Red Wings shut down Datsyuk; hope it's not for rest of the season

The Detroit Red Wings' top line has taken some big hits this season - hell, it seems the entire roster has been on their injured reserved list at one point or another - but the latest, and cruelest, hit of all could end Detroit's run of 22 consecutive playoff appearances.

Pavel Datsyuk, he of the wounded knee that caused an Olympic-sized soap opera when he skated on it in the Sochi games as captain of the Russian team, has been shut down by team physicians for a period of three weeks - similar to when he was on the IR in January, but this time the team wants him to just stay off of the limb.

"We're going to re-address this thing in three weeks," General Manager Ken Holland said on Wednesday. "It doesn't mean he will be back. It allows, in his own mind, that his body has a period of time to rest."

"Let's see if we can wake up in three weeks and the inflammation that's not allowing him to do the things he wants to do - let's see if this is the answer." Holland continued during a lengthy press conference that has a distinctly state-of-the-nation feel to it. "If it's not the answer, then we'll look at what's next. We're hoping in three-to-four weeks, Pav is out here zipping around and we're having conversations about when he's coming back."

"If it doesn't work, then obviously we can have a conversation in the offseason or six weeks from now about maybe having some type of surgery," Holland said. "Right now, we're hoping this plan of attack is [going to] allow us to wake up in three weeks, three or four weeks, and have [him] practicing and thinking about getting back in our lineup."

"The last thing you want is surgery.  Hoping these things heal on their own."

The Red Wings are already missing captain Henrik Zetterberg, centermen Stephen Weiss and Darren Helm and forwards Daniel Cleary and Mikael Samuelsson - but picked up reinforcements in veteran pivot David Legwand from the Nashville Predators in a trade deadline deal, and Holland expects that the Hockeytown native will step right onto the top line, centering Gustav Nyquist and Johan Franzen.

Legwand is a consistent playmaker, dishing out 30 dimes thus far in the season to go along with ten goals, so Holland feels they got just what they needed once they committed to finding a center before the deadline

"We think we found the perfect fit." Holland beamed.

 http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/03/red-wings-shut-down-datsyuk-hope-its.html