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Afternoon Notes: Slafkovsky, Acciari, Point

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Montreal Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky left the team’s Saturday night game late into the third period, after taking a high hit from Pittsburgh’s Noel Acciari, shares Erik Leijon of The Montreal Gazette . Canadiens enforcer Arber Xhekaj jumped in with a retaliatory fight, while Slafkovsky skated to the bench after laboring for a moment. So far, no update has been provided on the availability of the former first-overall pick. Montreal hosts the Calgary Flames on Tuesday before embarking on a four-game road trip.

Slafkovsky has continued to take on responsibility in Montreal’s lineup. He has seven assists and eight points through nine games this season, despite averaging just over 18 minutes of ice time – the lowest of Montreal’s top-five scorers. He’s become more involved off-puck as well – averaging 11.41 hits per 60 minutes, up from 6.20 last season. It’s an encouraging sign of growing confidence from the 20-year-old Slafkovsky, who put up a commendable 20-goal, 50-point season last year. Montreal will likely turn towards Lucas Condotta or Michael Pezzetta should Slafkovsky miss time, though neither player naturally plays Slafkovsky’s right-wing.  The Canadiens would need to turn towards the minors for a better fit. Right-shot Joshua Roy currently leads the Laval Rocket in scoring with seven goals and 10 points in nine games.

Other notes from around the league:

  • While no update has come on Slafkovsky, Noel Acciari isn’t expected to face supplemental discipline for the high hit per Sportsnet’s Eric Engels. Acciari didn’t appear to make contact directly with Slafkovsky’s head, though Sportsnet’s post-game panel dispelled the hit as dirty. Despite this incident, Acciari has been largely unpenalized through the early season – with just four penalty minutes in 13 games. He’s also recorded three points, standing taller in Pittsburgh’s middle-six after only appearing in 55 games last season. He fills the role of downhill bruiser well, but may need to take a bit more caution moving forward.
  • Tampa Bay Lightning superstar Brayden Point left the team’s Sunday game against the Winnipeg Jets after the first period. No reasoning was provided, though Point was seen nursing lower-body pain per Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun. Point scored Tampa’s second goal of the game – a power-play score assisted by Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman. It was his 12th point of the season, continuing Point’s string of dominant scoring after 95 points in 2022-23 and 90 points in 2023-24. He’ll be incredibly difficult to replace should he miss any time, though Tampa Bay may be able to bear it with five other players currently scoring at-or-above point-per-game pace.

Devils’ Nathan Bastian Week-To-Week With Jaw Injury

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New Jersey Devils forward Nathan Bastian is expected to miss “several weeks” with a jaw injury, head coach Sheldon Keefe told Devils beat reporter Amanda Stein. Bastian suffered the injury in a fight with Calgary’s Ryan Lomberg on Friday. Bastian instigated the fight late in the first period, following a hard hit on Paul Cotter, and didn’t return for the start of the second period. He’d end the day with just five shifts and 3:30 of ice time – though he racked up two hits and 17 penalty minutes in that span.

Bastian has returned as a proud member of New Jersey’s fourth-line this season, leading the team’s forwards in penalty minutes and ranking seventh in hits. He’s totaled those stats despite averaging the lowest ice time (10:29) of any consistent feature of New Jersey’s lineup – and has even managed five points, already a quarter of a way towards breaking his career-high 18 points set in 2021-22. Bastian is in his sixth season with New Jersey, though his tenure was briefly intercut with a trip to Seattle in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. He played 12 games with the Kraken before being placed on waivers, where New Jersey quickly reclaimed him. He’s been on the NHL roster ever since, now in the last year of a two-year, $2.7MM contract signed last summer.

Bastian will join Curtis Lazar on the absentee list, giving New Jersey a second bottom-six role to fill for the long term. Next up is veteran minor-leaguer Justin Dowling, who’s already recorded one assist in two NHL games this season. He’s also scored four points in six AHL games, continuing his near point-per-game scoring through a seventh season. Dowling has totaled 20 points in 102 career NHL games, kicking off his career with the Dallas Stars in 2016-17. With a week-to-week absence in store, New Jersey could also turn towards a minor-league call-up to replace Bastian. Nolan Foote currently leads the Utica Comets in scoring with eight points in eight games.

Islanders’ Mike Reilly, Alexander Romanov Out With Injury

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The New York Islanders have designated both Mike Reilly (upper-body) and Alexander Romanov (upper-body) as day-to-day with injury per NHL.com’s Stefen Rosner. Both players will miss the Islanders’ bout with the Rangers on Sunday.

