The Red Wings brought out Henrik Zetterberg for the ceremonial face off



For the first time since the 2002-03 season, the Detroit Red Wings entered an NHL regular season without Henrik Zetterberg on the roster.

Last month Red Wings general manager Ken Holland revealed that Zetterberg would not be playing this season, and quite possibly ever again, due to a degenerative back condition. However, just because he’s not playing this year it doesn’t mean he couldn’t join them on the ice prior to the game.



The Red Wings brought out the 2008 Conn Smythe Trophy winner to drop the puck during the ceremonial faceoff before the game and it was a pretty emotional moment for Red Wings fans, especially since they expected to see their captain out there this season.



♥️ #lgrw A post shared by Detroit Red Wings Hockey Club (@detroitredwings) on Oct 4, 2018 at 6:16pm PDT

The 210th overall pick in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft played 1,082 in a Red Wings uniform and totaled 337 goals and 623 assists for 960 points, fifth most in Red Wings franchise history.

(H/T Instagram/detroitredwings)