Pittsburgh Penguins Activate Erik Karlsson
According to a team announcement, the Pittsburgh Penguins have activated defenseman Erik Karlsson from the injured reserve. In a corresponding roster move, the Penguins have placed defenseman Ryan Graves on the injured reserve.
Pittsburgh will have their highest-scoring defenseman back in the lineup tonight against the Edmonton Oilers. Karlsson, 35, has been sidelined the last nine days with an undisclosed injury and has returned somewhat earlier than expected.
In a resurgent year, the former Norris Trophy winner has registered four goals and 33 points in 44 games for the Penguins this season. He’s led all defensemen in Pittsburgh in ATOI with a 23:46 mark.
He has played a crucial role in the Penguins’ surprising return to contention this season. Not only is Karlsson 20 points away from matching his point totals from last season, but he’s managed a robust 54.3% CorsiFor% at even strength. Despite his 88.6% on-ice SV% being below what most teams would expect from their top defenseman, it’s an improvement from where Karlsson was at as recently as last year.
It couldn’t have come at a better time for the player or team, either. Being the subject of trade speculation throughout Pittsburgh’s retool, a resurgent year from Karlsson has put the Penguins in a better spot regarding his future. The team may be more comfortable retaining Karlsson, given his strong play this season, or have better luck trading him now that interested parties may be more inclined to acquire him.
Meanwhile, Graves will head to the injured reserve after initially being recalled to replace Karlsson’s spot on the active roster. Assuming the rest of the defensive core can remain healthy, Graves will likely be reassigned to the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins upon his activation. He cleared waivers at the end of December and hasn’t met the requirements to need waivers again.
Infamously signed through the 2028-29 season at a $4.5MM cap hit, Graves has been scarcely used by the Penguins this season. Serving in a depth role, he’s registered one goal in 19 games while averaging 15:29 of ice time per game. Playing in the AHL for the first time since the 2018-19 season, Graves has recorded two goals and nine points in 13 contests.
Canucks To Activate Filip Chytil
According to Jeff Paterson of Canucks Army, the Vancouver Canucks are expected to activate forward Filip Chytil for tomorrow’s contest against the New Jersey Devils. Nobody from the Canucks has confirmed the news, though head coach Adam Foote indicated that there’s a good chance he’ll return against New Jersey.
Chytil, 26, will return after missing more than three months of action. He has resumed skating over the last few days, with reports from a few days ago revealing that he was a full participant at Vancouver’s practice.
Still, there’s unfortunately no guarantee that he’ll remain healthy throughout the remainder of the 2025-26 campaign or beyond. In fact, it may be time to start asking whether or not Chytil should continue his NHL career for the sake of his long-term future.
By the time that Chytil had reached his sixth season as a full-time player for the New York Rangers, he had already suffered four concussions. The last one was endured during the 2023-24 campaign, when the former 21st overall pick was limited to 10 games. He returned for the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs, registering zero points in six appearances.
Heading into the 2024-25 campaign as healthy as he could be, Chytil had already lost his future with the Rangers. New York traded him to Vancouver later that season in the deal that brought J.T. Miller back to the Big Apple.
Unfortunately, his move to British Columbia didn’t alleviate any of his proclivity toward concussions. In a game against the Chicago Blackhawks in mid-March, Chytil suffered another concussion and missed the remainder of the regular season for the Canucks.
Finally looking to gain some consistency with his new organization, Chytil scored three goals in six games to begin the 2025-26 campaign. Once again, this time against the Washington Capitals, Chytil suffered another concussion, which has cost him over half the season. Despite being on the Canucks for nearly a year, Chytil has registered only four goals and nine points in 21 games.
San Jose Sharks Reassign Igor Chernyshov
According to a team announcement, the San Jose Sharks have reassigned forward Igor Chernyshov to the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda. The transaction proactively opens a roster spot with Shakir Mukhamadullin or the recent acquisition, Kiefer Sherwood, expected to return from injury soon.
