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We all knew this was coming.
Mlive.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. ? There was a time when Gustav Nyquist never thought he'd get a chance to suit up in the playoffs for the Detroit Red Wings.
Now, the rookie forward is going to be filling a major role in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series against the Nashville Predators.
Nyquist will make his NHL playoff debut Friday night at Bridgestone Arena, where he'll play on the Red Wings' third line in the spot vacated by Darren Helm, who was lost for the season in Game 1 after suffering a cut on his left forearm that required surgery.
"If it happens, I'm definitely looking forward to it," said Nyquist, 22. "Looking back, I didn't even think I'd get a chance to play in the playoffs when the season started. But you know, it's exciting and if it happens, it's going to be a lot of fun."
Nyquist played most of the season with the Red Wings' top farm club in Grand Rapids, where he set the Griffins' all-time rookie scoring record with 22 goals and 36 assists in 56 games.
But his job against the Predators will be just the opposite. He'll be focused on keeping the puck out of the Red Wings' net but won't fill Helm's role on the penalty killing units.
Helm, who was playing his first game after missing the final 10 of the regular-season because of a sprained left medial collateral ligament, went down with about 6? minutes left in the first period Wednesday.
He was killing a penalty when he checked Nashville's Alexander Rudalov, whose right skate caught Helm on the arm when his legs flew into the air as he was falling to the ice.
"That's a huge blow for us," Nyquist said. "Obviously, he's a huge part of our team, bringing in energy, getting in on the forecheck, and he's one of the best skaters in the league. Everyone is going to have to dig in and play hard when he's not in the lineup."
In practice Thursday, Nyquist skated on the third line with Justin Abdelkader and Danny Cleary. Drew Miller was moved to fourth line with Cory Emmerton and Tomas Holmstrom to make a spot for Nyquist.
Several Red Wings said one player won't be able to replace what Helm gives them.
"He's been a big part of our success all year," Adelkader said. "It's tough. We just have to come together. Everyone has to do their part, come together. It's a tough deal. Bad break. But just come together as a team, everyone just doing their job, everyone pulling the rope together.
"I'm just going to play my same game, hopefully be effective and help the team as much as possible. Obviously, injuries are always great opportunities. It's an opportunity. Hopefully, we'll come together as a team and somebody will step up."
Helm's injury happened so quickly and was such a fluke thing that many of the Red Wings were unaware he had gotten hurt until he skated to the bench and went directly to the dressing room with trainer Piet Van Zant in pursuit.
It even a took a few moments for Helm to realize what had happened as he was skating back toward the middle of the ice before looking down at his arm and then quickly heading to the bench.
Defensemen Kyle Quincey and Niklas Kronwall were on the ice killing the penalty with Helm and said they never saw what happened. Neither did goaltender Jimmy Howard.
"Anytime you see a guy going through that, first game back and three minutes in shift time, boom something like that happens, it's awful," said Howard, who was following the puck toward the middle of the ice when Helm was cut. "I just hope he makes a speedy recovery.
"This is where the depth of the organization steps up. It's tough to replace Helmer, how he competes out there, how great of a job he does on the penalty kill. But this is an opportunity for guys to step up and play in his spot."
Kronwall agreed.
"It's definitely a good opportunity for one of the younger guys," he said. "Abby will obviously get a bigger role than he already has. He's been doing a great job since Helmer was out.
"I feel bad for Helm. He's a huge part of our team but hopefully we can find some other bodies to step up."
In 18 games with the Red Wings this season, Nyquist had one goal, six assists and a plus-2 rating.
"They've got a lot of players they can fill in there," said Nashville defenseman Kevin Klein. "They've got a lot of talent over there. Yeah, they'll probably miss him but I'm sure somebody will probably step up in his place."
Mlive.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. ? There was a time when Gustav Nyquist never thought he'd get a chance to suit up in the playoffs for the Detroit Red Wings.
Now, the rookie forward is going to be filling a major role in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series against the Nashville Predators.
Nyquist will make his NHL playoff debut Friday night at Bridgestone Arena, where he'll play on the Red Wings' third line in the spot vacated by Darren Helm, who was lost for the season in Game 1 after suffering a cut on his left forearm that required surgery.
"If it happens, I'm definitely looking forward to it," said Nyquist, 22. "Looking back, I didn't even think I'd get a chance to play in the playoffs when the season started. But you know, it's exciting and if it happens, it's going to be a lot of fun."
Nyquist played most of the season with the Red Wings' top farm club in Grand Rapids, where he set the Griffins' all-time rookie scoring record with 22 goals and 36 assists in 56 games.
But his job against the Predators will be just the opposite. He'll be focused on keeping the puck out of the Red Wings' net but won't fill Helm's role on the penalty killing units.
Helm, who was playing his first game after missing the final 10 of the regular-season because of a sprained left medial collateral ligament, went down with about 6? minutes left in the first period Wednesday.
He was killing a penalty when he checked Nashville's Alexander Rudalov, whose right skate caught Helm on the arm when his legs flew into the air as he was falling to the ice.
"That's a huge blow for us," Nyquist said. "Obviously, he's a huge part of our team, bringing in energy, getting in on the forecheck, and he's one of the best skaters in the league. Everyone is going to have to dig in and play hard when he's not in the lineup."
In practice Thursday, Nyquist skated on the third line with Justin Abdelkader and Danny Cleary. Drew Miller was moved to fourth line with Cory Emmerton and Tomas Holmstrom to make a spot for Nyquist.
Several Red Wings said one player won't be able to replace what Helm gives them.
"He's been a big part of our success all year," Adelkader said. "It's tough. We just have to come together. Everyone has to do their part, come together. It's a tough deal. Bad break. But just come together as a team, everyone just doing their job, everyone pulling the rope together.
"I'm just going to play my same game, hopefully be effective and help the team as much as possible. Obviously, injuries are always great opportunities. It's an opportunity. Hopefully, we'll come together as a team and somebody will step up."
Helm's injury happened so quickly and was such a fluke thing that many of the Red Wings were unaware he had gotten hurt until he skated to the bench and went directly to the dressing room with trainer Piet Van Zant in pursuit.
It even a took a few moments for Helm to realize what had happened as he was skating back toward the middle of the ice before looking down at his arm and then quickly heading to the bench.
Defensemen Kyle Quincey and Niklas Kronwall were on the ice killing the penalty with Helm and said they never saw what happened. Neither did goaltender Jimmy Howard.
"Anytime you see a guy going through that, first game back and three minutes in shift time, boom something like that happens, it's awful," said Howard, who was following the puck toward the middle of the ice when Helm was cut. "I just hope he makes a speedy recovery.
"This is where the depth of the organization steps up. It's tough to replace Helmer, how he competes out there, how great of a job he does on the penalty kill. But this is an opportunity for guys to step up and play in his spot."
Kronwall agreed.
"It's definitely a good opportunity for one of the younger guys," he said. "Abby will obviously get a bigger role than he already has. He's been doing a great job since Helmer was out.
"I feel bad for Helm. He's a huge part of our team but hopefully we can find some other bodies to step up."
In 18 games with the Red Wings this season, Nyquist had one goal, six assists and a plus-2 rating.
"They've got a lot of players they can fill in there," said Nashville defenseman Kevin Klein. "They've got a lot of talent over there. Yeah, they'll probably miss him but I'm sure somebody will probably step up in his place."
