Helene St. James of The Detroit Free Press is reporting that Detroit Red Wings defenseman Jeff Petry could miss tomorrow night’s game against the Washington Capitals as he is dealing with an illness. Petry didn’t participate in practice today and could be a game-time decision against the Capitals. The 36-year-old is in his first season with the Red Wings after being traded twice last year and has posted two goals and 17 assists in 62 games while averaging just a shade under 19 minutes of ice time per game.
Petry has struggled as of late, registering just a single assist in his last 11 games while going -11. His underlying numbers are some of the worst he’s had in his 14-year NHL career, which isn’t all that surprising for a 36-year-old defenseman who has seen a decline in his game for the past few seasons.
In other Red Wings notes:
- Helene St. James also tweeted that Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde wasn’t sure about defenseman Jake Walman ’s availability for tomorrow night’s game against Washington. Walman joined practice today for the first time since being injured on March 17th in a 6-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Lalonde said the team would wait to see how Walman responds to the practice before deciding his availability for tomorrow night’s game but didn’t feel it was likely that he would play. The 28-year-old has averaged almost 20 minutes a game this season on Detroit’s backend, dressing in 61 games and registering 12 goals and nine assists.
- Ansar Khan of MLive is reporting that Red Wings netminder Ville Husso has had a few setbacks and likely isn’t ready to get back into game action yet as he attempts to return to the lineup from injury. Lalonde added that when Husso is comfortable enough to play it will likely be in a conditioning assignment with their AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids. Husso has played just 8:48 since suffering a lower-body injury back on December 18th. He returned on February 13th but once again suffered an injury and was forced to leave the game after playing less than half a period and facing just eight shots.