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Hurricanes Activate Shayne Gostisbehere, Place Eric Robinson On IR

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The Carolina Hurricanes are getting a major boost to their defensive core ahead of tonight’s marquee matchup against the Vegas Golden Knights. The Hurricanes announced that they’ve activated Shayne Gostisbehere from the injured reserve and have placed forward Eric Robinson on it in a corresponding roster move.

Despite missing the team’s last three games with a lower-body injury, Gostisbehere is still leading the team in scoring among defensemen. Before going down with the injury, the Pembroke Pines, FL native scored one goal and seven points in five games with a +9 rating, averaging 16:01 of ice time per game. Although his ATOI appears relatively low, it’s essential to note that Gostisbehere only skated for 4:06 in his most recent game on October 18th.

One of the most noticeable differences in Gostisbehere’s game has been on the defensive side of the puck. He’s had a pair of quality offensive campaigns between the Detroit Red Wings and Hurricanes since the 2023-24 season, but has hovered around an 88.0% on-ice save percentage at even strength (oiSV%).

This season, albeit in far fewer games, Gostisbehere got off to a great defensive start, averaging a 66.7% CorsiFor% (CF%) at even strength, and a 94.1% oiSV%. His CF% remains the highest on the team for players who have appeared in five or more contests, while his oiSV% is second on defense behind rookie Alexander Nikishin. In no uncertain terms, Gostisbehere was a primary reason the Hurricanes got off to an undefeated start through their first five games.

Meanwhile, Robinson heads to the IR after suffering an upper-body injury against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday. According to an update from the team a few days later, Robinson isn’t expected back with the team anytime soon. He scored one goal and four points in seven games to start the 2025-26 campaign, averaging 9:57 of ice time per game.

Devils Place Cody Glass On IR, Activate Juho Lammikko

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The New Jersey Devils will have some notable center depth missing for the next little while. The Devils announced that they’ve placed center Cody Glass on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, and have activated Juho Lammikko in a corresponding roster move.

Although they didn’t mention it in the announcement, Glass’s placement on the IR is likely retroactive to October 21st, the last time he played, making him eligible for activation tomorrow. Before succumbing to the lower-body ailment, he scored two goals in six games and averaged a 40.3% success rate in the faceoff dot on the team’s third line.

Despite the low faceoff success, Glass has been relatively solid for New Jersey’s possession play and on the defensive side of the puck. Regardless, the team is off to an excellent start, winning with and without Glass.

Replacing Glass in the lineup will be Lammikko, who was placed on the IR last week to create space for Stefan Noesen’s activation. Tonight’s game against the Colorado Avalanche will be Lammikko’s first NHL appearance since the 2021-22 campaign, when he scored seven goals and 15 points in 75 games for the Vancouver Canucks. He’s spent the last few years overseas with the NL’s ZSC Lions.

Although it’s well known that the Devils have an excellent team when healthy, the third-line center position could be an area for an upgrade around the trade deadline. New Jersey already has one of the best combinations in their top six with Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier, and a prominent third-line center could put them over the top.

Devils’ Brett Pesce Out At Least One Month

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Oct. 28: Pesce’s upper-body injury will keep him out of the lineup for at least a month, according to the team’s Amanda Stein.

Oct. 26: The New Jersey Devils will head on their upcoming four-game road trip without defenseman Brett Pesce, head coach Sheldon Keefe told team reporter Amanda Stein after Sunday’s win over the Colorado Avalanche. Pesce left that game in the first period after blocking a shot. Keefe told the media that Pesce’s injury was “not great”.

This is yet another blow to the Devils’ blue line. They are already missing reliable depth defender Johnathan Kovacevic, who is still recovering from a knee injury sustained during the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. New Jersey has avoided major lineup changes in light of Kovacevic’s injury, largely thanks to young pro Simon Nemec, who has seven assists in nine games this season. But Pesce’s absence will force the Devils to reach into their depth chart. Dennis Cholowski is currently on the NHL roster as an extra defenseman and should receive the first chance to step into a nightly role. New Jersey could also lean on AHL prospects, and collegiate teammates, Ethan Edwards and Seamus Casey.

Even with the promising upside of their young prospects, New Jersey will struggle to fill Pesce’s role entirely. The 11-year pro has recorded three points and a plus-two in eight games this season, while averaging the second-highest ice time on the team (21:21) behind Dougie Hamilton (21:53). Pesce has spent almost all of his even-strength minutes next to top youngster Luke Hughes. Now in their second year playing together, the two have managed to outscore their opponents four-to-one at even-strength. They lead the team’s blue line in Goals-For percentage (80 percent) and Expected-Goals-For percentage (63.1 percent) per MoneyPuck.

