Injury Updates: Stalock, Holloway, Stone, Dowd

Alex Stalock is practicing with the Blackhawks again, and the team hopes he’ll join their upcoming four-game road trip. As reported by Charlie Roumeliotis of NBCS Chicago, Stalock is returning from ocular dysfunction that has kept him out of the lineup since January 14th.

Although Stalock’s steady presence in the crease would be a boon for most teams in the Blackhawks position this season, it likely spells a return to the minors for Blackhawks’ goalie Jaxson Stauber. In his five starts since Stalock’s injury, Stauber has accrued four wins, including a 32-save win against the Maple Leafs on Sunday night. Stalock will now take over in net for the struggling Blackhawks with a 6-6 record with a .918 SV% this season.

Some other injury updates:

• The Edmonton Oilers will be missing young forward Dylan Holloway for “about a month” according to Jason Gregor of The Nation Network. After a very productive college hockey career, Holloway has failed to replicate his production in college to the professional level. Playing primarily in Edmonton’s bottom six, Holloway has scored nine points in 51 games this season. Due to the activation of Kailer Yamamoto off the injured reserve on February 17th, Holloway was sent down to Edmonton’s AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors. Although he’s now rostered in the minors, losing Holloway could be a significant hurdle in Edmonton’s upcoming trade deadline plans.
• Calgary Flames defenseman Michael Stone was seen today entering Scotiabank Saddledome in a boot with crutches. Noted by reporter Eric Francis of Sportsnet, Dennis Gilbert appears to be the likely replacement for Stone’s lost minutes.
• Nic Dowd is on the verge of returning to the Capitals lineup, according to Tarik El-Bashir for The Athletic. Dowd, who has been out of the lineup since the Capitals’ January 16th game against the New York Islanders, will be a welcomed return to the Capitals’ bottom six. Scoring 19 points in 44 games this year, Dowd’s performance this season has made him a valuable depth center for Washington.