New York’s defense will be cut in half for their rivalry matchup, with Adam Pelech also sitting out with an upper-body injury. That news doesn’t bode well for an Islanders team currently leaning on their ability to suppress chances. The team ranks eighth in the NHL with an average of 2.91 goals against per game, while starter Ilya Sorokin boasts the third-highest save percentage (.928) of any goalie with five or more starts. Unfortunately, the Rangers rank higher in both categories – with the lowest goals-against average of any team (2.20) and Igor Shesterkin boasting the second-highest save percentage (.931) among starters.

Dennis Cholowski stepped into the lineup to relieve Pelech, so far scoring one goal – his first NHL goal since 2020 – in three appearances. With two more pillars falling, the Islanders are expected to slot Samuel Bolduc and Grant Hutton back into the lineup. Both started the season with the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders, with Bolduc sitting on one goal and five points and Hutton recording two assists through the team’s first nine games. The duo were also both features of New York’s revolving door on defense last season. Bolduc appeared in 34 games and scored six points in the year’s second half, while Hutton slotted into just two NHL games and failed to score.

With New York’s entire left-side now missing, the left-shot Bolduc should prove the better fill-in while Hutton may be forced to take shifts on his off-side. The Islanders have sheltered Cholowski in his trio of starts while boosting the ice time of Scott Mayfield and Reilly, before the latter left with injury. Bolduc and Hutton should help to soften that burden on New York’s star defenders, though the team will certainly be eager for the return of more reliable options in Reilly and Romanov.

Capitals Place Jakob Chychrun On IR, Recall Vincent Iorio

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The Washington Capitals have placed defenseman Jakob Chychrun on injured reserve with an upper-body injury. In a corresponding move, they’ve also recalled defender Vincent Iorio for the first time this season.

Little details have been revealed about Chychrun’s injury. He hasn’t hit the ice since leaving Tuesday’s win over the New York Rangers after just four shifts. There wasn’t any clear moment where Chychrun appeared to get injured, though he was seen clutching at his ribs in his last shift. Chychrun sat out of Washington’s Thursday win over Montreal, and will now have to miss at least one more week of action. With his move to IR not retroactive, this move will force Chychrun out of at least four games. His next chance to play will be when Washington visits St. Louis on Saturday, November 9th.

This news brings a screeching halt to Chychrun’s hot start in Washington. He’s been the team’s clear-cut top left-defender, averaging over 21 minutes of ice time and recording four points in seven games prior to injury. Chychrun joined the Capitals via trade this summer, with Washington dealing Nick Jensen and a third-round pick back to the Ottawa Senators – just over one year after Ottawa traded a first-round and two second-round picks for the defender. For all of his moves over the last two seasons, Chychrun has seemed to find a home in Washington – and could even set a new career-high in scoring should he maintain his current scoring pace.

With Chychrun headed to the shelf, Washington is once again turning towards top defenseman Vincent Iorio. Iorio was the 55th-overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft and turned pro in the 2022-23 season, finding a spot on the Hershey Bears’ blue-line and ultimately posting 36 points in 123 games over the last two seasons. Iorio showed plenty of mature, two-way ability early into his career – enough to earn call-ups to the NHL roster in both of his pro years so far, though it’s only resulted in one assist across nine games.

Iorio has just three points in nine AHL games this year, but could still stand for a strong chance at ice time behind a depleted Capitals blue-line behind John Carlson and Rasmus Sandin. He’ll most likely step in for Dylan McIlrath, who’s slotted onto the third-pair for eight games this season and recorded two assists. McIlrath and Iorio could also cede ice time to Matt Roy when he returns from an October 12th injury.

Sharks Acquire Timothy Liljegren From Maple Leafs

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The San Jose Sharks have acquired defenseman Timothy Liljegren from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for defenseman Matt Benning, a 2025 third-round and 2026 sixth-round draft pick. Toronto will get the better of the third-round picks that San Jose previously acquired from the Edmonton Oilers and Colorado Avalanche.

The move ends a tumultuous seven-year run for the 17th overall pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. The Maple Leafs were patient with the 25-year-old, waiting for him to realize the potential that made him a first-round pick. Unfortunately for Toronto, that untapped potential never translated to results, as Liljegren could not crack Toronto’s top four on defense.

Liljegren was re-signed to a two-year $6MM contract back in late June, but despite the new contract, Liljegren quickly lost the trust of new head coach Craig Berube and general manager Brad Treliving. Liljegren has only dressed in one regular season game thus far and struggled mightily, as the Maple Leafs were out-chanced 21-2 while he was on the ice for 12 minutes of even-strength hockey.

