Wings amped for Fabbri's success ahead of visit to Ducks

The Detroit Red Wings' satisfying weekend coincided with the addition of 23-year-old forward Robby Fabbri.

They'll try to carry that momentum to the West Coast, as they begin a three-game swing at the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday.

Fabbri has collected three points in two games since he was traded from St. Louis last week for Jacob de la Rose. Fabbri scored a pair of power-play goals in his Wings debut, a 4-2 victory over Boston on Friday. He assisted on Anthony Mantha's game-winner in the final minute of a 3-2 win over Vegas on Sunday.

Fabbri had one goal and no assists in nine games with the Blues this season. The 2014 first-round pick's career was marred by two ACL tears, and he's looking to revive his career with Detroit.

"It's refreshing," he said. "It's been tough the last two or three years. I've just kept my head down, kept staying in the right mindset, knowing that if I get an opportunity, I wasn't going to let it slip away. Here it is now and that's just motivating me."

Fabbri hasn't needed to alter his game because of the past knee surgeries.

"I'm about two years out of those injuries," he said. "I've had plenty of time to get past those and get my speed back, getting my agility back. It's tough for me not to play competitive, so I never lost that. So I think I'm back to where I want to be."

Mantha's goal was his 11th this season, five more than any of his teammates. The last one not only gave the Wings back-to-back victories for just the second time this season, it also salvaged an otherwise forgettable performance.

"Every single player knows when they're not at their best, and they know when they are," Mantha said. "It's a natural thing. No one knows my game more than I do. I knew I wasn't having the best (game) and the ending at least helped."

Detroit will be without fourth-line fixture Justin Abdelkader. He was injured on Sunday with what coach Jeff Blashill described as a mid-body injury. Abdelkader will miss a minimum of three weeks.

Abdelkader was out for three games earlier this season with a lower-body injury.

"He obviously had the injury earlier and had to come back and now he's got another injury," Blashill said. "It's tough for him, for sure. I appreciate the sacrifice he makes. It's unfortunate but it's part of the game."

The Ducks carry a three-game losing streak (0-2-1) into the contest. They were manhandled by Edmonton 6-2 on Sunday following a four-day layoff.

"There's no reason to be flat," forward Ryan Getzlaf told NHL.com. "We had a few good days of practice. We had some rest days. We just, for whatever reason, when we came out for the game, it just didn't click for us."

Their power play remains a major concern. The Ducks have just four man-advantage goals, tied for fewest in the league with Ottawa.

"We're working tirelessly on this and the guys just have got to stick with this," coach Dallas Eakins said. "We're finally getting the amount of shot attempts that we want and now we just have to start getting them through. It's easy to say not [to] get frustrated, but it's just that simple.

"This is our circumstance. We're going to continue to work on it and do our best to get better."

--Field Level Media