Wings' Mantha vows to come back stronger after being scratched

Anthony Mantha did some soul searching over the past few days.

Healthy scratched from the past two Detroit Red Wings games, the young winger is expected to return to the lineup Wednesday and with renewed focus.

"Obviously there are plenty of questions that go through your head," Mantha said. "There has to be an idea behind (head coach Jeff Blashill's) decision and he talked to me about it and for me it comes down to playing better in general. I'll keep my head up. I'll come back stronger than I was the last few games.

"It's just being more prepared to play in every game, every shift, to compete at a higher level, that's the message they wanted to send me and that's what I was thinking about when I was sitting out, so I'll have to bring my 'A' game tomorrow."

Mantha, 22, has scored 14 goals and added 19 assists in 50 games for the Red Wings in his first full NHL season. He ranks fifth among all Detroit forwards in average ice time (16:41) and sits in a tie for third in goals with veterans Henrik Zetterberg and Frans Nielsen.

Still, as a key piece of the puzzle moving forward, and based on his high-scoring junior career, more is expected and needed for the Red Wings to be more competitive in the future.