Just like the Anthony Mantha injury announced last week by the Detroit Red Wings, which originally was deemed to be nothing more than a minor inconvenience initially by all parties involved before the official diagnosis, Pavel Datsyuk's injury news following Monday night's win in Pittsburgh closely mirrors Mantha's situation. Despite original statements from both Datsyuk and the club that they were not overly concerned, GM Ken Holland announced today that the club would be without Datsyuk for close to a month or so:
Pavel Datsyuk has a second-degree shoulder separation and is out 4-5 weeks, Ken Holland said.
Perhaps the Red Wings are ecstatic Datsyuk's absence is not longer given the unfortunate luck they seem to have had over the past season when it comes to injuries. Nevertheless, missing out on the Magic Man for the beginning of the regular season is definitely not the start Mike Babcock and Red Wing fans were hoping for after watching Datsyuk struggle through knee pain for a large portion of last season.