Abdelkader tallied an assist in a 5-0 blowout victory against the Blue Jackets on Tuesday. While Abdelkader's hot start has cooled off, he still has two points in his last three games and 12 in 18 contests. He may not be an automatic start like he was in October, but he's still a decent play for now.

Abdelkader kept up his streak of hot play Sunday, as he tallied an assist in a 3-2 shootout loss to Buffalo. Abdelkader is off to a blazing start, with 10 points in 11 games. Although history dictates Abdelkader's production will tail off, 11 games starts to be more than a fluke. If you've got him, use him now while he's on fire.

Abdelkader racked up two goals and an assist in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Capitals. The gritty winger is off to a blazing hot start with five goals and three assists in nine games, and his two third period goals Wednesday helped spur the Wings to victory. He's probably a good player to use as trade bait at this point, though, since he's never scored more than 28 points in a season, and is already halfway to his career high in goals.

Abdelkader returned for the start of the second period, Ansar Khan of MLive.com reports. Abdelkader took a puck to the face near the end of the first period and was taken to the locker room but returned for the start of the second period. It appears he should be good to go.

Abdelkader left Thursday's game late in the first period after taking a puck to the face, Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reports. Abdelkader needed to be helped off the ice and taken into the locker room because of the injury. He didn't return for the remainder of the first period, though there wasn't much time left, but the team will likely update his status for the remainder of the game at some point in the near future.

Abdelkader scored a goal and added an assist in Friday's win over Toronto. The 27-year-old third-line winger has now collected four points (two goals) through four games on the season. Abdelkader's value comes in very deep leagues, as he has never surpassed 28 points in a season and sees minimal power-play time.

Abdelkader said after morning skate that he'd be in the lineup Friday against the Maple Leafs, MLive.com's Ansar Khan reports. Abdelkader was given Thursday's practice off for maintenance purposes, but it sounds like he's feeling fully healthy. Abdelkader could receive a day off somewhere down the road in order for either Dan Cleary or Stephen Weiss to get in the lineup, but it doesn't appear that will happen Friday.

Abdelkader missed Thursday's practice with what coach Mike Babcock called a "maintenance day," MLive.com's Ansar Khan reports. Babcock said that Abdelkader would be available for Friday's game against the Maple Leafs, but he didn't confirm the winger would necessarily be in the lineup. Neither Stephen Weiss or Dan Cleary have seen the ice this season, so the weekend back-to-back set could present a good opportunity for either player to spell Abdelkader for a game.

Abdelkader tallied one of two second-period goals for the Red Wings in their 2-1 victory over the Bruins on Thursday. In a game in which the two teams combined for just 41 shots, Abdelkader's deflected shot past goalie Tuukka Rask mostly amounted to a stroke of luck for the Red Wings. Both Abdelkader and Johan Franzen were in the vicinity of the puck when it deflected into the goal, but after video review, Abdelkader was awarded the marker. Abdelkader saw 17:34 of ice time in the victory, and should continue to see a decent amount of minutes due to his competence at both even strength and on special teams.

Abdelkader has been playing on the Red Wings' projected second line through the first three days of training camp, joining Stephen Weiss and Gustav Nyquist, Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reports. Abdelkader bounced all over the place for the Red Wings last season as the team dealt with a litany of injuries at forward, but with the team in better overall health entering 2014-15, he should see more stability in his role. The 27-year-old is valued by the coaching staff for his versatility as a checker, penalty killer, and depth scorer, but it's the latter attribute that largely puts him off the radar for fantasy purposes. Last season's meager outputs of 10 goals and 28 points represented career-highs, and he's unlikely to notice a spike in either category in 2014-15 if the Red Wings enjoy some semblance of health.