Red Wings’ Mike Green has virus attacking his liver, out indefinitely

By @MichaelCaples –

The hits keep coming for Mike Green.

The Red Wings’ defenseman, fresh off neck surgery, is now fighting a virus that is attacking his liver, coach Jeff Blashill announced today.

“He’s not available right now,” Blashill said via the Wings’ official site. “He’s got a virus that attacked his liver, so he’s seen an infectious disease person today and we should know more here in the next little bit. I don’t know how long he’s going to be out. I don’t know the totality of it. He’s got a virus.”

That keeps the Wings’ defense in flux heading into the regular season. Prospects Dennis Cholowski, Filip Hronek, Vili Saarijarvi, Libor Sulak and Joe Hicketts are fighting for spots; how many there will be will be impacted by Green’s health.

Green signed a new two-year deal with the Wings this off-season. He led the Wings’ blueline unit in scoring with 33 points in 66 games, despite his season coming to an early close due to him needing neck surgery.

The 32-year-old has appeared in 787 career games and has posted 142 goals and 464 points between Washington and Detroit.