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Detroit Red Wings place 5 in COVID protocol, including Alex Nedeljkovic and Jeff Blashill

The DetroitRed Wings will have a different coaching look after the team placed multiple personnel in COVID-19 protocol.

The Wings announced Saturday morning that head coach Jeff Blashill, assistant coach Alex Tanguay, and players Givani Smith, Carter Rowney and Alex Nedeljkovic were placed in quarantine following positive tests.

Goaltender Calvin Pickard and forward Riley Barber were called up from the minors to offset the loss of players. Griffins head coach Ben Simon and assistant coach Todd Krygier will join Wings assistant Doug Houda behind the bench.

The Wings host the New Jersey Devils at 8 p.m. Saturday. The Wings' home game Monday against the Colorado Avalanche was postponed because the Avs have multiple people in quarantine.

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Detroit Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill, right, discusses a call with the officials during the first period  at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Dec. 16, 2021.
Detroit Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill, right, discusses a call with the officials during the first period at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Dec. 16, 2021.

This is the first time the Wings have dealt with coaching personnel entering protocol. Forwards Robby Fabbri and Michael Rasmussen were placed in protocol Wednesday, two days after Marc Staal and Tyler Bertuzzi emerged from 10-day quarantines. Defenseman Danny DeKeyser has also been in protocol this season.

Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings put 5 in COVID protocol, including Alex Nedeljkovic