If the issue, which is in the knee that forced Howard to miss time earlier this season, doesn't resolve itself by at the latest Feb. 11, USA Hockey will likely have to replace him on the Olympics roster with Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Ben Bishop.

Howard left Monday's game with St. Louis after the knee stiffened up on him in the second period. He's also one of several Red Wings unlikely to play Friday against the Chicago Blackhawks; Pavel Datsyuk, Johan Franzen and Daniel Alfredsson are among the others.

But still, it's impossible to hear this news and not feel bad that Howard, in the midst of an OK, injury-filled season after two very good ones, could wind up missing out on the Olympics. "It is frustrating," Howard said Tuesday, according to the Detroit Free Press. "You're moving in the right direction and you feel like you're doing all the right things, and you were doing all the right things. It's just bad luck, I guess, is what it comes down to."

It's also a lot less funny than what the Red Wings' TV crew speculated forced him out of the game, which sent immature jackasses into Twitter overdrive on Monday night.

"Looks like Jimmy Howard has a case of the St. Louis Browns :(" — Sean Gentille (@seangentille)

If only.

Bishop, meanwhile, has the best stats of any U.S. born goalie this season, his first as a starter. His .935 save percentage is the best in the league, and he's also 24-6-4 with a 1.93 goals-against average.

"I haven't herd anything so, who knows?" Bishop said Tuesday, according to the Tampa Bay Times. "It's not a concern of mine. It wasn't before. It won't be now."


SEMIN NAMED REPLACEMENT


It was always something of a joke that Alexander Semin didn't make the Russian Olympic team — and now that's been fixed.

Semin was added to the roster on Tuesday, according to Dmitry Chesnokov. He replaces KHL forward Sergei Soin, who made the team at least partially for his defensive ability. Still, six KHL forwards on the roster is ... a lot.

"Everyone was surprised by Semin's absence," Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin told Russia's R-Sport last week.

Semin had played for the 2010 Olympic team and World Championship teams in 2008 and 2012. A 40-goal scorer at one point for the Washington Capitals, Semin was very good his first season in Carolina. So far in 2013-14, he has nine goals and 12 assists this season in 36 games and missed about a month with a concussion.

Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford didn't mince words earlier this week in evaluating Semin, though.

"I do think it's the focus and the will to do well," Rutherford told WTVD. "The same will to do well that he had in his contract year. He is probably the most skilled player on this team, and when he wants to play, he can do it. He needs to start."

Tough to imagine him not wanting to play in Sochi.


SEDIN'S RARE OCCURANCE


A lot has happened since Henrik Sedin last missed an NHL game.

The Canucks captain has suited up for 679 consecutive contests, dating back to the 2003-04 season. But that streak will end Tuesday night, after Sedin suffered a rib injury last Thursday. He did manage to play on Saturday, but will not be able to suit up for the Canucks’ contest against Edmonton.

According to NHL.com, Sedin’s streak was the sixth longest in NHL history. Among active players, only Jay Bouwmeester, at 683 games, has a longer streak.

Of course, Sedin has been quite productive over that span, including winning the Hart Trophy in ‘09-10 when he racked up 29 goals and 83 assists that season, both numbers career highs. This year he has nine goals and 31 assists in 50 games.

Just from an NHL perspective, there have been eight Stanley Cup champions and two lockouts since Sedin last missed a game. The only two Hart winners over that span who started their NHL careers before the streak started, excluding Sedin himself, were Martin St. Louis in ‘03-04 and Joe Thornton in ‘05-06.

The award winners the last year Sedin sat were: St. Louis (Hart), Martin Brodeur (Vezina), the immortal Andrew Raycroft (Calder), Scott Niedermayer (Norris) and Brad Richards (Conn Smythe) as the Lightning won the Cup.

And in case you’re curious, Daniel Sedin missed 31 games over that span, though he has played in all of Vancouver’s games this season.

Contributors: Sean Gentille, Ben Valentine