Chernyshov, 20, will wrap up his first stint in the NHL. The native of Penza, Russia, was selected by the Sharks with the 33rd overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. At the time, Chernyshov’s draft selection received high marks for being projected as a mid-to-low first-round talent.
He’s proven that since coming to North America last season. Chernyshov spent the 2024-25 campaign with the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit (with fellow rookie Michael Misa), scoring 19 goals and 55 points in only 23 games. Unfortunately, despite the high scoring totals, there was some cause for concern with Chernyshov missing a significant amount of the season after undergoing shoulder surgery.
Chernyshov quickly put those concerns to bed this season. Through his first 25 games of the year with AHL San Jose, Chernyshov scored 11 goals and 23 points with a +5 rating. Despite being in the NHL for the last month, he remains fourth on the team in scoring.
Once the Sharks ran into injury trouble with their forward core, the team recalled Chernyshov for his NHL debut in mid-December. In an impressive start to his career, he scored in more games than he didn’t, finishing his first stint with three goals and 11 points in 15 games, averaging 15:47 of ice time per game.
Still, Chernyshov was relatively sheltered next to phenom Macklin Celebrini throughout his debut. Of his 11 points, Celebrini either assisted or scored in seven of them. Regardless, given the quick chemistry the two developed, San Jose must feel confident that Chernyshov will have a long-term home with the club.
Sabres Sign Josh Doan To Seven-Year Extension
According to ESPN’s Emily Kaplan, the Buffalo Sabres are nearing a contract extension with forward Josh Doan. A few moments later, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that it’ll be a seven-year, $48.65MM ($6.95MM AAV) deal. The Sabres have confirmed the contract.
PuckPedia provided the year-by-year breakdown of Doan’s extension:
- 2026-27: $3.45MM salary, $3.5M signing bonus
- 2027-28: $3.45MM salary, $3.5M signing bonus
- 2028-29: $6.95MM salary
- 2029-30: $6.95MM salary, 7-team no-trade clause
- 2030-31: $6.95MM salary, 7-team no-trade clause
- 2031-32: $6.95MM salary, 7-team no-trade clause
- 2032-33: $6.95MM salary, 7-team no-trade clause
General Manager Jarmo Kekäläinen makes his first major move as the new leader of Buffalo’s front office. Doan’s next extension will keep the forward in upstate New York through the 2032-33 NHL season, when he’ll be 31 years old.
Few would have predicted a mammoth extension for Doan just six months ago. Over the summer, the Sabres acquired Doan and defenseman Michael Kesselring from the Utah Mammoth for JJ Peterka. At the time, Doan was believed to be a long-term fit in the middle six of Buffalo’s forward core.
That’s largely what he showed with his last organization. Throughout the first two years of his career, Doan registered 12 goals and 28 points in 62 games split between the Arizona Coyotes and Utah Hockey Club, averaging 13:18 of ice time with a +4 rating. He had relatively impactful possession and defensive metrics, though nothing would indicate he would break out as he has with the Sabres.
In Buffalo, he’s already surpassed his previous career totals. Throughout 49 games this year, Doan has scored 15 goals and 35 points, averaging 16:04 of ice time per game. That production is good for third on the team in goal-scoring and fourth in total scoring. He isn’t showing any signs of slowing down, either.
Not only has Doan alleviated the concerns of trading a player of Peterka’s offensive caliber, but he actually has three more points than Peterka this season in the same number of games played. According to MoneyPuck, the line of Peyton Krebs, Tage Thompson, and Doan has averaged a 55.1% xGoals% in all situations, which is the 20th best in the league for forward units that have played in 150 or more minutes together.
Additionally, his on-ice Goals% (60.4%) is the highest on the team by a healthy margin, arguably making him the most productive forward on the team this season. He has shown some new shortcomings on the defensive side of the puck, though Buffalo is likely willing to overlook that as long as he keeps tearing it up in the other direction.
