Tomas-Jurco-12-21-13

The Red Wings' Tomas Jurco made a nifty spin move in front of the net to score against Toronto's James Reimer.

(The Associated Press)

The Red Wings' Luke Glendening battles in front of Maple Leafs goalie Jonathan Bernier.

TORONTO – Most of the Detroit Red Wings’ injured players – the cavalry, as coach Mike Babcock called them -- are due back soon.

In their absence, young players called up from the Grand Rapids Griffins have done a good job of holding down the fort.

Tomas Jurco, with his dazzling skills, has provided a glimpse into a promising future. He has two goals and an assist in four games.

Riley Sheahan picked up his first career points, setting up goals by Pavel Datsyuk and Jurco, and was a plus-3 in Saturday's 5-4 shootout victory over Toronto.

Luke Glendening has been an effective checking-line center, bringing speed and energy and killing penalties.

“Our kids were really good today,” Babcock said after the game. “They’re obviously going to be real good players. They’re big and fast and know how to play.

“We’re fortunate to have a farm team with a bunch of kids that are getting ready to (reach the NHL).”

A couple of recent Griffins also contributed; Joakim Andersson scored his sixth goal and Tomas Tatar notched the tying goal with 6:14 remaining in the third period.

“They bring a lot of energy; they know how to play the game,” goaltender Jonas Gustavsson said. “They don’t make too many mistakes, even though they’re young. They’ve been really good for us and we really needed them because of all the injuries.”

The Red Wings will seek their third consecutive win Monday against the New York Islanders at Joe Louis Arena (7:30 p.m., Fox Sports Detroit), their final game before a three-day Christmas break.

General manager Ken Holland said Gustav Nyquist is expected to play Monday after missing three games with a sore groin. Holland said they'll decide after the morning skate whether Darren Helm (shoulder) and Justin Abdelkader (concussion) can play. Henrik Zetterberg (back) will be back on Dec. 28 at Florida and Johan Franzen (concussion) should be back shortly after the break.

The Red Wings' Riley Sheahan gets off a shot against Toronto's Jonathan Bernier.

The recent call-ups, which include veterans Patrick Eaves and Jordin Tootoo, eventually will return to Grand Rapids as the Red Wings regain their health. Each NHL game the young players experience is valuable for their growth.

“Through all those injuries we’ve created depth in the organization, which is critical and gives you confidence to use them,” Babcock said. “I didn’t know you could play Riley Sheahan against anybody, and now I do.”

Babcock said Sheahan played “heavy” for linemates Jurco and Tatar.

“He made good plays, looked after them, and those guys played hard,” Babcock said.

Sheahan said playing a similar system in Grand Rapids, under former Red Wings assistant coach Jeff Blashill, has eased their transition to Detroit.

“We have a great system down there, guys are constantly developing, so we got a lot of talent that can provide Detroit some support,” Sheahan said. “They’ve all proven they can play here.”

Playing for a winning team helps. The Griffins won the Calder Cup championship last spring and are near the top of the AHL’s overall standings this season.

“When you can come into an organization and feel confident that you know the system, and you’re playing with some unbelievable players, it helps,” Sheahan said. “It’s such a good atmosphere here in the locker room, there’s tons of help.”

Jurco is soaking up a lot of knowledge in a short time and gaining confidence quickly.

“Each minute you play here, you learn something and have more confidence,” Jurco said. “I’m happy with how quick we got all the systems so we play pretty good.

“Before I came here I was a little afraid of that, how I’m going to adjust, because preseason games I was thinking too much of that and I didn’t play my game. So I told myself I’ll just play. It seems to be working like that.”

Compared to Jurco and Sheahan, Glendening is an NHL veteran. He’s appeared in 14 games with the Red Wings, shuttling back and forth from Grand Rapids several times.

“Coach Blashill has done a great job in instilling confidence in us and teaching us the right way to play, so when we come here we know how to play,” Glendening said. “And Coach Babcock has been awesome in putting us in situations to succeed. He’s given us every opportunity.”

Said Babcock: “Glendening plays hard. His matchup all night long was with (Phil) Kessel and those guys (Nazem Kadri and James van Riemsdyk) and he was fine in that situation.”