Jeff Blashill began his Thursday morning chat with the media with two pieces of news: Dylan Larkin will miss Thursday night's game against the Rangers, and Mike Green is done for the season.
For Larkin, the problem is "a lingering back issue," Blashill said, that first came up earlier in the season and has recently returned. It's not yet clear when Larkin might return. Blashill said he'll have a better idea on Friday after the Red Wings' back specialist reviews the results of Larkin's MRI.
"He had a little bit of it earlier in the year, it went away and then he's had it here in the last little bit. I don't know if it was a hit (he took) or not. He’s tried to play through it. It’s really bothered him at different times to a point that I didn't know if he would finish some games," said Blashill.
He added he's "not concerned" about Larkin long-term.
In 65 games this season, Larkin has 27 goals and 62 points. He's been the Red Wings best player on a nightly basis.
The 22-year-old missed one game last month with a strained oblique. He's played in at least 80 games each of his first three seasons, though that streak is now in jeopardy.
With Larkin out of the lineup, Blashill said an opportunity is at hand for a number of players to prove they deserve more ice time. Larkin plays 21:51 per night, the most on the team.
"Larks eats up lots of minutes and he's gotten lots of opportunity. He's earned that ice time, but there's other guys in this room that want more ice time, so this is a great opportunity for them to show that with more ice time they can help us win hockey games," said Blashill. "I think it's an unbelievable opportunity for those guys."
As for Green, the liver virus that sidelined him for the first nine games of the season is back. The prognosis is "multiple weeks of rest," said Blashill, "which puts him out for the season."
"Since about the All-Star break, he's been fatigued," Blashill added. "He really tried to play through it and probably hasn't played to the level that he had previously, but a lot of that was just based off fatigue."
Green was second on the team in ice time (21:41) behind Larkin, and led all defensemen with 26 points in 43 games. The 33-year-old is signed through 2020. He should make a full recovery in the offseason.
"I have not been told of any concern long term, and I think that's important to say," Blashill said. "Obviously like anything else in life, you never know, you take everything day to day.
"I think it’s a virus that they feel with proper rest he’ll be fine, but you can’t get proper rest when you're going through an NHL season. The purpose of holding him out for the rest of the year is so that he can fully recover. Once he's fully recovered he should be totally fine."
With Green done for the season, Blashill confirmed that rookie defenseman Filip Hronek will be with the Red Wings for the rest of the year. The 21-year-old was recalled from Grand Rapids in mid-February and has earned the trust of the coaching staff playing on the top D-pair with Danny DeKeyser.
"I think he earned our trust prior to the trade deadline," Blashill said. "When (Nick Jensen) was moved, (Hronek) was put into that role with DK. Now you’re playing against the other team’s best, you’re playing on the PK and you’re playing on our top power play unit. He’s done a really good job.
"I think he’s proven himself to be a guy that looks like, for sure, a top four defenseman in this league. And that’s great for our organization."