Photo courtesy of Eric Hartline-Imagn Images.
Injury Notes: Wild, McDonagh, Huberdeau
The Minnesota Wild could have a few reinforcements for their upcoming game tonight against the Detroit Red Wings. According to NHL reporter Jessi Pierce, Zach Bogosian, Matt Boldy, Joel Eriksson Ek, and Marcus Johansson all took part in Minnesota’s practice this morning.
Pierce went on to indicate that both Eriksson Ek and Johansson could return to the lineup tonight. Unfortunately, Bogosian and Boldy will remain on the sidelines. In the latter’s defense, given the stipulations of putting a player on the injured reserve, Boldy would be ineligible for tonight’s contest regardless of how he feels.
The Wild could certainly use the help. After having an outstanding record through November and December, Minnesota has stalled of late, managing a 4-4-2 record in January. If Eriksson Ek and Johansson return tonight, the Wild would have two of their top four scorers back in the lineup.
Additional injury notes:
- The long-awaited return of Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh is on the horizon. According to team insider Erik Erlendsson, McDonagh’s recovery timeline has been upgraded to day-to-day, and head coach Jon Cooper guaranteed that he would play before the upcoming Olympic break. Due to varying injuries, the Lightning have been without McDonagh for most of the 2025-26 campaign. The 16-year veteran has registered four goals and eight points in 18 games on the year, averaging 20 minutes of ice time per game.
- According to Sportsnet’s Pat Steinberg, winger Jonathan Huberdeau will return to the lineup tomorrow night for the Calgary Flames. The former Calder Trophy winner missed the Flames’ most recent game due to a lower-body injury.
Chicago Blackhawks Activate Frank Nazar
Jan. 22nd: As expected, the Blackhawks have officially activated Nazar, per a team announcement. Chicago did not make a corresponding roster move.
Jan. 21st: The Chicago Blackhawks are on the precipice of having a fully healthy forward core. According to The Athletic’s Scott Powers, the Blackhawks expected youngster Frank Nazar to return to the lineup tomorrow, meaning he’ll be activated from the injured reserve.
Chicago has an open roster spot, so they won’t need to make a corresponding roster move. Still, they already have 14 forwards, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Blackhawks swap a depth forward for a defenseman in the AHL.
Nazar, 22, has been absent from the Blackhawks’ roster for a month. After taking a puck to the face, he broke his jaw in Chicago’s December 20th matchup against the Ottawa Senators. He has been skating for the last few days and will make his official return tomorrow against the Carolina Hurricanes.
Before the injury, Nazar was having a solid junior campaign. Registering six goals and 21 points in 33 games, Nazar remains only five points away from matching last year’s totals, which took 53 games to reach. Being one of the best offensive forwards on the team, he’s earned a huge bump in ATOI this season, going from 15:52 last season to 18:15 this year.
Still, Nazar was clearly slowing down in the lead-up to the injury. The Detroit, MI native had scored five goals and 13 points in his first 17 games of the year. In the next 16 games, in which the Blackhawks had recorded a 3-11-2 record, Nazar had only registered one goal and eight points. Since he exited the lineup in late December, Chicago has improved, managing a 7-6-1 record in his absence.
Regardless, despite missing a month of action, Nazar remains tied for fourth on the team in scoring. He’s largely considered the highest-upside forward option for the Blackhawks behind Connor Bedard, and the team will hope that he can maintain his health through the conclusion of the 2025-26 campaign.
Latest On Maple Leafs’ Defense
In last night’s loss to the Detroit Red Wings, the Toronto Maple Leafs suffered another serious blow on defense, losing Oliver Ekman-Larsson partway through the game to a lower-body injury. Earlier today, on TSN’s Insider Trading, Pierre LeBrun posited that Ekman-Larsson is expected to miss some time. Still, there’s no concern about his availability for Team Sweden at the Olympics.
