All in all, you would have to say things have sort of turned positive for the Detroit Red Wings. Not much of the off-ice drama has been resolved, but the team has pulled together and recorded some wins.

Now the Red Wings get to return home to Little Caesars Arena with some momentum following their four-game road trip. Next up is the Chicago Blackhawks who will take the ice on Thursday evening.

Detroit will still be dealing with injuries, though. According to Ansar Khan on X, a reporter for MLive.com, Head coach Todd McLellan provided the latest updates on three injured players Wednesday after practice and, for this part of their world, the news wasn’t really positive.

Defenseman Albert Johansson has been ruled out for the Thursday matchup against Chicago. Forwards Marco Kasper and Mason Appleton are still about two weeks away from returning to game action.

Injuries have been a defining part of the Red Wings season so far and unfortunately, this is another setback. McLellan has to be getting used to adjusting and readjusting, as it has been a part of every game plan so far this season.

Even with all the injuries, trade talk, contract negotiations and missing general manager, Detroit has stayed competitive. They earned five of a possible eight points during their recent road trip.

The team recorded an impressive win against the Edmonton Oilers with rookie Michal Postava in the net. That improved their record to 5-4-3 on the year.

They will have to continue to find ways to win despite the injured list.

Albert Johansson Ruled Out for Blackhawks Game

Johansson’s injury announcement didn’t come with a timeline of return, so that is a bit concerning for the roster and schedule ahead. That leaves the team without a regular contributor on their blue line.

The 25-year-old defenseman suffered an undisclosed injury while playing against the Calgary Flames on Saturday. He was missing from the Edmonton game and will now be unavailable again against Chicago.

Given that Simon Edvinsson is still unsigned, this leaves even more young defensemen trying to handle the responsibilities.

Both William Wallinder and Anton Johansson have been getting playing time, while Andreas Englund provides another option. But with a team trying to find some consistency through the lineup, the injuries are really making it difficult.

Kasper and Appleton Weeks Away

Even though Kasper and Appleton seem to have a timeline to return, the news isn’t that great.

Both forwards have been out since early October and from the sounds of McLellan, their immediate return is questionable.

The exact words were “probably two weeks away,” according to The Athletic’s Red Wings beat writer, Max Bultman. That’s not definite, that’s hopeful.

Kasper hasn’t played since the season opener on October 2. He suffered an upper-body injury in the game against the New York Rangers.

Appleton was only available a few more days as he hasn’t been back on the ice since October 4.

Emmitt Finnie and Michael Brandsegg-Nygard have taken advantage of the opportunities created due to the injuries, but they still have development work to do. Having Kasper and Appleton back would give the team some much needed depth.

Some Encouraging News

Not all the news on Wednesday was negative. Talk swirled when Dylan Larkin wasn’t on the ice for practice but it turned out that the veteran center was simply taking a maintenance day and according to McLellan, he is expected to play against Chicago.

Another major development was that goaltender Daniil Tarasov returned to practice. This brings about some questions regarding the net going forward. Michal Postava was impressive in his first start against one of the most dangerous offensive teams in the NHL, Edmonton.

Injuries continue to plague this team and it looks like the Red Wings should expect to continue shuffling players around waiting for everyone to be healthy.