The Detroit Red Wings are hoping to have most of their injury woes ironed out by the time the NHL Playoffs begin, but nothing is guaranteed at this point. Goaltender Jimmy Howard is the biggest name still injured, and his return timetable has been all over the place. It's been that way for awhile now, with a broken finger keeping him out most of February, which was followed by a groin injury that made him miss some time in March.
Most recently, he aggravated the groin injury and has been out since exiting a March 19 game against the Washington Capitals. Originally, Howard said he expected to be back in action on March 24 against the Carolina Hurricanes, but two days later, and he's still not back. On Monday, they'll play the Columbus Blue Jackets without Howard.
Fortunately, there is now another "target" date for Howard's return. According to Ansar Khan on Twitter, Howard expects to be in net on Friday against the Nashville Predators. Nothing is confirmed yet, especially given how his other timetables have fell apart. This means that Howard will also miss the other half of the home-and-home against the Blue Jackets on Wednesday, either way.
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