Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Injury

Injury Notes: Chatfield, Beecher, Hamilton

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Hurricanes defenseman Jalen Chatfield will not return to tonight’s game, per the team, after sustaining a brutal hit to the head from Wild forward Tyler Pitlick. Chatfield was helped off the ice and left the game immediately, while Pitlick received a match penalty from the game, which carries an automatic suspension pending review from the league. It stands as the first match penalty of the 2025-26 NHL season. 

Already missing Jaccob Slavin and Shayne Gostisbehere, the Canes can seldom afford to lose another defenseman. They have already called upon Joel Nystrom, who is getting his first NHL action this season after coming over from Sweden, being drafted by the club in the seventh round back in 2021. Meanwhile, Chatfield was signed to a rather unassuming two-way deal in 2021, but since then has become a highly reliable and steady presence for the Hurricanes on the backend, not playing in less than 72 games in the past three seasons. 

Pitlick, 34, has never been known as an overly aggressive player, but since making it back to the NHL this season with his hometown Minnesota Wild, the veteran has tried to bring physicality, and unfortunately, crossed the line in doing so. Pitlick has yet to record a point in nine games with the Wild, having last played in the NHL with the Rangers in 2023-24, splitting time between New York and the AHL in that season. Now, eyes will be on any further discipline on the journeyman forward. 

Elsewhere across the league:

  • The Boston Bruins confirmed mid-game that forward John Beecher will not return due to an upper-body injury. Beecher, 24, went down hard and appeared to be favoring his shoulder. The 24-year-old former first-round pick is still working to find his offense, with 26 points in 78 games last season, and one goal in five games so far in 2025-26. Yet even when not appearing on the scoresheet, Beecher brings imposing size in the bottom six at 6’3”. 
  • Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton left during the second period against Montreal, and has not returned, as confirmed by Amanda Stein, Devils team reporter. Hamilton, 32, has unfortunately only one injury-free season in five as a Devil, his major breakout 74-points in 82 games campaign in 2022-23. New Jersey already placed fellow standout defender Brett Pesce on IR earlier today. The team has not disclosed further details on Hamilton at this time. 

 

Sabres Activate Tyson Kozak, Place Jiri Kulich On IR

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Ahead of tonight’s game vs the Blues, the Buffalo Sabres activated Tyson Kozak and placed Jiri Kulich on injured reserve, as shared by Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio 550. Kozak originally landed on IR in late October, due to a lower-body injury suffered against the Maple Leafs. Meanwhile, Kulich’s ailment is not hockey related, as he is dealing with an issue related to his ear, as shared by the team, and hopefully will not be out for long. 

Kozak has jumped right back into the Sabres lineup tonight, centering Jordan Greenway and Jack Quinn. The 22-year-old has two goals in seven games. Kozak was a great find from Buffalo, drafted in the seventh round in 2021, and projects as a solid bottom six center with a hard-nosed style and high motor. Having missed the last five games, Kozak has 28 NHL games under his belt across the last two seasons. 

On the other hand, Kulich, a more highly touted young forward, drafted 28th overall by Buffalo in 2022, has had an up-and-down season so far. The Czech native caught some blame from Head Coach Lindy Ruff during the team’s brutal start. Tested right out of the gate, it appeared Kulich’s future in Buffalo could be in limbo. However, since then, the club has worked its way out of the early hole, currently above the .500 mark, and Kulich has been a mainstay in the lineup until the ear issue, with five points in 12 games. Still just 21, Kulich will look to come back shortly and keep pushing to solidify himself as an NHLer, potentially surpassing last year’s output of 15 goals, and 24 points. 

Tristan Jarry, Justin Brazeau, Noel Acciari All Out Multiple Weeks

at CDT | by 5 Comments

Yesterday, eyes raised when the Penguins placed all of goaltender Tristan Jarry, winger Justin Brazeau, and center Noel Acciari on injured reserve without much explanation. Today, the team’s public relations department provided updates on each of them. Acciari and Jarry have been shut down for the next three weeks due to upper and lower-body injuries, respectively, while Brazeau will miss at least four weeks with his upper-body issue.

It’s an especially unfortunate blow for Brazeau. The right-winger has already missed two games, but before his absence, he was one of the league’s best breakout stories. The 27-year-old has been stapled next to Evgeni Malkin after signing a two-year, $3MM deal with Pittsburgh in free agency and erupted with four goals in his first four games. He’s kept that pace up and was clicking at a point per game with a 6-6–12 line before getting hurt.

