On Sunday afternoon, the Wings needed a shootout to defeat the Florida Panthers 2-1. They played most of the third and overtime with only five defensemen after Kyle Quincey was ejected for an elbow to the head of Tomas Kopecky. He received a five-minute major and an additional ten minute misconduct.

The National Hockey League determined that his action warranted at least a further look, and potentially a suspension — and scheduled a hearing for 1:00pm this afternoon. When the verdict was finally rendered, it was revealed that discipline czar Brendan Shanahan has suspended Kyle Quincey for one game: Wednesday’s game against the division champion Blues.

Earlier in the day, we used Twitter to poll the masses. We started the over/under at 1.5 games, but seeing as how 100% of folks thought he’d get at least two, we upped the line to 2.5. The vast majority thought three, and a handful thought a bit longer. With the relative leniency Shanahan has been showing as the season wears down – not to mention Tomas Kopecky was (thankfully) not injured on the play, we thought that maybe he’d get away with two or fewer. Once it was announced that it was a single game… everyone was shocked.

To watch Brendan Shanahan’s video explaining the suspension, click here to go to NHL.com’s video.

Quincey joins fellow blueliner Brendan Smith on the list of suspended Red Wings during the 2011-12 season. Smith received five regular season games after making contact with the head of Ben Smith during the pre-season. This was the first disciplinary action for Kyle Quincey, which very likely played into the low end of the suspension spectrum (suspectrum?).

He was in the defenseman rotation as it was, and his play has been slightly lacking since the initial thumbs up had worn off. He’ll be a restricted free agent at the end of the season and will likely be seeking a similar salary to the one he’s making now ($3.25M). Speaking of cash, Quincey will forfeit $16,892, which will be added to the player’s emergency fund.

Photo Credit: Getty Images, courtesy of DetroitRedWings.com

Add another body to the growing injured list. Darren Helm, who sustained an apparent leg injury in a collision with San Jose’s Dominic Moore and limped off the ice, has had an MRI performed on his left knee. A “second degree MCL sprain” was detected and he’s been shut down for 4-6 weeks.

With only ten games left, Helm is on the shelf for the rest of the regular season. Even on the lower end of that range, he’ll likely miss the first round of the playoffs. Joy!

The Red Wings are already without a bevy of players:

Patrick Eaves, injured November 26th when he took a Roman Josi puck to the jaw against Nashville. The jaw is healed, but he’s suffering from post-concussive symptoms. He is unlikely to return at all.

Jonathan Ericsson, injured February 25th gloving down a clear against Colorado. An x-ray revealed a fracture, and he was expected back at the end of this month. He should return in time for the playoffs.

Nicklas Lidstrom, injured February 25th when blocking a shot against Colorado. He finished the game, but tests have revealed a “deep bone bruise” in his ankle. He has begun practicing, but “doesn’t look close,” according to Coach Babcock. Hopefully he’ll be back in the lineup in a week or so.

Jakub Kindl, injured March 4th against Chicago. His strained oblique muscle has kept him out of the lineup for 7 games, but should be returning soon. Doug Janik will be returned to Grand Rapids when Kindl can enter the lineup.

Joey MacDonald, injured March 14th against Anaheim. He has been having back spasms and was undergoing tests today. Jordan Pearce has been called up from Grand Rapids, but it looks like we’ll be riding Jimmy Howard as much as possible.

Johan Franzen, injured March 16th at practice. Like MacDonald, he’s having back spasms and will be re-evaluated today. He is out tonight against Washington.

That’s seven players. Replacing them in the lineup are Brendan Smith, Gustav Nyquist, Doug Janik, Jordan Pearce, and Jan Mursak. When the playoffs begin, most of these guys should be set to return, but it’s worth keeping an eye on.

Photo Credit: Rick Stewart, Getty Images

On Saturday, Red Wings winger Patrick Eaves took an errant shot just above the right ear. It was a scary scene as Eaves went down in a heap, appeared to lose consciousness for just a second, before writhing in pain on the ice. He was able to get himself onto a gurney — for the most part — and be taken to the hospital, where he was held overnight for observation after confirming that his jaw was fractured by the Roman Josi shot that likely ramped up a stick. After a successful surgery where his jaw was wired shut, it was determined that he will miss the next six to eight weeks.

Despite being ruled out until mid-January, Eaves had not been placed on injured reserve.

Until just now. According to a team official, Eaves has been removed from the active roster, and added to the short-term injured reserve list, joining Jan Mursak who is on LTIR (he’s set to return from a broken ankle at the end of December). Players placed on STIR must miss seven days, but Eaves will not be physically able to perform for at least twenty-five games, according to the timeline.

With Eaves coming off of the roster, the team is back down to 22 active players. The team has also announced that they’ve recalled Chris Conner from the Grand Rapids Griffins.

The Griffins leading scorer is the veteran pro and Michigan native. He has 7 goals and 16 points in 20 games, good enough for sixth in AHL scoring. Conner played 60 games with the Penguins last season, netting 7 goals and 9 assists. In total, he’s played 139 games in the NHL and was signed this past July for depth and in case the Wings needed a solid pro during the season.

It appears that time is now. Conner will be eligible to suit up for the Red Wings on Friday evening, when they take on the Sabres. The team must be really unhappy with Fabian Brunnstrom’s performance tonight… discuss.

Potential dates for Patrick Eaves’ return
:: January 12 vs. Phoenix
:: January 14 vs. Chicago
:: January 16 vs. Buffalo
:: January 17 at Dallas
:: January 19 at Phoenix
:: January 21 vs. Columbus
:: January 23 vs. St. Louis

Potential dates for Jan Mursak’s return
:: December 26 at Nashville
:: December 27 vs. St. Louis
:: December 30 at Chicago
:: December 31 vs. St. Louis
:: January 3 at Dallas
:: January 7 at Toronto

Photo Credit: Duane Burleson, AP