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East Notes: Tkachuk, Eller, Rempe, Dowd

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The Senators haven’t had captain Brady Tkachuk available for most of the season as he has missed the last 16 games with a thumb injury.  The team has fared relatively well in his absence, compiling an 8-4-4 record without him but it’s fair to say that they’re still missing their captain.  The good news for the Sens is that he might not be out much longer.  On his latest Wingmen podcast (audio link), Tkachuk indicated that he’s hoping to return around Thanksgiving.  When he underwent surgery in mid-October, the recovery timeline was six to seven weeks so returning next week would fall within that range.  Tkachuk had 55 points in 72 games last season and assuming there are no late setbacks, he’ll soon give a big boost to an Ottawa attack that enters the night around the middle of the pack offensively, sitting 13th in goals scored.

Elsewhere in the East:

  • Still with the Senators, center Lars Eller won’t play on Thursday due to an undisclosed injury, notes Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch (Twitter link).  The 36-year-old has been a regular in Ottawa’s bottom six this season, picking up two goals and four assists in 19 games while logging a little more than 13 minutes a game of playing time.  There’s no word yet on how long he might be out for.
  • Rangers winger Matt Rempe has resumed skating as he works his way back from an upper-body injury, mentions Mollie Walker of the New York Post (Twitter link). Head coach Mike Sullivan noted that while there’s no timetable for his return, he’s up to skating three days on, one day off which is a promising sign.  Rempe has a goal, nine penalty minutes, and 30 hits in nine outings so far this season while getting a bit more ice time under Sullivan, logging nearly 10 minutes a night.
  • Capitals center Nic Dowd missed tonight’s game against Edmonton due to an upper-body injury, relays NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti (Twitter link). The 35-year-old is in the first season of a two-year, $6MM deal but has struggled offensively.  After notching double-digit goals in each of the last five years, Dowd has just one through his first 19 outings.  Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post adds (Twitter link) that the middleman won’t accompany the team to Montreal for their game on Thursday and will be evaluated further.

Canucks Injury Notes: Blueger, Garland, Hoglander, Forbort

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It has been a tough season for Canucks center Teddy Blueger.  He missed the start of the season with a lower-body injury, came back, and had the injury flare up again in his second game.  Now, things don’t appear to be going well in his recovery.  Speaking with reporters today (video link), head coach Adam Foote indicated that Blueger has suffered a setback and will be shut down for at least a few days.  The hope is that he will be able to resume skating after that.  In his first two seasons with Vancouver, the 31-year-old has put up 28 and 26 points while notching a career-high 104 hits in 2024-25 as well.  With their center depth being thinned out at the moment, they were hoping that Blueger would be able to come in and play soon but that won’t be the case.

Other news from Vancouver:

  • On the good news front, Conor Garland’s absence will wind up being just one game. After missing Sunday’s game with an undisclosed injury, Foote noted that the 29-year-old will return on Thursday against Dallas.  Garland is off to a good start to his season with five goals and eight assists in 17 games, a point-per-game rate that, if maintained, would be the best of his career.  He’s also averaging nearly 20 minutes per night which is also a personal best, coming in ahead of the career-high 18:39 set last season.
  • Foote also shared an update on winger Nils Hoglander. Out since the preseason due to lower-body surgery, he was initially expected to miss eight to ten weeks.  It appears he’s still on that trajectory but the recovery time now appears to be on the back end of that scale.  After a career year in 2023-24 that saw him record 24 goals and 36 points, his production dropped last season to just eight goals and 25 points and with the time he’s missed this season, he might be hard-pressed to match that total in 2025-26.
  • Lastly, regarding defenseman Derek Forbort, Foote said that “I think, the last couple years. When you get into the midsection stuff, whatever it is, I think they want to start from scratch and fix it.” The veteran has only played in two games this season due to the injury and Foote’s comments suggest that a return isn’t imminent.

Jets Sign Adam Lowry To Five-Year Contract Extension

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Only a few short months ago, the 2026 UFA class looked like it could be one of the best in NHL history.  But since then, the list has been thinned out quite quickly.  Another player can now be crossed off that list as the team announced that they’ve signed center Adam Lowry to a five-year contract extension.  TSN’s Darren Dreger adds (Twitter link) that the deal will carry a $5MM AAV and be worth $25MM in total.

The two sides were reported to be making progress on an extension earlier this month so it’s not too surprising to see this get across the finish line.

The 32-year-old is in the final season of his five-year, $16.25MM deal signed back in 2021.  He has never been a high-end offensive contributor in his 12-year NHL career (his highest point total is 36) but over the past few years, he has become a reliable two-way player.   The captain has long been a sound defensive player who brought plenty of physicality to the table and that’s a combination that is especially appealing in a team’s bottom six.