Coming back the other way is 30-year-old depth defenseman Matt Benning. The Edmonton Alberta native is in the third year of a four-year $5MM contract, meaning that Toronto will realize a cap savings of $1.75MM in the transaction for this season and next. Benning is a useful defenseman who is just two years removed from his best offensive season as a pro (one goal and 23 assists in 77 games). While Benning will serve as valuable depth for Toronto, he is unlikely to see the kind of ice time he was seeing in San Jose and will most likely be Toronto’s eighth defenseman.

Blackhawks’ Alec Martinez, Laurent Brossoit To Remain Out Through October

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The Chicago Blackhawks must continue leaning on their youth, with defenseman Alec Martinez and goaltender Laurent Brossoit out for at least three more games, per Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times. The Blackhawks have three games remaining on a five-game road trip that neither Martinez nor Brossoit will join, meaning the next chance for either to return will come when Chicago hosts Detroit on November 6th. Isaak Phillips and Arvid Soderblom are currently replacing the duo.

Brossoit began the year on IR following knee surgery in late August. Because of the injury, he missed the entirety of training camp and opening day. In September, he received a four-week prognosis that will now be pushed into five weeks or more with the latest update. Brossoit will make his Blackhawks debut whenever he does return, joining the team on a two-year, $6.6MM contract this summer after just missing out on the William M. Jennings Trophy alongside Connor Hellebuyck last season.

While Hellebuyck is undoubtedly an all-time great, Brossoit has flashed tons of upside of his own, posting a .927 SV% through 34 games across the last two seasons. He’s up to a .911 SV% across 140 career games, though he’s yet to appear in 25 games in a single season. Brossoit could leapfrog over Soderblom when he returns and may even find his way into a starting role, with Hawks starter Petr Mrazek boasting a measly .896 through eight games this season.

Martinez will also prove a notable addition when he returns. He filled a top-pair role through Chicago’s first four games and proved impactful despite recording just one assist. Martinez spent the last five years with the Vegas Golden Knights, where he routinely handled top-end minutes – when he could stay healthy. He scored 49 points across 221 games in Sin City but missed 91 regular season games with injury. He’ll try to buck the trend while handling plenty of responsibility when Chicago returns home.

Injury Notes: Capitals, Hakanpaa, Määttä, Kesselring

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The Washington Capitals will have a mess to sort out on defense with Jakob Chychrun (upper-body) and Alexander Alexeyev (personal) each out day-to-day, per Tarik El-Bashir of Monumental Sports Network. El-Bashir also shares that Matt Roy, who has been out since October 12th, is nearing a return but likely won’t play on Thursday.

Chychrun suffered his injury after just four shifts in Washington’s Tuesday night win over the New York Rangers. He was seen nursing his left ribs partway through his final shift, though it’s hard to place exactly when he suffered his injury.

Alexeyev and Roy would stand as the de facto options to fill Chychrun’s top-pair role. But with both also potentially missing Thursday night’s game, the Capitals will have to instead turn towards Rasmus Sandin or Martin Fehervary to fill their role of top left-defender. The team could also turn to the minor leagues for a fill-in, where Hardy Haman-Aktell stands as the top left-defense with three assists in six games to start the year.

Other notes from blue-lines around the league:

  • Defenseman Jani Hakanpaa is nearing his debut with the Toronto Maple Leafs after spending the start of the season on IR with a knee injury, shares David Alter of The Hockey News. Hakanpaa opened the year on long-term injured reserve, nursing an injury that ended his 2023-24 campaign in March. He proceeded to go through contract cartwheels with Toronto throughout the summer, signing with the team in July but not finalizing the deal until September. He joined Toronto’s practices on October 2nd, and even traveled with the team on their recent two-game road trip – all suggesting a return is imminent. Hakanpaa is awaiting clearance from Toronto’s doctors and activation off of LTIR, but figures to support the team’s defensive depth when he returns.
  • The Utah Hockey Club could plan to ice seven defensemen on Wednesday – per Cole Bagley of KSL Sports – with Michael Kesselring returning from illness (link) and Olli Määttä quickly joining the team after trade (link). Kesselring has so far played in all 10 of Utah’s games, and ranks second on the blue-line in scoring with five points. Meanwhile, Maatta has yet to change his stat line at all this season – recording no scoring, no penalties, and no lasting change in +/- through seven games with the Detroit Red Wings. He was flipped to Utah for a 2025 third-round pick, and offers much-needed depth to a Utah club without both Sean Durzi and John Marino for the long-term. Kesselring should maintain his spot on the team’s top pair, while Maatta will join Vladislav Kolyachonok and Maveric Lamoureux in fighting for depth ice time.

