Red Wings’ Tyler Motte out day-to-day with upper-body injury

When speaking to the media on Friday, Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde revealed that forward Tyler Motte is out of the lineup while being evaluated for an upper-body injury, and is considered day-to-day.

Motte appeared to have been hurt during the first period on Thursday night against the New York Rangers. When chasing the puck in the neutral zone, the St. Clair, Michigan native reached for a loose puck, colliding awkwardly with Ranger defenseman Victor Mancini. It looked like Motte jarred his head in the incident, laying on the ice briefly, bringing play to a halt. He was able to get up under his own power and returned to the bench. Lalonde did not specify what Motte might have injured on the play.

Motte continued to play, totaling 9:33 of ice time across 12 shifts, registering a plus/minus of -1 in a 5-2 loss.

The team seemed to have filled the open roster spot, as top prospect Marco Kasper was called up from Detroit’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins, under emergency conditions.

This is Motte’s first season with the team from his home state. The 29-year-old signed a one-year contract with the Wings, with a cap hit of $800,000. He has yet to register a point with his new team in four games, posing a -2 rating while averaging 11:17 of ice time per game.

Motte has bounced around the league over the past few years. After spending parts of five years with the Vancouver Canucks, he has made two stops with the Rangers, also playing for the Ottawa Senators and Tampa Bay Lightning. Motte was originally taken in the fourth round, 121st overall, by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2013 NHL Draft. He only played part of one season with the Blackhawks before he, along with Aretmi Panarin, was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2017 in the deal that saw Brandon Saad head back to Chicago.

In 404 NHL games, Motte has scored 49 goals and 41 assists for 90 points. He’s also notched eight points in 44 Stanley Cup Playoff appearances.