This is Brazeau’s third NHL season and just his second as a full-timer. Undrafted, he spent time in the Maple Leafs and Bruins organizations on minor-league deals before landing his first NHL contract from Boston midway through the 2023-24 campaign. He had 11 goals and 22 points last season in 76 games between Boston and Minnesota, where he was traded at the deadline.

His line with Malkin and Anthony Mantha has been nothing short of dominant offensively, playing a crucial role in Pittsburgh’s 8-4-2 record, which has seen them score the second-most goals in the league. Malkin is off to a vintage start with 16 assists and 19 points in just 14 games, while Mantha has more than held his own with a 6-5–11 line after missing most of last season due to ACL surgery. Philip Tomasino has replaced Brazeau on that line but is still looking for his first goal of the season after six appearances. It’s unclear if that will hold after the Pens’ roster moves yesterday.

As for Jarry, his injury quells what’s also been an impressive comeback season. After languishing with a .892 SV% in 36 appearances last season and even ending up on waivers, Pittsburgh’s formerly undisputed No. 1 has returned to form in a platoon with newcomer Arturs Silovs. They’ve started seven games each, and while Silovs has the slightly more impressive numbers, Jarry has still been well above the mean with a .911 SV%, 2.60 GAA, one shutout, and a 5-2-0 record. His 4.8 goals saved above expected are 14th in the league, per MoneyPuck.

How Pittsburgh distributes its goaltending workload in Jarry’s absence is perhaps the most compelling storyline to emerge from today’s news. The team has eight games in the next three weeks. Top prospect Sergei Murashov was called up yesterday and will presumably start at least two of them – they play the Kings on Nov. 9 and the Kraken on Nov. 22 in the second half of back-to-backs. That could mean a stretch of six in eight for Silovs, a workload he hasn’t seen at the NHL level since being forced into action for the Canucks in the 2024 playoffs.

Acciari’s injury is the second notable one in the past couple of months. He was a non-factor for most of training camp while recovering from a core muscle injury, but returned late in the preseason. It’s unclear if his upper-body designation is related to that previous abdominal issue, but it’s a possibility. He’s played in 13 out of 14 for the Pens, managing three assists and a +3 rating while averaging 12:56 per game and winning a career-high 60.4% of his draws. He’s been a quietly valuable piece at the bottom of Pittsburgh’s lineup with Connor Dewar and Blake Lizotte.

Avalanche Recall Jack Ahcan, Reassign Tristen Nielsen

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Nov. 5: Nielsen was returned to AHL Colorado after making his NHL debut last night, the team announced. He skated just 5:25 of ice time, recording four hits.

Nov. 3: Amidst numerous injuries to regular lineup players, the Colorado Avalanche announced today that they have recalled forward Tristen Nielsen and defenseman Jack Ahcan from their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. The moves come after several updates to injured Avalanche players were reported earlier today by Guerilla Sports’ Jesse Montano: forward Gavin Brindley has been managing a concussion, Logan O’Connor is “progressing” but will remain out, and Samuel Girard is a possibility to return to the ice this weekend.

In recalling Nielsen, the Avalanche have given themselves an additional forward option to work with while O’Connor and Brindley remain injured. The Avalanche have been running an extremely inexperienced fourth line: two of the three players (Zakhar Bardakov and Taylor Makar) have played in a combined nine total career NHL games, and combine for less than 30 games of experience playing professional hockey in North America.

By recalling Nielsen, 25, the Avalanche have given head coach Jared Bednar a more experienced option to potentially pencil into his fourth line. While Nielsen doesn’t have any NHL experience just yet, he does have nearly 250 games of AHL experience, and has won a Calder Cup championship.

Nielsen also positioned himself for an early-season recall with a tremendously successful preseason performance: he tied for the lead among Avalanche forwards in goal scoring with two in his three preseason contests, to go along with one assist.

There were those in Vancouver’s media sphere who believed Nielsen had done enough in the AHL to earn a call-up in Vancouver, but the opportunity to make his NHL debut never materialized for the tenacious winger. But through his strong preseason performance and solid start to his AHL season (he ranks third on AHL Colorado with nine points in 11 games) he has put himself in a position to finally get into an NHL game in Colorado.

