• HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • Site Index
  • NHL Salary Caps
  • Hockey 101: A Beginner’s Guide
  • Join Our Team
  • Free Newsletter
  • Store
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
Home
Detroit Red Wings

Which Red Wing Should Go When Datsyuk Returns?

By Tom Mitsos October 20th, 2014

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Pavel Datsyuk has been out with a shoulder injury since before the regular season started. However, according to MLive.com’s Ansar Khan, the Detroit Red Wings think he’ll be ready for Tuesday’s game against Montreal.

@teude21 @Datsyuk13 @jp55wings He’s not expected to play tonight. They think he’ll be ready for Tuesday’s game in Montreal.

— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) October 18, 2014

Good news for the Red Wings, but it means someone is going to have to go to make room on the roster. Here are the three players the Red Wings most likely will send to Grand Rapids.

Tomas Jurco

 facebook.com/JENNIFERLEIGHPHOTO

facebook.com/JENNIFERLEIGHPHOTO

Sending Tomas Jurco to Grand Rapids would make the most sense from a personnel standpoint, but the least amount of sense from a talent perspective.

The kid line of Jurco, Riley Sheahan and Tomas Tatar has been one of the most consistent lines for the Red Wings. They have just three points among the three of them, but none of them have a minus rating and are constantly outworking the opposition and creating scoring opportunities.

Unfortunately for Jurco, he is the only player on the roster who is waiver exempt, which makes it easy for general manager Ken Holland to send him to Grand Rapids without the risk of him being subjected to waivers.

There was talk before the season started that Jurco might have to start in Grand Rapids. However, Daniel Alfredsson had a set back with his back, which made room for Jurco on the roster.

Jurco should stay with the Red Wings, but this is the player I think most likely will be sent to Grand Rapids.

Daniel Cleary

Detroit Red Wing Daniel Cleary - Photo By:  Andy Martin Jr

Detroit Red Wing Daniel Cleary – Photo By: Andy Martin Jr

This is the player who should be sent to Grand Rapids. Daniel Cleary has yet to play in a game to start 2014-15, as he has been a healthy scratch for the first five games.

Cleary has the ability to be an asset, but he’s far too inconsistent, and there are faster, younger guys on the roster who can do everything he can.

However, the odds of Cleary being sent to Grand Rapids are slim to none. Holland re-signed Cleary in the offseason to a one-year deal after promising Cleary he would take care of him when Cleary opted to not sign with Philadelphia during the summer of 2013.

Taking care of a player doesn’t involve sending him to the minors. I think Cleary would rather sit in the press box and await an opportunity to play with the Red Wings than go down to Grand Rapids.

Coach Mike Babcock likes his locker room presence, and he and Holland will no doubt want to keep him in Detroit.

Andrej Nestrasil

(Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports)

(Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports)

There is a chance Detroit could send Andrej Nestrasil back to Grand Rapids purely on the fact he is the least experienced of anyone on the team.

After having an impressive preseason, Nestrasil has been nonexistent during the regular season. He has no points and is a minus-1 in five games, mostly playing on a line with Darren Helm and Gustav Nyquist.

However, Nestrasil is not waiver exempt. The odds of a team picking up Nestrasil over Cleary are much higher, although I could see Nestrasil making it through.

He has shown some flashes of brilliance, and I’d much rather see Nestrasil stay with the Red Wings than Cleary. However, we’ve seen more-deserving players get sent to the minors before, so it wouldn’t be unheard of if it happened again.

Should Datsyuk return to the lineup Tuesday, here’s how I expect the lines to look, with Jurco being the player sent to Grand Rapids.

First Line: Henrik Zetterberg-Pavel Datsyuk-Gustav Nyquist

Second Line: Tomas Tatar–Riley Sheahan-Andrej Nestrasil

Third Line:  Stephen Weiss-Darren Helm-Justin Abdelkader

Fourth Line: Drew Miller-Luke Glendening-Joakim Andersson

Scratches: Daniel Cleary, Johan Franzen (injury)

 

  • Tags
  • Andrej Nestrasil
  • Dan Cleary
  • Pavel Datsyuk
  • Tomas Jurco
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Get theScore App Now!
Recent Posts
Jan 21st 10:15 AM
Anaheim Ducks

3 Takeaways From the Ducks Series Against the Wild

Jan 21st 10:05 AM
Column

Prospects News & Rumors: Safonov, Coronato & Sebrango

Jan 21st 9:55 AM
San Jose Sharks

5 Sharks’ Takeaways From Blues Series: Faceoffs, Penalty Kills & More

Jan 21st 9:45 AM
Commentary

2020-21 NHL Season Will Require More Depth Than Usual

Jan 21st 9:35 AM
New Jersey Devils

Devils Get Goaltending Depth With Aaron Dell Waiver Claim

Jan 21st 9:15 AM
Anaheim Ducks

Ducks Trying to Avoid Making Same Mistake by Starting Zegras in AHL

Jan 21st 9:05 AM
Boston Bruins

Bruins Fans Should Not Overreact to Slow Start

Jan 21st 8:55 AM
Montreal Canadiens

Canadiens’ Jake Evans Has Been a Pleasant Surprise on the Penalty Kill

Jan 21st 8:45 AM
Toronto Maple Leafs

Highly Anticipated Maple Leafs & Oilers Game Ends Up Underwhelming

Jan 21st 8:35 AM
Fantasy

5 Fantasy Hockey Free Agent Targets

Editor’s Picks
NHL TV Blackouts & Why They Happen?

NHL TV Blackouts & Why They Happen?

Masthead

Newsletters

RSS Feeds

Privacy Statement

Contact Us

About THW…

Founded in 2009, The Hockey Writers is a premier destination for news and information on everything hockey. Updated daily with news and features from over 130 writers worldwide. Over 2 million monthly readers now come to THW for their hockey fix.

© The Hockey Writers 2020. All rights reserved.
logo
  • HOME
  • Hockey Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • North Division
    • Calgary Flames
    • Edmonton Oilers
    • Montreal Canadiens
    • Ottawa Senators
    • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Vancouver Canucks
    • Winnipeg Jets
  • East Division
    • Boston Bruins
    • Buffalo Sabres
    • New Jersey Devils
    • New York Islanders
    • New York Rangers
    • Philadelphia Flyers
    • Pittsburgh Penguins
    • Washington Capitals
  • Central Division
    • Carolina Hurricanes
    • Chicago Blackhawks
    • Columbus Blue Jackets
    • Dallas Stars
    • Detroit Red Wings
    • Florida Panthers
    • Nashville Predators
    • Tampa Bay Lightning
  • West Division
    • Anaheim Ducks
    • Arizona Coyotes
    • Colorado Avalanche
    • Los Angeles Kings
    • Minnesota Wild
    • San Jose Sharks
    • Seattle Kraken
    • St Louis Blues
    • Vegas Golden Knights
  • World Juniors
  • CHL
    • Ontario Hockey League
    • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
    • Western Hockey League
  • THW Podcast Network
  • Store
  • FREE Newsletter
  • Search THW
  • More…
    • Join Our Team
    • The THW Archives
    • Prospects
    • The Goalie Page
    • NHL Salary Cap Information