As bad as it is to lose your highest-scoring defenseman, that’s not the only injury Toronto’s defensive core suffered last night. According to TSN’s Chris Johnston, there is concern from the Maple Leafs that Brandon Carlo is also suffering from an ailment. Carlo only recently returned from a foot injury that cost him two months of the 2025-26 campaign.
Factoring in the long-term groin injury to Chris Tanev, Toronto may be without 75% of the top-four of their defensive core for the foreseeable future. Few teams would be able to absorb that many losses, and it couldn’t come at a worse time for the Maple Leafs, who currently sit one point back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Still, although the team has yet to provide an update on the status of Ekman-Larsson or Carlo, LeBrun indicated on Insider Trading that the new injuries have motivated the Maple Leafs to increase their efforts to acquire a defenseman.
LeBrun specifically mentioned Dougie Hamilton of the New Jersey Devils and Luke Schenn of the Winnipeg Jets as likely options. Each defenseman has been linked to the Maple Leafs rather significantly over the last few weeks.
Still, there are a few reasons for pause. It’s not to suggest that Toronto couldn’t use an outside acquisition to bolster its defensive core, but desperation typically leads to overpayment. That’s not something the Maple Leafs can afford to do with so little prospect and draft capital.
Furthermore, the possibility of a Hamilton trade in the near future has taken a steep decline over the last few days. New Jersey recently lost defenseman Luke Hughes for the next month or more with a shoulder separation, opening a spot in the top four for Hamilton. As long as Hughes remains out, the Devils will be less inclined to move Hamilton despite the perceived benefits of doing so.
Meanwhile, it’s not obvious that Schenn would be a significant upgrade over Toronto’s other options. He’s had a disappointing year with the Jets, scoring one goal and six points in 35 games, averaging 13:51 of ice time per game. Furthermore, his defensive metrics have declined, showing a CorsiFor% of 45.2% and an on-ice SV% of 89.2% at even strength.
It’s clear that the Maple Leafs will need to bring in some help at any rate. Toronto has seven more games until the upcoming Olympic break, and their record over that stretch could have significant ramifications for the rest of the season.
Senators’ David Perron Out Five To Seven Weeks
The Ottawa Senators have lost one of their veteran forwards until the end of February at the very least. Relayed from TSN’s Bruce Garrioch, head coach Travis Green told reporters today that winger David Perron would miss the next five to seven weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a sports hernia.
Perron’s recovery timeline indicates that he will return well after the upcoming Olympic break. On the earlier side, he could return as soon as Ottawa’s February 26th matchup against the Detroit Red Wings. If it takes closer to seven weeks for him to return, his absence could extend until the middle of March.
Regardless, it’s the second consecutive year that Perron has dealt with a significant injury. During his first season with the Senators, Perron missed two months due to a back injury shortly after he returned from a family medical emergency. He finished the campaign with nine goals and 16 points in 43 games.
Healthy to start the 2025-26 campaign, Perron has been a solid tertiary contributor to the Senators. Largely in a middle-six role, the 37-year-old winger has scored 10 goals and 25 points in 49 games, averaging 13:26 of ice time per game. Additionally, he’s been productive on the defensive side of the puck, managing a 53.5% CorsiFor% and 90.6% on-ice SV% at even strength.
Fortunately, because of the Winter Olympics, Perron doesn’t stand to lose as much time as he otherwise could have. Despite being out for over a month, the expected recovery timeline projects him to miss anywhere from eight to 15 games.
The injury will certainly have implications regarding Perron’s future in Ottawa or elsewhere. At his age, suffering major injuries in back-to-back years can invoke career-ending ramifications. Being a pending unrestricted free agent, Perron will have some work to do upon his return to ensure that there’s interest in him next summer.
Bruins Assign Jordan Harris To AHL On Conditioning Loan
The Boston Bruins are nearing a fully healthy defensive core. Earlier today, the Bruins announced that they’ve assigned defenseman Jordan Harris to the AHL’s Providence Bruins on a conditioning loan.
