The Red Wings recalled John Leonard from the Grand Rapids Griffins on Sunday, a day after a 5-4 loss to the Blues.
Detroit made the move official Sunday morning. Leonard is a 28-year-old left winger who wears #43 and has yet to appear in an NHL game this season.
His NHL résumé is short. Over his career he has 81 games, 8 goals and 13 assists, and he carries a -16 rating.
Sixth-round picks rarely stick, and Leonard was one, taken 182nd overall by the San Jose Sharks in 2018. He has spent his career fighting for depth minutes, and he has 1 power-play goal and 3 power-play assists to show for it.
The announcement gives no reason for the move and no word on whether he'll be in the lineup. Nobody should pretend to know who he replaces.
Last night's game, a 5-4 loss to St. Louis, was a strange one for Detroit. Lucas Raymond had a goal and an assist and fired 4 shots, and Emmitt Finnie scored on the power play with 5 shots of his own.
John Gibson stopped 10 of 15 shots in a loss that left the Red Wings 6-5-3 and 21st in the NHL.
Detroit's goals-against problem is bigger than one roster spot
The Red Wings have scored 41 goals and allowed 43, a -2 differential that explains a team sitting 8th in the Atlantic. A recalled winger doesn't change that math by himself.
Joel Hofer made 24 saves for the Blues, and Aleksanteri Kaskimaki scored the winner. Detroit's top end showed up. J.T. Compher and Keegan Kolesar scored too, and still the Wings left with one fewer point than they needed.
Detroit's official account confirmed the recall on Sunday morning.
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The record at home is 4-4-1, which is a real issue for a team that has been better away from Little Caesars Arena, where it's 2-1-2 on the road. Detroit is 5-2-3 over its last 10, so the larger picture isn't ugly, but the last result stung.
Next up is a trip to Florida on Monday. Whether Leonard gets his first look of the season there is the question Todd McLellan will answer at puck drop.
Should John Leonard get into the Red Wings lineup at Florida on Monday?
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