The Boston Bruins are getting a huge boost tonight, as Conor Ryan of Boston.com shared that star forward David Pastrňák is returning versus St. Louis. It was speculated yesterday that he, as well as Charlie McAvoy, would come back at some point on the club’s road trip, and sure enough, Pastrňák slots back in on a line with Fraser Minten and Marat Khusnutdinov this evening.
The 29-year-old sniper posted 29 points in 25 games before going down with an undisclosed injury in late November. Without their go-to scorer, Boston went 3-2, and despite losing their two stars, the team remains firmly in the mix, currently third in the Atlantic. McAvoy proved unable to return today, but eyes will be on the defender later in the week, as the Bruins travel to Winnipeg for a Thursday matchup.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Nick Kieser of Lower Broad Hockey posted comments from Predators GM Barry Trotz’s radio segment on 102.5 The Game, that he is “listening to everything”. Trotz went on to say that if a team approaches him for Steven Stamkos, he’s “going to listen”. Kieser also shared that Trotz is open to taking on unfavorable contracts in deals. The Predators, still 32nd in the league, appear set to finally embark on a full scale teardown. As they’ve retained salary on Mattias Ekholm and Colton Sissons (both set to end after this season) they have just one remaining retention slot, complicating things a bit. Although the team has a deep prospect pool, they lack NHL ready talent, so bringing back veteran placeholders would be beneficial as they navigate a rough season. Trade talks for the likes of Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Ryan O’Reilly have yet to reach serious stages, but once suitors officially emerge, Trotz will have to get creative to find his highly respected veterans new homes on teams with limited cap flexibility.
- An unlikely figure has dressed for the Sharks tonight, as the team announced that Justin Kowalkoski has been added to the roster on an ATO to back up Alex Nedeljkovic, as Yaroslav Askarov has fallen ill. Kowalkoski, 39, played collegiately for Colgate University until 2007-08 as a backup netminder, now finding himself at the highest level in what will be a memorable night. The goaltender also made emergency backup appearances with the Red Wings and the ECHL’s Reading Royals in past years, but has not appeared in a contest.