Lowry missed the start of the season while recovering from hip surgery but has jumped right back into his usual role since returning.  In seven games, he has a goal and two assists along with 16 hits in 14:22 of playing time.  For his career (spent in its entirety with the Jets who drafted him in the third round back in 2011), Lowry has 122 goals and 154 hits in 782 games.

This deal represents a nice raise from his current $3.25MM AAV while getting a long-term agreement for the second straight contract.  While a $5MM AAV for someone whose production is more in the third-line range, those other elements he brings made it likely that he could have landed a deal at or higher than this price point on the open market.

Meanwhile, the Jets also get some much-needed stability down the middle.  Mark Scheifele is also signed through 2030-31, meaning that Winnipeg has two of their top three centers in place for the long haul.  GM Kevin Cheveldayoff still has some work to do to secure a long-term fit for their second center position (a role filled by Jonathan Toews this year) but that’s a strong foundation down the middle to build off of.

With the signing, the Jets now have around $78.7MM in commitments for the 2026-27 season, per PuckPedia.  That gives them around $25MM in cap room based on the projected $104MM Upper Limit.  Cole Perfetti, a pending restricted free agent with salary arbitration rights, will take up a good chunk of that but the rest of their pending free agents (all unrestricted) are for players more in depth roles.  That could give Cheveldayoff a chance to try to make a splash to add another core piece to his roster, either via trade or free agency this summer.

Murat Ates of The Athletic was the first to report that an extension had been agreed upon.

Photo courtesy of Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images.

Kings Notes: Kempe, Doughty, Copley

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Kings forward Adrian Kempe recently took himself off next summer’s free agent market by signing an eight-year, $85MM contract extension.  Speaking with HockeySverige’s Martin Jansson, he acknowledged he likely left some money on the table considering how quickly the UFA class is drying up.  He also indicated that he lowered his salary request which appears to be what pushed this deal across the finish line.  Kempe is in his tenth NHL season, all spent with Los Angeles.  He’s off to a strong start with 19 points in his first 20 games, a point-per-game pace that would be the second-best of his career.  If that holds over the full season, the beginning of the deal could wind up being team-friendly, though there is some risk in the final few years given that he’ll be in his age-30 season when the contract begins.

More from Los Angeles:

  • While defenseman Drew Doughty’s injury timeline carries a week-to-week designation, it doesn’t appear that he’ll be out too long. GM Ken Holland told reporters including John Hoven of Mayor’s Manor (Twitter link) that the veteran, who has been placed on injured reserve, will miss two to three weeks.  The 35-year-old is dealing with a lower-body injury and had been off to a solid start to his season with eight points in 19 games while logging a team-high 22:33 per night, the only Kings player averaging more than 20 minutes per night.
  • With Doughty on IR, there is a roster spot available but that won’t be the case for long. Holland acknowledged that the Kings will be recalling goaltender Pheonix Copley from AHL Ontario for tomorrow’s game against San Jose.  He isn’t being brought up due to an injury though.  Instead, he’s being promoted to give Darcy Kuemper a full day of rest before he gets the nod on Friday.  Copley has had a tough start to his campaign with the Reign, posting a 3.84 GAA along with a .870 SV% in his first seven appearances.

Hurricanes Recall Bradly Nadeau, Assign Gavin Bayreuther To AHL

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10:00 p.m.: Shortly after their overtime loss to the Oilers, the Hurricanes announced they’ve reassigned Nadeau back to AHL Chicago. He did not play in tonight’s contest.

2:33 p.m.: The Hurricanes have made a pair of roster moves heading into tonight’s game against Edmonton.  The team announced that they have recalled winger Bradly Nadeau from AHL Chicago.  To make room for him on the roster, defenseman Gavin Bayreuther has been returned to the Wolves.

It’s the second recall of the season for Nadeau.  The 20-year-old got into six games in his first stint, picking up his first career goal while averaging 11:30 per game.  It’s already the third straight year that Nadeau has received NHL action as he got into one game in 2023-24 after being drafted 30th overall and made two appearances with them last season.

Nadeau has been quite productive in his limited action with the Wolves this season, picking up three goals and four assists.  That comes on the heels of an impressive rookie showing in 2024-25 where he had 32 goals and 26 assists in 64 games with Chicago.  If he gets into the lineup again on this recall, it’s likely that his minutes will be managed in a bottom-six role as it was in his first stint.

