Juraj Slafkovský Out At Least One Week With Upper-Body Injury
Canadiens winger Juraj Slafkovský will miss at least the next week with an upper-body injury, the team announced today. He hasn’t been placed on injured reserve but can be if needed. He’ll be absent for the team’s next four games at a minimum before being re-evaluated.
Slafkovský is dealing with a suspected shoulder injury sustained while practicing late last week, but he played through it and recorded two assists in a contest against the Islanders on Saturday. They’re shutting him down for now, though – whether that’s due to a setback or just purely for precautionary reasons remains to be seen.
It puts a damper on what had been a decent start to the campaign for the 2022 first-overall pick. Slafkovský wasn’t shooting the puck with nearly as much aplomb as last season, lighting the lamp once on seven shots through six games, but had added five assists to click at a point-per-game pace alongside Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki. They’ve really struggled to defend as a unit, though, allowing an eye-popping 4.41 xGA per 60 minutes, per MoneyPuck.
Enforcer Michael Pezzetta will draw into the lineup and make his season debut tonight against the Rangers, the team said. But it’s highly unlikely he’ll shoulder Slafkovský’s vacated first-line minutes. If head coach Martin St. Louis‘ deployment last season is any indication, that honor will likely go to Josh Anderson. He logged over 77 minutes alongside Caufield and Suzuki, second to Slafkovský’s whopping 751 minutes.
Slafkovský’s earliest potential return will be against the Capitals on the last day of the month.
Avalanche Place Jonathan Drouin On Injured Reserve
Oct. 22: According to the league’s media portal, Wagner was returned to AHL Colorado at some point yesterday. He sat in the press box for Sunday’s win over the Sharks.
Oct. 20: The Colorado Avalanche have placed forward Jonathan Drouin on injured reserve with an upper-body injury and recalled Chris Wagner. Drouin played a hardy 21:25 of ice time in Colorado’s season opener and didn’t seem limited, but he hasn’t skated since. Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar recently shared that Drouin would be reevaluated on October 28th, setting him up to miss at least five more games.
Colorado signed Drouin to another one-year contract this summer, awarding him a $1.675MM raise over his previous deal after he scored a career-high 56 points last season. It was a much-needed breakout year for Drouin, who found quick comfort playing next to former Halifax Mooseheads teammate Nathan MacKinnon. The duo contributed to a fantastic 97-14-11 record over two years together in Halifax, capping off their tandem with the first Memorial Cup win in Mooseheads history. Their chemistry translated to Colorado, where Drouin spent 940 minutes, or 65 percent of his total ice time, on the ice with MacKinnon.
Drouin was lined up to continue that top-line role this season, but in his absence, it’s instead gone to Ross Colton. Colton’s taken full advantage of the expanded minutes, scoring four goals and five points in his last four games. Meanwhile, Wagner will join a crowded bottom six, set to compete with Matthew Stienburg and Ivan Ivan for a fourth-line role. Both Stienburg and Ivan are playing through the first games of their NHL careers, though neither has been particularly inspiring – with Stienburg going scoreless through two games and Ivan posting one assist in five games. Wagner hasn’t found much production of his own but does offer 375 games of NHL experience and served as Colorado’s de facto call-up last season. He’ll look to return to his role of fourth-line glue guy quickly as the Avalanche look to buck a dismal 1-4-0 start to the season.
Atlantic Notes: Tkachuk, Perron, Greenway
The defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers have gotten off to a strong start this season to the tune of a 4-2-1 record which becomes more impressive when considering the team has been without forwards Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk for five games. The latter has been out for more than a week with an illness but should return tomorrow night against the Minnesota Wild according to David Dwork of The Hockey News.
Tkachuk managed two assists in two games for the Panthers to start the season before exiting the lineup on October 14th. He’s expected to slot in on the right wing next to familiar linemates Sam Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe.
He should have been a popular candidate to replace Eetu Luostarinen on Florida’s first line but their production over the last few games leaves little room for upgrade. According to Hockey Reference, the combination of Luostarinen, Sam Reinhart, and Anton Lundell has produced 23 points through seven games with an even more impressive E +/- of 8.1.
Other Atlantic notes:
- The Ottawa Senators’ most notable unrestricted free agent signing from this past offseason, David Perron, will be away from the team for the foreseeable future due to personal reasons (X Link). Perron joined the Senators on a two-year, $8MM pact to take on a similar role to his tenure with the Detroit Red Wings. He’s gone scoreless through his initial five games with the organization and will look to rebound upon his return.
