup.
“Obviously that’s a big part of coming back after missing a month,… Bertuzzi said. “I’ve just got to work hard every day in the gym and it’s going to slowly come back. You’ve just gotta keep working at it every day.…
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