Harris, 25, is in his first year with his hometown team. The Haverhill, MA native signed a one-year, $825K contract with Boston last summer after being non-tendered by the Columbus Blue Jackets. Before his one-year stint with Columbus, he had spent three years with the Montreal Canadiens before being traded in 2024 for Patrik Laine and a 2026 second-round pick.
Unfortunately, his time with the Bruins hasn’t gone to plan. Due to suffering a fractured ankle in October, Harris has been limited to five appearances for Boston this season. In those five contests, Harris has registered one goal and one assist, averaging 15:38 of ice time per game.
Furthermore, unless there’s another injury, Harris may not have access to much ice time upon his return. Due to multiple injuries on the blue line, the Bruins have given Jonathan Aspirot a larger opportunity this season, and he’s run with it. He’s been a bright spot in Boston this year, achieving a +19 rating in 30 games with an exceptional 94.6% on-ice SV% at even strength. The Bruins rewarded him a little over a week ago, signing Aspirot to a two-year extension.
That may push Harris into a depth role for the rest of the campaign through no fault of his own. Assuming no additional injuries occur, Harris would become the fifth left-handed defenseman on the active roster. Still, given that the Bruins have struggled to remain healthy, primarily on defense, being limited to a depth role is far from guaranteed for Harris.
Devils Place Luke Hughes On LTIR, Recall Colton White
Jan. 21st: Confirming the reports regarding the shoulder separation, the Devils announced that they’ve placed Hughes on the long-term injured reserve. Due to the upcoming Olympic break, he won’t be eligible to return until New Jersey’s matchup on February 25th against the Buffalo Sabres. Additionally, the Devils shared that they’ve recalled Colton White, who recently cleared waivers, in Hughes’ stead.
ESPN’s Emily Kaplan went on to update that Hughes will not get surgery at this point, but the young star will need to rehab, facing LTIR through the Olympic break.
Jan. 20th: The New Jersey Devils may have lost one of their best young defensemen for quite some time. According to insider Frank Seravalli, the initial diagnosis on Devils’ defenseman Luke Hughes is that he dislocated his shoulder last night against the Calgary Flames.
New Jersey is believed to be seeking a second opinion on Hughes’ injury, though the team is confident he will miss some time, which team reporter Amanda Stein confirmed after the game. The Devils won’t return to New Jersey until January 27th (they are currently on a Pacific Division road trip), so it could be some time before they publicly reveal the severity of Hughes’ injury.
Although it’s not beneficial to speculate about injuries, it’s difficult to tell from the video exactly what happened. Hughes was racing Flames forward Justin Kirkland for a loose puck, and Hughes immediately dropped his stick and clutched his right shoulder. There was no significant contact on the play.
In terms of a recovery timeline, it largely depends on the severity of the separation. A month ago, Chicago Blackhawks phenom Connor Bedard suffered a dislocated shoulder against the St. Louis Blues, causing Bedard to miss 12 consecutive games. If Hughes is on pace for a similar recovery, he won’t return after the Olympic break in February.
Regardless, the Devils continue their trend of suffering long-term injuries to their high-level performers. Before going down with an injury, Hughes had scored five goals and 26 points in 48 games, averaging 23:20 of ice time per game. He was New Jersey’s leading scorer among defensemen by a healthy margin, and sat behind Dougie Hamilton in CorsiFor% at even strength.
Outside of what the injury means for Hughes specifically, it certainly won’t help the team in their efforts to climb back into the playoff conversation. Although much of the Eastern Conference has been streaky this season, the Devils have been one of the worst-performing teams since December 1st, largely nixing any idea of this simply being a “bad streak”.
In the team’s defense, few organizations would be able to sustain the number of injuries that New Jersey has suffered over the years. Regardless, their window to make the playoffs this season is quickly closing. For comparison, since December 1st, the New York Rangers, who have already punted on the 2025-26 season, have earned 20 points in the standings, whereas New Jersey has only claimed 19 with an additional game played.