On defense, Girard’s lingering injury means that the team, before this recall, only had six healthy defensemen on its roster. By recalling Ahcan, they’ve given themselves a spare blueliner to provide insurance in case any of their regular blueliners is unfit to play.

With the team set to host the Tampa Bay Lightning tomorrow and Girard reportedly not ready to return until this weekend, keeping a seventh defenseman is an important move to ensure the Avalanche don’t get into a tough spot in case an unexpected injury or other reason for unavailability on defense were to pop up.

Ahcan, 28, is a 5’8″ left-shot defenseman bringing 279 games of AHL experience and 13 games of NHL experience to the table. Ahcan has been a quality producer from the blueline at just about every level he’s played at on a full-time basis, and he has scored at a 40-point 72-game pace over the course of his AHL career.

The Avalanche’s current third-pairing left-shot blueliner is Ilya Solovyov, a big stay-at-home defenseman who the team plucked off of waivers on Oct. 3. This recall gives Bednar the option to swap Solovyov with Ahcan should he prefer to ice a third pairing with a little less size and a little more offensive ability than it would have with Solovyov in the lineup.

Photos courtesy of Walter Tychnowicz-USA TODAY Sports

Evening Notes: Murphy, Josi, Team Canada

at CDT | by 1 Comment

Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote today on Blackhawks defenseman Connor Murphy and his falling role with the club. Murphy is the longest-tenured Blackhawk, whose timeline overlapped with the likes of Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, and Patrick Sharp in 2017-18. A steady presence throughout Chicago’s tougher times, it appears the 32-year-old is on the outside looking in. His ice time has fallen dramatically this season, some of the lowest of his entire career. 

The veteran has handled it professionally, saying he understands the decision, as mentioned by Pope. Injuries have not been a factor either, as it seems that Murphy’s seat has simply been taken by the younger 6’8″ Louis Crevier, and fellow veteran Matt Grzelcyk, who offers more mobility in new Head Coach Jeff Blashill’s system.

It is not ideal for a player in his ninth season with the Blackhawks, with the team finally showing progress, to only now lose his role. However, Murphy could have interest from teams looking for a veteran rental on the back-end. His $4.4MM cap hit may need retention for a deal to work, however Chicago has the room to retain. One way or the other, GM Kyle Davidson will surely do the veteran right, considering his contributions over the years. 

Elsewhere across the league:

  • Nick Kieser of Lower Broad Hockey shared earlier today Predators GM Barry Trotz’s update on Roman Josi. The Preds’ captain is still a few weeks away from a return. Josi was listed late last month as week-to-week with an upper-body injury. In his absence, Nashville remains above bottom-feeder status, an improvement from last year, but their play has not evoked much confidence of contention either. The Swiss defenseman’s presence is critical for the group, but at 35, it is hard to imagine Josi can sustain his usual workload into 2026 and beyond. If he can stay healthy for 30 more games this year, Josi will reach the esteemed 1,000 game mark. 
  • Marco D’Amico of RG Media shared that Don Sweeney, Bruins GM, and Doug Armstrong, Blues GM, are both in attendance for tonight’s game between the Canadiens and Flyers. While this may raise some eyebrows, both are with Team Canada ahead of the 2026 Olympic Games in Italy, set to start next February. The matchup features a wealth of players to scout for Team Canada; and D’Amico mentioned Nick Suzuki, Noah Dobson, Sam Montembeault, Travis Konecny, and Travis Sanheim as all possibilities.

Golden Knights Activate Noah Hanifin Off IR

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

11/4: Vegas has officially activated Hanifin off of IR ahead of Tuesday night’s game versus the Detroit Red Wings. The top defenseman is expected to play after taking a full practice with the club Tuesday morning, per Jason Pothier of SinBin Vegas.

11/2: The Vegas Golden Knights are planning to have defenseman Noah Hanifin return to the game lineup for Tuesday’s matchup against the Detroit Red Wings, per Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Hanifin hasn’t played since Vegas’ season opener on October 8th. He’s missed the last 10 games with a lower-body injury, but returned to Vegas’ practices in a full contact jersey on Sunday, adds Webster.

Hanifin played 24 minutes of ice time in his sole game on the season – a shootout loss to the Los Angeles Kings. He  managed three shots and a minus-one in the outing. It appeared Hanifin was going to be heavily leaned on in the wake of a long-term injury to Alex Pietrangelo. The Golden Knights deployed him next to the burly Zach Whitecloud, offering a defensive cushion that could have spurred Hanifin’s offense. The 29-year-old defender scored 10 goals and 39 points in 80 games with Vegas last season. That production brought him up to 12 goals and 51 points across 99 games in the Vegas organization. His career year currently stands as the 2021-22 season, when he scored 10 goals and 48 points in 81 games with the Calgary Flames.