As for Bayreuther, the 31-year-old didn’t see any game action with Carolina after being recalled last weekend.  He has three goals and three assists in nine AHL contests with the Wolves and has 122 career NHL outings under his belt with a total of 28 points.  He returned to North America this season after playing with Lausanne in Switzerland in 2024-25.

Kraken Issue Several Injury Updates

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The Kraken have had more than their fair share of injury issues over the first six weeks of the season.  Head coach Lane Lambert provided some updates on that front today, via team reporter Alison Lukan (Twitter link) and there is both good and bad news.

The good news is that center Frederick Gaudreau is getting close to returning from an upper-body injury that has sidelined him for close to a month while winger Jared McCann (lower body) is making progress and could travel with the team on their upcoming road trip.  However, the bad news is that winger Kaapo Kakko is listed as out week-to-week with a lower-body injury.

Gaudreau is in his first season with Seattle after being acquired from Minnesota over the offseason.  The 32-year-old was injured in the fourth game of the season and hasn’t returned since then.  Gaudreau had an assist in those four outings but struggled at the faceoff dot, winning just 18 of 51 draws.  He has 61 goals and 92 assists in 414 career outings and should return to the bottom-six role he had last month once he’s officially activated off injured reserve.

As for McCann, he only lasted one more game than Gaudreau did, getting injured in the fifth game of the campaign.  He was off to a strong start before being sidelined after tallying three goals and an assist while logging over 17 minutes per night.  The 29-year-old has surpassed the 60-point mark in three straight seasons so getting him back potentially sooner than later would be a real shot in the arm to an offense that ranks 30th in goals scored heading into Saturday’s action.

Kakko, meanwhile, has had a rough first full year with the Kraken.  After a solid showing in the second half of last season landed him a three-year deal over the summer, he broke his hand late in training camp, missing the first few weeks of the regular season as a result.  The 24-year-old has struggled since returning, notching just one point – a goal – in seven games with that tally coming in his last outing against Winnipeg before departing with this injury.  Now, he’ll be forced to sit for a while once again which certainly won’t help his chances of making Finland’s roster for the Olympics in February.  He remains on the active roster for now but will likely be shifted to IR once Gaudreau is ready to return.

Minor Transactions: 11/15/25

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While regular season play around the hockey world has been underway for a while now, there are still some free agents looking for places to suit up.  A pair of former NHLers were able to find new deals recently; those are among the moves in our latest minor transactions roundup.

  • Veteran goaltender Dustin Tokarski has signed a tryout deal with AHL Grand Rapids, per a team release. The 36-year-old has 86 career NHL appearances under his belt over parts of ten seasons but has seen plenty of action in the minors with 444 outings in 16 years.  Last season, Tokarski played in six games with Carolina (winning four), posting a 2.18 GAA and a .902 SV% while also getting into 21 outings with AHL Chicago where he had a 2.84 GAA and a .897 SV%.
  • Former NHL winger Linus Omark has left his team in Switzerland to play for his home team in Sweden’s third division as Overtornea announced on their Facebook page that they’ve signed him. Omark had 32 points in 79 career NHL games between Edmonton and Buffalo but has been playing overseas since 2014, spending time in four different countries.  Omark made quite the first impression for his new team, picking up six points in his debut.
  • Veteran Luke Witkowski isn’t ready to call it a career as SHL Brynas announced that they’ve signed him for the remainder of the season. The 35-year-old, who has played both on the back end and the wing, is joining the team as a defenseman.  Witkowski has 13 points, 162 penalty minutes, and 292 hits in 132 career NHL games over parts of seven seasons.  In 2024-25, he suited up with SHL Skelleftea, notching three points in 25 games.
  • The Oilers have reassigned defenseman Beau Akey from ECHL Fort Wayne to AHL Bakersfield, per the AHL’s transactions log. The first-year pro missed the first month of the season with an injury and was sent down to the Komets in what amounted to a four-game conditioning stint where he had his first professional goal.

Hurricanes Notes: Jarvis, Kotkaniemi, Svechnikov

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It has been a particularly tough start to the season for the Hurricanes on the injury front with over 40% of their season-opening roster dealing with some sort of injury or illness within the first six weeks.  Two more players joined that list last night against Vancouver as winger Seth Jarvis and center Jesperi Kotkaniemi departed.

Jarvis took a high stick to his eye from teammate Andrei Svechnikov and left early in the first period although head coach Rod Brind’Amour noted to reporters postgame including Justin Pelletier of the Raleigh News & Observer that the early thought is that Jarvis shouldn’t be out for too long.  Jarvis has been a key producer in the early going with 10 goals and 16 points in 17 appearances so far.

