Red Wings recall defensemen Joe Hicketts

Steve Yzerman is not playing around. After acquiring Brendan Perlini from the Blackhawks on Monday, as well as waiving Jonathan Ericsson last week, he is making another roster change. Defenseman Joe Hicketts has been recalled from the Grand Rapids Griffins, the club announced Tuesday morning.

In accordance with this move, winger Justin Abdelkader has been placed on injury reserve.

The Hicketts call-up has to put a smile on your face. The Canadian blue-liner has been with the organization since 2014 after signing as an undrafted free agent. Over the past two to three years he came up just short (no pun intended) of making the NHL roster, in large part due to the logjam on defense.

Standing at 5-foot-8, Hicketts is quite undersized for his position, but he hasn’t let it affect his play. In fact, he plays more like a physical, throwback defensemen.

This call-up is hopefully an opportunity to prove his worth. If he gets a real look, you have to feel good for the guy. After years of being stuck in GR (when he probably shouldn’t have been), he finally gets his shot.