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Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reported earlier that forward Jordan Greenway has returned to practice for the Buffalo Sabres after suffering an upper-body injury and Mike Harrington of Buffalo News Sports later added he could feature in the lineup tomorrow. Greenway was a surprise scratch in the team’s most recent game against the Chicago Blackhawks a few days ago as it took until after the contest to learn about his upper-body injury. He currently sits tied for fourth on Buffalo in scoring with two goals and four points through the first six games.
West Notes: Karlsson, Texier, Hartman
The Vegas Golden Knights received positive news on the injury front as forward William Karlsson returned to the ice this morning in a non-contact jersey (X Link). He didn’t skate with any of the team’s forward lines suggesting he won’t suit up tomorrow night but a follow-up report indicated he could return to the lineup by Friday.
Karlsson hasn’t skated in a month after suffering an undisclosed injury during the preseason. Aside from vague updates every few weeks, the Golden Knights organization hasn’t offered any specifics about his injury. Since he didn’t factor into any preseason games this September, Karlsson’s last game with Vegas was Game Seven of the team’s Round One series loss against the Dallas Stars in the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs.
Karlsson’s imminent return couldn’t come at a better time for the Golden Knights with winger Victor Olofsson going down with a lower-body injury. Vegas may be light up front tomorrow night against the Los Angeles Kings but should have a formidable top-six against the Ottawa Senators on Friday of this week should Karlsson return.
Other West notes:
- A formal roster move from the St. Louis Blues is expected tomorrow as Lou Korac of The Hockey News reports Alexandre Texier should be activated from injured reserve for the team’s contest tomorrow night. The Blues have a full 23-man roster at the moment meaning one player will have to be demoted to their AHL affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds, or placed on injured reserve in some capacity. Defenseman Nick Leddy should be a popular candidate for the latter option as the veteran defenseman hasn’t suited up since October 15th after sustaining a lower-body injury.
- Sarah McLellan of Star Tribune Sports reports Minnesota Wild forward Ryan Hartman is considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury. He was originally designated as a game-time decision for the team’s most recent game against the Columbus Blue Jackets, and it now appears the injury is mildly more severe than anticipated. The upper-body ailment shouldn’t keep him out of the lineup too much longer as Hartman looks to expand on his two goals in four games to start the season.
Metro Notes: Merzļikins, Greaves, Hughes, Pesce, Lafrenière
The Columbus Blue Jackets took the ice this morning for practice before their matchup tomorrow night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Columbus notably had three goaltenders on the ice, and team reporter Jeff Svoboda confirmed that Elvis Merzļikins has resumed skating after nursing an upper-body injury.
It looks like Merzlikins is healthy enough to participate in tomorrow night’s contest with the team announcing they have returned netminder Jet Greaves to their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters, after serving on an emergency recall. Greaves suited up in two games for the Blue Jackets on the recall but spent the entire time on the bench with fellow goaltender Daniil Tarasov taking both starts.
It’s anyone’s guess who the Blue Jackets will choose to start tomorrow night’s contest with Merzlikins and Tarasov producing similar numbers to start the 2024-25 regular season. According to Hockey Reference, the two have combined for a 2-3-0 record through five games with a .869 save percentage and a -4.0 goals save above average. The deciding factor may hinge on Merzlikins’ health summary tomorrow morning.
Other Metro notes:
- The New Jersey Devils sent defenseman Seamus Casey to AHL Utica this morning in exchange for Daniil Misyul despite the former scoring three goals and four points in his first eight NHL contests. Team reporter Amanda Stein revealed additional content for the move mentioning that although defensemen Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce won’t suit up tomorrow night, their return “is imminent”. The two undoubtedly will improve New Jersey’s chances of returning to the NHL playoffs next spring as they currently sit ninth in the NHL in points percentage through eight games.
- Mollie Walker of the New York Post reported mild injury news for the New York Rangers sharing forward Alexis Lafrenière is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Lafrenière has been one of the team’s best forwards out of the gate with three goals and six points in five games while averaging 17:45 of ice time per night. With it being the last game of the team’s current three-game road trip, he may be on the shelf tomorrow against the Montreal Canadiens depending on the injury’s severity.