Lightning Reassign Gabriel Fortier

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Oct. 28: Fortier cleared waivers and will head to Syracuse, per PuckPedia.

Oct. 27: The Tampa Bay Lightning have placed forward Gabriel Fortier on waivers per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Fortier started the year on the non-rostered injury list after surgery to address an unspecified injury this off-season. His mention on the transaction log indicates a return could be imminent.

It’d be a surprise to see Fortier head anywhere other than the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch, where he’s spent the bulk of the last four seasons. He recorded 26 points, split evenly, in Syracuse’s middle-six last season – continuing a trend of decreasing scoring since a career-high 35 points in 2021-22. He’s proven a stout minor-league forward over the years but hasn’t yet translated to the top flight, with just one goal in 11 career NHL games.

Fortier was far more productive across six total seasons in the QMJHL. He found his scoring touch quick – with 11 goals and 17 points in 25 games at age 17 and 26 goals and 59 points in 66 games at 18. The bulk of that scoring was earned by smart positioning and strong shooting. Tampa Bay bought those traits with the 59th overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, though Fortier would stick around the QMJHL through the next three seasons. He totaled 236 games and 230 points in the league and served one-year stints as captain for both Baie-Comeau and Moncton. Fortier will continue his search for similar stability at the pro level once he clears waivers and, likely, heads back to the minor leagues.

Canucks Recall Erik Brännström, Arshdeep Bains

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Oct. 28: As expected, yesterday’s transactions were a paper move. Both Bains and Brännström are back up today, the team announced.

Oct. 27: The Vancouver Canucks have assigned forward Arshdeep Bains and defenseman Erik Brannstrom to the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks. Bains recorded the first goal and point of his NHL career in Saturday night’s win over Pittsburgh. Both players have recorded one point through four games with Vancouver this season.

Bains made the Canucks roster out of training camp, surviving through the final roster cuts to vindicate a strong AHL season last year. He scored 16 goals and 55 points in 59 games, working his way up the Abbotsford lineup and even earning eight NHL games – though he didn’t record any scoring. It was Bains’ second year of pro hockey, scoring 38 points in 66 AHL games as a rookie. He’s Vancouver born-and-raised, playing locally until he moved to the Red Deer Rebels at the age of 17. It took a lowly 18 points in 63 games as a WHL rookie to help Bains find his footing, but he’d ultimately record 209 points across 257 games and five games in juniors. That includes a 112-point season to cap off his time in Red Deer – enough to convince Vancouver to sign him as an undrafted free agent in 2022. He’ll return to a familiar role in Abbotsford, though his brief stint at the top flight could suggest more to come.

Brannstrom started the year in the minors – a surprising move after he followed a summer signing in Colorado by being traded to Vancouver. He earned a recall after two games and three assists with Abbotsford, though he hasn’t held onto his spark with Vancouver. Brannstrom will be under the microscope this season, finally moving away from a six-year stint with the Ottawa Senators that didn’t yield much. He managed 69 points across 266 games with Ottawa, and never managed to maintain a top-four role. That includes a career-high 20 points last season. But despite that jump to modest production, Brannstrom will still need to prove his worth to the Canucks before he nets an everyday role.

Stars Recall Kyle Capobianco

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The Dallas Stars have recalled defenseman Kyle Capobianco ahead of their two-game series in Finland next weekend.

This move sets Capobianco up to serve as Dallas’ seventh defenseman for the Global Series. It’s his first call-up since signing a two-year, $1.6MM contract with Dallas this summer. The deal moved Capobianco to the third organization of his career, after seven years under the Arizona Coyotes and two years with the Winnipeg Jets. He spent all of last season in the minors – recording 54 points in 69 games with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose – but had previously been a routine call-up. He appeared in 73 NHL games between 2017 and 2023, though the 2021-22 campaign marked his only time spending a full season on the NHL roster. Capobianco recorded nine points and 38 penalty minutes in 45 games that year.

Capobianco has continued his stint in the minors through this season, so far recording three points in six games with the Texas Stars. He’s one of many productive defenders on that blue-line – with all six defenseman recording multiple points through the team’s first six games. But it’s Capobianco receiving the call to travel overseas.

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