Good news on the Mantha, Athanasiou fronts

There is good news and bad news for fans of the Detroit Red Wings. First, the good news. Helene St. James, who covers the Wings for the Detroit Free Press, said today that Anthony Mantha looks great at practice and there’s a real possibility he will get back in the team’s lineup on the weekend. St. James adds Mantha himself told her he’s been cleared by medical staff and just needs the all-good from GM Steve Yzerman. Despite not playing since November 23^rd, Mantha is still second on the team in scoring with 23 points, two behind leader Tyler Bertuzzi. 

Meanwhile, Andreas Athanasiou, who hasn’t played since December 7^th with an undisclosed illness, could also be drawing back into the lineup for Saturday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens. Athanasiou has 15 points in 29 games this season. 

Now for the bad news. It seems whatever Athanasiou is dealing with has spread to Dylan Larkin. 

Larkin, who is third on the team in scoring with 20 points, is not feeling well and did not practice with the team today. While Larkin did play in last night’s win over 5-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets, he did so with an illness that he says started bothering him yesterday morning. Whether he plays this weekend is anyone’s guess at this point. 

In other Red Wings news, the team has called up defenseman Madison Bowey from Grand Rapids. Blueliners Patrik Nemeth and Jonathan Ericsson were not at practice today. Both played in last night’s game against the Jets. Nemeth had over 25 minutes of ice time. Bowey has played 22 games with Detroit this season, recording eight points.