Victor Olofsson Out Week-To-Week With Lower Body Injury
Golden Knights winger Victor Olofsson will be out of action on a week-to-week basis with the lower body injury that’s cost him the last two games, head coach Bruce Cassidy said Monday. He’s not yet on injured reserve, but even if they moved him there, they wouldn’t have the cap space for a call-up unless he was placed on LTIR.
It’s a tough blow for the Knights, who are 3-2-1 through six games and fourth in the Pacific Division. Floating around a wild card spot is what most expected from them after losing a few key forwards, namely Jonathan Marchessault and Chandler Stephenson, to free agency. But their pedestrian record has nothing to do with a lack of offense. It’s the opposite – their 3.83 GF/GP ranks sixth in the league. It’s subpar possession play and a poor showing from Adin Hill (4 GP, .851 SV%, 3.81 GAA) in goal that’s held them back so far.
Before sustaining his LBI, Olofsson looked like he would be an essential part of Vegas’ secondary scoring after inking a one-year, $1.075MM prove-it deal in free agency. The 29-year-old had managed three goals on 11 shots in four games and averaged over 15 minutes per game, his highest usage in three years. He’d logged significant time on the wing with both Tomáš Hertl and Nicolas Roy, and unlike what we’ve come to expect from Olofsson, his defensive impacts were substantial. His 55.4 CF% at even strength ranks as the team’s best by far, night and day, from his often subpar possession metrics over the first six years of his NHL career with the Sabres.
Last year was especially difficult for Olofsson, who was a frequent healthy scratch and had just seven goals and 15 points in 51 games for Buffalo. While he was never a true top-of-the-lineup player, he could at least score with aplomb, routinely shooting at or around 15% and breaking the 20-goal plateau three times in four years between 2019-20 and 2022-23. If he can get back in the lineup before mid-November, he’s likely got a shot at reaching those totals again in a Vegas sweater.
There hasn’t been a clear direct replacement for Olofsson thus far. Outside of the Golden Knights’ top line of Ivan Barbashev, Jack Eichel, and Mark Stone, their other forward units have been in flux for the first few weeks of the campaign. With center William Karlsson nearing a return from the undisclosed injury that’s cost him all of the season to date, don’t expect a corresponding transaction aside from his activation.
Afternoon Notes: Ullmark, Sogaard, Stanley, Blumel, Petrovic
Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark has returned to full health, prompting the team to return Mads Sogaard to the AHL, shares Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. Ullmark has been working back from a muscle strain that’s held him out of the team’s last three games. Previous reports shared that Ottawa wanted to be patient not to aggravate the injury as they worked Ullmark back to full speed.
Ullmark has been strong in the two games he’s played with Ottawa, saving 53 of 58 shots faced en route to a 1-1-0 record and .914 save percentage. The same hasn’t been true for Ottawa’s other goaltending options, with Anton Forsberg allowing 10 goals on 73 shots (.863 save percentage) and Mads Sogaard allowing four goals on 17 shots (0.765) in Ullmark’s absence. The Senators have managed to win in front of all three goalies regardless, largely thanks to each of Tim Stutzle, Brady Tkachuk, and Jake Sanderson recording seven points through the first five games of the season. Ullmark’s return could give Ottawa the back-end consistency to ramp up their early winning-record, though it seems the team could still be in the process of easing their franchise goaltender back to strength.
Other notes from around the league:
- Winnipeg Jets defenseman Logan Stanley has been activated off of injured reserve and will step into the lineup for Haydn Fleury, per Mike McIntyre of The Winnipeg Free Press. Stanley missed the first four games of the season with a knee injury that required surgery during training camp. Stanley has played in just 44 games over the last two seasons, recording five points, 57 penalty minutes, and an average of 13:45 in ice time. He faces an uphill battle to an everyday role, but will get a chance to take the first step when the Jets take on the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday.
- The Dallas Stars have returned forward Matej Blumel and defender Alexander Petrovic to the AHL. Blumel stepped into one game with Dallas during his recall, recording eight minutes of ice time and two shots on net. Petrovic spent the extent of his time in the press box, leaving two games and one point in the AHL as his only stats this year. The Texas Stars will get two big additions with this move – readding the stout, veteran presence of Petrovic and the 30-goal upside of Blumel back to the lineup.