The Golden Knights will have to juggle their blue-line to fit Hanifin back into the fold. They’re expected to remove Ben Hutton from the lineup in favor of Jeremy Lauzon, despite Hutton sitting higher on the depth chart. Lauzon leads the Golden Knights with 41 hits, and ranks fourth on the team with 16 blocked shots. He’ll continue to bring that physical presence, while Hanifin looks to join Kaedan Korczak as the only Golden Knights defenseman to score a goal this season.

Penguins Announce Multiple Roster Moves

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Pittsburgh Penguins have shifted around their roster. Most notably, reigning AHL ’Goalie of the Month’ Sergei Murashov has been recalled to the NHL lineup. Pittsburgh has also recalled forward Danton Heinen and defenseman Ryan Graves. To make space for those moves, the Penguins have placed forwards Noel Acciari and Justin Brazeau, and goaltender Tristan Jarry, on injured reserve. They have also assigned defenseman Owen Pickering to the minor-leagues.

These moves will most notably provide updates on the injuries to Acciari and Brazeau. Acciari left Pittsburgh’s Monday loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first period. It wasn’t exactly clear when he sustained his injury, though the team designated it as an upper-body injury. He only played in two shifts before the injury. Brazeau sustained his injury in last Thursday’s win over the Minnesota Wild. He was designated as out day-to-day with an upper-body injury, but will now be forced to miss a third-straight game on Thursday.

Despite clarity around Acciari and Brazeau, there seems to be no indication of exactly what Jarry is facing. He heads to IR with an undisclosed injury and will be forced to sit out of at least the next three games. In the interim, Arturs Silovs will serve as Pittsburgh’s starting goaltender, while Murashov steps in as backup.

That’s incredibly exciting for the red-hot Murashov, who has posted an impressive 1.67 goals-against-average across his last three games. He sits with a .931 save percentage and 1.73 goals-against-average in seven games this season – both the highest in the league among goalies with more than five starts. Murashov has truly looked the part, taking full advantage of a clear starter’s role while Joel Blomqvist recovers from injury. That performance will now earn the 21-year-old Russian his first chance at an NHL role. Murashov posted a .913 Sv% and 2.64 GAA in 16 AHL games, and a .922 Sv% and 2.40 GAA in 26 ECHL games, last season. He’s a sharp bet who Pittsburgh could be eager to test out.

Backing this slew of moves is a shift at the bottom of Pittsburgh’s lineup. Pickering will head to the minor-leagues after posting no scoring and a minus-three in four games on his latest NHL recall. He’s been a stronger play in the minors, where he’s racked up four points and a plus-four in seven games. Replacing Pickering will be Graves, who racked up three points and 13 shots on goal in his last four AHL games. He now sits with seven points and a plus-nine in 10 games on the AHL season, and will be rwarded with a chance to fill bottom-pair minutes for Pittsburgh.

Heinen will fill an opening left by Brazeau. He leads the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in scoring with five goals and 14 points in 10 games. That includes a recent six-game scoring streak that saw him rack up 12 points. Heinen is a veteran of nine NHL seasons. He’s amassed 96 goals and 241 points in 566 career appearances, including a career-best of 16 goals and 47 points in 77 games with the 2017-18 Boston Bruins.

Flames’ Prospect Henry Mews Suffers Season-Ending Injury

at CDT | by 5 Comments

Calgary Flames prospect and University of Michigan defenseman Henry Mews will miss the rest of the season with a lower-body injury, per Matthew Auchincloss of The Michigan Daily. Mews was on the receiving end of a knee-to-knee hit delivered by University of Notre Dame forward Sutter Muzzatti on Saturday. The hit came in the first period, behind Michigan’s net. Mews was on the ice for a moment after but did get to the bench and down the tunnel under his own power.

Mews is among the Flames’ top prospects. To many, he’s already outgrown his third-round selection in the 2024 NHL Draft, after being highly acclaimed for much of the prior year. He’s a high-motor, offensive-defenseman who excels at pushing the puck down the ice and creating plays on the blue-line. That talent earned Mews 82 points in 68 OHL games last season, second-most of any OHL defender behind ’Defenseman of the Year’ Sam Dickinson.

