Breaking: Attitude issues may be behind Mrazek's exclusion from protected list.

It sounds like the Detroit Red Wings and veteran goaltender Petr Mrazek may be headed for a rather ugly break up. 

One of the biggest surprises this week was the reveal that the Detroit Red Wings, and more specifically general manager Ken Holland, had made the decision not to protect Mrazek, and instead protect veteran Jimmy Howard,

While it is true that Mrazek is coming off a bad season, one that saw Howard outperform him consistently while healthy, it may not be just his poor play on the ice that led to this decision.

From Mlive.com:

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Part of the reason Mrazek's luster has faded could be due to deportment issues that can be traced to contentious off-season contract negotiations (they settled on a two-year, $8 million deal; Mrazek will be a restricted free agent in 2018).

Mrazek was not happy the Red Wings were unable to trade Howard in the off-season and let the club know in less-than-tactful terms.

Even if the Golden Knights do not select Mrazek, Holland will have sent him a very strong message while also likely damaging his value moving forward. One has to wonder how the Red Wings and Mrazek would continue their relationship in that scenario.