Kotkaniemi’s situation is a little murkier.  He departed in the second period after blocking a shot with Brind’Amour noting after the game that the center is dealing with an ankle injury.  Whether that’s a sprain, a fracture, or something else remains to be seen, making his potential return date more uncertain.  The 25-year-old has three goals and two assists in 15 games this season, his lowest point-per-game average since his sophomore season with Montreal back in 2019-20.

Meanwhile, Svechnikov won’t face any supplemental discipline for his elbow on Canucks blueliner Filip Hronek late in last night’s game, reports Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic (Twitter link).  The incident occurred late in the third period with no penalty call on the play; Hronek was subsequently pulled by the concussion spotter and did not return.  Dhaliwal notes that Hronek’s movement on the play while controlling the puck was a direct contributor to Svechnikov’s check getting him in his head instead of his arm which likely played a big role in the decision for there to be no fine or suspension.

Rasmus Dahlin Rejoins Sabres, Zac Jones Assigned To AHL

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A little more than a week ago, Sabres blueliner Rasmus Dahlin took a leave of absence to return to Sweden to be with his fiancée who continues to recover from a heart transplant from the summer.  He has now returned to the team as Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News relayed (Twitter link) that the captain has returned to the team and took part in today’s morning skate.  The Sabres subsequently announced that blueliner Zac Jones has been sent back to AHL Rochester to make room for Dahlin on their active roster.

Dahlin had played in 14 games before briefly stepping away but had gotten off to a tough start by his high standards with the team scuffling early on.  He had a goal and eight assists in those outings along with 17 blocks in a little over 24 minutes a night.  However, like several of his teammates, some defensive miscues proved to be problematic.

But even with that, his return will certainly be a welcome one.  He anchors Buffalo’s top pairing at even strength and runs their number one power play while also seeing some action shorthanded.  Dahlin’s return will likely take Jacob Bryson out of the lineup after he got into the last three games.

As for Jones, he was brought up a little more than a week ago following a very strong start with the Americans (where he had 13 assists in 11 games) but didn’t see any action with Buffalo.  Despite being up for more than a week, he still leads all AHL blueliners in points.  Jones is in his first season with Buffalo after signing a one-year, $900K contract with them in free agency.  He has 28 points in 115 career NHL outings, all with the Rangers.

Maple Leafs Claim Troy Stecher Off Waivers From Oilers

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The Maple Leafs have turned to the waiver wire to add some depth on the back end.  Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that they have claimed blueliner Troy Stecher off waivers from Edmonton.  To free up a roster spot, the team announced (Twitter link) that goaltender Anthony Stolarz has been placed on injured reserve retroactive to November 11th.

The 31-year-old is in his third season with the Oilers after being acquired from Arizona back in 2024.  After playing somewhat of a regular role last season when he made 66 appearances, playing time has been much harder to come by in 2025-26.  This season, Stecher has only played in six games and has been held off the scoresheet while adding three blocked shots in just under 14 minutes per night of playing time.

In his 10-year NHL career, Stecher has played in 566 games with six different teams and hasn’t been with a franchise for more than four seasons.  He has 22 goals and 95 assists to his credit along with 629 blocked shots with a 17:25 ATOI.

Knowing that a cap crunch was coming with Zach Hyman nearing a return (he was officially activated earlier today and will make his season debut tonight), Edmonton had been looking to move Stecher in recent weeks.  Clearly, no move came to fruition which resulted in yesterday’s waiver placement.  With Stecher coming off the roster, the Oilers now have $212.5K remaining in their LTIR pool, per PuckPedia.

Toronto is currently without blueliner Chris Tanev who is out with an upper-body injury sustained in his first game after returning from a concussion.  His injury has resulted in Dakota Mermis serving as the reserve defenseman in recent weeks.  It’s possible that Stecher is being eyed as an upgrade for that spot although he could push Philippe Myers for playing time as well.

Stecher is in the final season of a two-year, $1.55MM contract which carries a $787.5K cap charge, making him a low-cost pickup for the Maple Leafs.  He’s slated to become an unrestricted free agent in July.

As for Stolarz, he left Tuesday’s game against Boston due to an upper-body injury.  Initially listed as out day-to-day, he’ll now miss at least a week past the 11th, ruling him out of Toronto’s next two games.  He’s someone who could probably benefit from the rest as the 31-year-old has struggled mightily out of the gate, posting a 3.51 GAA and a .884 SV% in his first 13 appearances.  Joseph Woll was recently recalled from his conditioning stint with the AHL’s Marlies and will be in uniform tonight against Chicago with Dennis Hildeby being their other active option.

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