That standing made Mews one of the top CHL talents to commit to the NCAA following the rule change this summer. He was expected to be an instant impact on Michigan’s blue-line, and lived up to the hype early on. Mews had nine assists and a plus-five through nine games before going down with injury, including four points in four games against tough opponents Notre Dame and Western Michigan University. His aggressive offensive immediately clicked with Michigan’s downhill style, and Mews looked noticeably stronger and more confident defensively than last season.

He was riding a four-game point-streak entering Saturday’s matchup. His promising start makes a painful, and long-term, injury all the tougher to bear. Now, it will stick as the silver lining to a missed year, and fuel confidence in Mews’ ability to take on a top-pair role in his sophomore season. The Wolverines – who are carrying an unusual 11 defensemen on their roster – will most likely turn towards Anaheim Ducks prospect Drew Schock, and undrafted defenders Matthew Mania and Hunter Hady, to step up in Mews’ absence.

Blackhawks Recall Oliver Moore, Place Jason Dickinson On IR

at CDT | by 5 Comments

4 p.m:  In a corresponding move, the Blackhawks have assigned forward Landon Slaggert to the minor-leagues. Head coach Jeff Blashill told Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times that Slaggert was considered the odd-man-out as the team reworked their lineup to fit in Moore. The 23-year-old has struggled through five NHL games this season, posting no scoring and a minus-two, after missing the start of the year with an injury.

3 p.m:One of the Chicago Blackhawks’ top prospects is headed to the NHL. According to a team announcement, the Blackhawks have recalled Oliver Moore from the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. Making room for him on the roster, Chicago has placed Jason Dickinson on the injured reserve.

Much like his teammate Ryan Greene, Moore received an opportunity due to an injury. Greene has performed well during his time, leading the Blackhawks to keep him on the active roster for the time being. Although Dickinson is expected to be out for a few weeks with a shoulder injury, it remains unclear whether Moore’s current recall will be permanent or temporary.

Still, the Blackhawks must be feeling positive about Moore’s start in the AHL this year. The former 19th overall pick of the 2023 NHL Draft has scored six goals and nine points in nine games with a +8 rating. Considering he tallied four assists in nine games to end the year with the Blackhawks last season, Moore appears NHL-ready.

Unfortunately, his place in the lineup is somewhat harder to predict. While he would complement Connor Bedard and André Burakovsky on the top line, the team seems hesitant to disrupt their existing chemistry.

Nevertheless, Moore is guaranteed to enter the lineup tonight against the Seattle Kraken, according to the team. They’ll likely start him in a fourth-line role for now, and slowly unleash him into the top-six should he continue earning the opportunity.

Central Injury Notes: Hintz, Duchene, Thomas, Zuccarello

at CDT | by 2 Comments

The Dallas Stars will be without some significant talent ahead of the Western Conference Final rematch tomorrow night. According to team reporter Brien Rea, the Stars won’t have forwards Roope Hintz or Matt Duchene against the Edmonton Oilers tomorrow night. Additionally, Jake Oettinger is also doubtful, given that he and his wife just had a child.

It’s more of the same for Duchene. The 17-year veteran will have missed Dallas’ last eight games due to an upper-body injury after tomorrow night’s contest. He’s only appeared in four games this year, scoring one goal and two assists with a 52.2% success rate in the faceoff dot.

Meanwhile, Hintz will miss his fifth straight game due to an undisclosed injury. He’s been a much bigger void to fill, given that he’s been a point-per-game player to start the campaign. Since Duchene left the lineup, the Stars have averaged two goals per game.

Other injury notes from the Central Division:

  • In some positive news, the St. Louis Blues will return Robert Thomas to the lineup tonight. According to Lou Korac of the NHL, Thomas returned to practice this morning and was included in all line rushes. He’s missed the team’s last four games with an upper-body injury. Unfortunately, Thomas’s absence was notably evident, as the Blues lost all four contests.
  • The positive news isn’t only isolated to St. Louis. According to Joe Smith of The Athletic, Minnesota Wild veteran Mats Zuccarello looks very close to returning. Zuccarello suffered a lower-body injury before the start of the regular season. Like Thomas, his absence has been noticeable. Despite leading the league in power-play goals, the Wild are only averaging 1.61 even-strength goals through their first 13 games.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top