Signs that Andreas Athanasiou is seriously considering playing in Europe this season.

The Detorit Red Wings have been in a tough contract battle with restricted free-agent forward Andreas Athanasiou, and now there are signs that Athanasiou is seriously preparing for a season overseas.

On Thursday TSN insider Bob McKenzie was a guest on TSN 1040 radio in Vancouver, and it was during that radio interview that he revealed that both Athanasiou and Columbus Blue Jackets forward Josh Anderson have both submitted their paperwork to Team Canada for potential Olympic participation.

"Now, you could go play in Europe this year and the added bonus this year, unlike other years, is you could play for the Canadian Olympic team," said McKenzie as per Fanrag's Chris Nichols. "And my understanding is that both Athanasiou and Anderson – all of their information has been submitted. They’re on the short list of 200 players that Hockey Canada puts into the IOC for pre-screening and credentials and all of those things to be on the safe side, anybody who is a possibility gets included."

Obviously Athanasiou would only be eligible for the Olympic Games if he were to play this season outside of the NHL, and the mere fact that he is seriously consider that to be a possibility should be a big concern for the Red Wings.

Of course there is still time for the Red Wings and Athanasiou to get a deal done, however that time is starting to run out rather quickly.