Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill provided an update on the condition of Henrik Zetterberg to reporters, including MLive’s Ansar Khan and the prognosis isn’t a good one. He noted that as things stand, he doesn’t expect the veteran to be ready to play in training camp and that if that is indeed the case, it’s doubtful that he will play at all in 2018-19. Zetterberg dealt with lingering back issues last season and the pain doesn’t appear to be going away. Detroit will be eligible to place his $6.083MM contract on LTIR if he is deemed unable to play during his physical at training camp next month.
Blashill also stated that Andreas Athanasiou is the most likely candidate to shift to center if Zetterberg is indeed out for the season. While Darren Helm is also a natural center, he has spent the bulk of the last few years on the wing but the coach believes the continuity of keeping him there is preferable for the Red Wings.
More from around the league:
- The contract for Martin Brodeur as the assistant GM in St. Louis expired back in June and although he was expected to return, that is no longer the case, reports Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic (subscription required). He spent the past three years in that capacity while also spending a year split between playing and being a special advisor with the Blues. Rutherford notes that his next destination is not yet known but it’s believed that he would like to return to the Devils at some point where he spent the majority of his Hall of Fame career.
- With training camps set to start within the next couple of weeks, Rick Nash remains the most prominent unrestricted free agent left on the market. Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy told Mark Divver of the Providence Journal (Twitter link) that he has yet to hear anything regarding the winger’s intentions for 2018-19. Boston acquired him just before the trade deadline to fill a role in their top-six and have yet to really fill that vacancy over the summer. If Nash does decide at some point to play, a return to Boston on a one-year pact would certainly be an option; he had stated back in May that he’d be open to returning there.