Red Wings lose Franzen for 4 months

Detroit's Johan Franzen will be out of action for at least four months after tearing the ACL in his left knee. (Frank Gunn/Canadian Press)

The Detroit Red Wings have been forced to put The Mule out to pasture for two-thirds of their season.

Wings forward Johan Franzen suffered a torn ACL in his left knee and is expected to be out for a minimum of four months.

The team said the injury happened during Thursday's 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks in Detroit.

Franzen scored what turned out to be the eventual game winner during the second period of that game.

Signs point to Sedin for hot Hawks: The Vancouver Canucks hope to have Daniel Sedin back in the lineup for the first time in 19 games Sunday night when they host the Chicago Blackhawks.
Leafs win in shootout thriller: Vesa Toskala earned his first win of the season as the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Washington Capitals 2-1 Saturday night in a shootout thriller.
Red Wings' Kronwall injures knee: Detroit Red Wings defenceman Niklas Kronwall suffered a suspected strained ligament in his left knee Saturday night on what the team feels was a dirty hit by Montreal tough guy Georges Laraque.
Wings top Canadiens in shootout: Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg scored on Detroit's first two shootout attempts to give the Red Wings a 3-2 win over the Canadiens in Montreal on Saturday night.
Senators surge past Sabres: Daniel Alfredsson had two goals and an assist and Filip Kuba had a goal and three assists to lead the Ottawa Senators to a 5-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday night at Scotiabank Place.

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