Islanders’ Anthony Duclair Leaves Game With Injury
The New York Islanders will be without their top free-agent acquisition for the rest of the game tonight and potentially for the foreseeable future. Forward Anthony Duclair left the game in the third period of New York’s contest against the Montreal Canadiens and appeared to have injured his left leg.
He took the puck into Montreal’s zone and drove toward the net when he twisted his left leg. There was some contact with Canadiens’ defenseman Jayden Struble, but the injury appears to be non-contact. This is a cause for concern, as non-contact injuries are often more serious.
There should be more information tomorrow about the extent of the injury or even later tonight. Duclair signed a four-year, $14MM contract with the Islanders this past offseason and has held a valuable spot on New York’s first line next to Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat.
He led the Islanders in scoring heading into tonight’s action with two goals and three points in four games but has now been surpassed by Barzal. New York has struggled on offense over the last few seasons and Duclair was brought in to elevate the organization’s top six.
Although an absence for any stretch would do nothing to help New York’s offensive difficulties, it could create an opportunity for one of the team’s newer players. Maxim Tsyplakov has gotten off to a strong start with one goal and two points in four games with another assist tonight and he could expand upon that with an opening on the top line.
East Notes: Penguins, Hughes, Pesce, Ullmark
There were some expectations that Joel Blomqvist‘s days with the Pittsburgh Penguins were numbered with the organization recalling Alex Nedeljkovic earlier today. We now know that isn’t the case as Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports reports the team will carry both along with Tristan Jarry through the team’s upcoming four-game road trip.
Blomqvist has played his way into an extended stay with the club after securing a 2-2-0 record through four games with a .908 save percentage compared to a 1-1-0 record and .836 SV% from Jarry. It’s already been suggested there’s an open competition between the pipes to increase their chances of winning each game. There appears to be a pathway for Blomqvist to become the everyday starter for the Penguins if he continues to play well despite only being 23 years old.
Rorabaugh also mentions that forwards Blake Lizotte, Matthew Nieto, and Vasily Ponomarev skated this morning but will not travel with the team for their road trip. Each of the trio has been nursing injuries to open the 2024-25 campaign with the latter likely headed to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton once he’s medically cleared to return.
Other East notes:
- The New Jersey Devils are eagerly awaiting the return of defensemen Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce to their active roster. Team reporter Amanda Stein shared that both defensemen skated with the team this morning but aren’t expected back sooner than anticipated. It’s a positive step in the right direction for both players but don’t tell New Jersey they’re supposed to be missing them. The team currently leads the Eastern Conference in points with 10 after a 5-2-0 start through their first seven games.
- The strain afflicting Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark has been more severe than expected. It’s supposed to last much longer as TSN’s Bruce Garrioch reports he is close to a return despite potent caution from the team. The likely scenario is that the organization was concerned Ullmark may reaggravate the strain or develop a worse injury altogether if he returned sooner, so the slow return may prove beneficial in the long run.
Kent Johnson’s Injury Not A Short-Term One
It has been a rough first few weeks for the Blue Jackets on the injury front. Boone Jenner might not play this season, Dmitri Voronkov has yet to play, and Erik Gudbranson could be facing a longer-term absence, among others.
Now, Kent Johnson can be added to that list. Speaking after practice today, head coach Dean Evason told reporters including Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch (Twitter link) that the upper-body injury for Johnson is not expected to be a short-term issue. While he has not yet been placed on injured reserve, that is expected to happen in the near future.
The 22-year-old was injured in Thursday’s victory over Buffalo after colliding with teammate James van Riemsdyk. It was actually the second game in a row the Blue Jackets had a ‘friendly fire’ injury with Gudbranson’s injury coming on a collision with Sean Monahan.
Last season, Johnson battled injuries and some ineffectiveness, limiting him to just 42 games with Columbus where he had just six goals and ten assists while also spending time with AHL Cleveland. That resulted in the two sides working out a bridge contract this summer, a three-year, $5.4MM agreement as while he’s still viewed as a long-term building block for the rebuilding Blue Jackets, he certainly hadn’t shown enough for a long-term contract to be viable.
Johnson was off to a nice start to his season before the injury as he had two goals and three assists through his first four appearances and had logged an average of just over 20 minutes a night in his first three full outings. However, it looks like it’s going to be a little while at least before he has a chance to build on that.