MLive’s Ansar Khan took note of Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill’s comments regarding Darren Helm, who recently completed participation in the NHL’s COVID protocol:
Helm has been unavailable to play or practice since Jan. 2 due to the NHL’s COVID protocols.
“You miss that much time, 14 days of not exercising basically, it’s going to take a little bit,” coach Jeff Blashill said after the morning skate, prior to tonight’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes at Little Caesars Arena (7 p.m., Fox Sports Detroit). “I can’t put an exact timeline on it, but certainly need a number of great skates and practices.
“Tomorrow will be his first chance to really practice with us and it won’t be a long practice, so that gets hard. We’re going to have to maximize the skates he has and get him back going at full speed. We won’t put him in until … depending on a number of factors, most importantly his readiness to be an impact player and how the rest of the players are doing.”
