Despite missing the final few minutes of Thursday’s game with a nagging hip issue, Senators winger Brady Tkachuk is expected to play tonight against Toronto, notes Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. The 25-year-old suffered an undisclosed lower-body injury at the 4 Nations Face-Off that caused him to miss a couple of games and it wouldn’t be surprising if that is this lingering hip injury that he’s continuing to battle through. Tkachuk hasn’t quite been able to produce at the same level as a year ago that saw him collect 74 points but he still has 27 goals and 25 assists through 63 games this season while once again being one of the more physical players in the league.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic:
- Canadiens winger Joel Armia is expected to return to the lineup tonight against Florida, relays Sportsnet’s Eric Engels (Twitter link). He missed Wednesday’s contest against Seattle due to an upper-body injury sustained the night before in Vancouver. The 31-year-old has 11 goals and 14 assists through 64 games this season while being one of the most utilized forwards shorthanded. If there isn’t another injury among Montreal’s forwards, they will have to either convert Joshua Roy’s recall from an emergency one to a regular recall (counting against their post-deadline limit) or return him to AHL Laval.
- Before yesterday’s AHL trade deadline, the Maple Leafs’ affiliate made a move. Per a release from Chicago’s farm team in Rockford, the Marlies acquired winger Brandon Baddock in exchange for future considerations. The 29-year-old has seven points and 86 penalty minutes in 38 games this season but was often scratched due to the IceHogs having one veteran over the limit. That shouldn’t be the case for Baddock with Toronto, giving him a chance to play more down the stretch. Baddock has one career NHL game under his belt from back in the 2021-22 season.