Red Wings’ Andrew Copp exits game with lower-body injury
Detroit Red Wings center Andrew Copp exited Tuesday’s game against the Florida Panthers and did not return after sustaining a lower-body injury.
Copp, 31, logged 10:01 of ice time over 11 shifts and recorded an assist in Detroit’s 4-3 loss to the Panthers. He left the game shortly after setting up Justin Faulk’s goal midway through the second period.
On a faceoff shortly after Faulk’s goal, Copp got tangled up with Panthers center Tomas Nosek and fell to the ice favoring his left leg. The Ann Arbor, Mich. product had to be helped off the ice and did not come back, with the Red Wings ruling him out from returning during the second intermission.
Injury update: Andrew Copp (lower body) will not return.
Through 65 games with the Red Wings this season, Copp has eight goals and 29 assists for a total of 35 points. The 6’1″ center is tied with Patrick Kane for fifth on the Red Wings in scoring.
The Red Wings led Tuesday’s game by a 3-2 score with 90 seconds to play in the third period in Florida but ultimately lost in regulation after two goals by Carter Verhaeghe, the latter of which came with 15 seconds to play. With the loss, Detroit now sits tenuously in a wild card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Copp is midway through his fourth season with the Red Wings after signing a five-year deal with the club as an unrestricted free agent in 2022. The veteran center is under contract through 2027 at a $5.625 million annual cap hit.
The Winnipeg Jets originally selected Copp in the fourth round (No. 104 overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft. After spending three seasons at the University of Michigan, Copp turned pro with the Jets at the end of the 2015-16 campaign and ultimately spent parts of eight seasons in Winnipeg to begin his NHL career.
On the verge of missing the playoffs, the Jets sent Copp to the New York Rangers at the 2022 trade deadline. Copp finished the season with 18 points in 18 games with the Rangers and collected 14 more points in 20 playoff games as the Blueshirts reached the Eastern Conference Final.
In 765 career NHL games with the Jets, Rangers, and Red Wings, Copp has collected 122 goals and 337 points. He’s added nine goals and 26 points in 54 playoff games.