Pesce and Hughes were plenty effective together last year as well. They were outscored 31-to-38 at even-strength, but generated a lofty 953 shots across the full season – over 100 more than any other Devils pairing. New Jersey averaged over one shot on net for every minute Hughes and Pesce were on the ice. They won their Expected-Goals battle as a result of the volume shooting, posting a 53.1 xGF% across 70 games together.

Pesce’s absence could push Nemec into an important, top-pair role next to Hughes, which would preserve the high-firing pairing of Hamilton and Jonas Siegenthaler. Nemec received the third-most ice time on New Jersey’s defense (23:35) in Sunday’s overtime matchup. It’s the fourth-most he’s ever played in a regular-season game, and he vindicated it with three assists, two shots, and five blocked shots. That kind of performance will be exactly what New Jersey needs as they face the absence of a 700-game pro.

Blues’ Jake Neighbours Out Five Weeks With Right Leg Injury

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The Blues announced Tuesday that they’ve placed winger Jake Neighbours on injured reserve with a right leg injury. He’ll be re-evaluated in five weeks, putting him out of the lineup through at least Dec. 2. They did not immediately announce a recall to fill his roster spot.

Neighbours was absent for Monday’s loss to the Penguins with what the team previously labeled a lower-body issue, and he carried only a day-to-day designation. It’s clear now that was a bit of smoke and mirrors as he underwent further evaluation. The team said he suffered the injury in Saturday’s loss to the Red Wings. He didn’t leave the contest, in which he had two of St. Louis’ four goals, but did appear to favor his right leg after losing an edge and sliding awkwardly into the boards later in the game.

Very little has gone right for the Blues this season. Losing Neighbours, who has a team-leading six goals and was finishing at a red-hot 50% clip, won’t change that slide of bad luck. The 23-year-old is beginning his fifth NHL season since being drafted in the first round in 2020 and has been stapled to the Blues’ top line with Robert Thomas to start the year. When deployed with Pavel Buchnevich on their right flank, they’ve controlled play well with a 51.9 xGF% and 50.6 CF%, per MoneyPuck. Poor goaltending has still led them to be outscored 5-4 and for Neighbours to post a minus-four rating despite his individual success, accounting for 22.2% of the goals the Blues have scored this season.

While that one-in-two finishing rate is unsustainable, the writing was on the wall for a breakout campaign from Neighbours in 2025-26. He’s put together back-to-back 20-goal campaigns and hit a career-best 46 points while playing all 82 games last season. Getting more pucks on net, once he returns in December, will be key to getting him back on that path. Neighbours’ 19.7 shooting percentage since the beginning of 2023-24 is ninth in the league among skaters with at least 100 shots on goal during that time, but he’s only averaged 1.55 shots on goal per game for his career.

The Blues were also without Thomas in last night’s loss due to an upper-body injury. He’s still only listed as day-to-day, but for the time being, the Blues are without the two most consistent members of their top line to open the campaign. Jimmy Snuggerud and Pius Suter were elevated from third-line duties to skate with Buchnevich last night. It’s unclear if that will continue into tonight’s rematch against Detroit or if head coach Jim Montgomery will shuffle his lines further in the wake of three straight regulation losses.

Sabres Activate Michael Kesselring From Injured Reserve

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Oct. 28: Kesselring will make his Sabres debut tonight and come off injured reserve, Ruff confirmed to Rachel Lenzi of The Buffalo News.

Oct. 27: The Buffalo Sabres have assigned defenseman Zach Metsa to the AHL’s Rochester Americans. The move will open the roster space to activate defenseman Michael Kesselring off of injured reserve. Head coach Lindy Ruff said he expects the team to make that roster move before Tuesday’s game against Columbus, as long as all goes well in the morning.

Kesselring has missed the first nine games of the season with a lower-body injury sustained in an October 1st preseason game. The injury delayed his debut with the Buffalo Sabres after joining the team alongside Josh Doan in the June trade that sent JJ Peterka to the Utah Mammoth.

That trade will be top of mind as Kesselring prepares for his first regular-season game in the blue and gold. Doan has already wowed fans with his early-year performance, netting six points and already rivaling a top-line role. But at the time of the move, many expected Kesselring to have a bigger impact in Buffalo after he proved to be a capable top-four defender in Utah.

Kesselring played in all 82 games of Utah’s inaugural season. He received the lowest average ice time (17:41) among a heavily-rotated Hockey Club defense, but routinely faced challenging roles alongside top defenseman Mikhail Sergachev and against top competition. He was strong on both sides of the puck, showing off a strong stick, lightning-quick speed, and heads-up passing. Those talents led Kesselring to 29 points on the year, the second-most on Utah’s blue line behind Sergachev (53).

Kesselring looked similarly capable in his rookie season of 2023-24. He finished that year with 21 points in 65 games, while operating from a third-pair role with the Arizona Coyotes. With two years of improvement to start his career, he now seems well-poised to bear some more responsibility with the Buffalo Sabres. Buffalo has relied on Conor Timmins and Metsa to fill the right side behind captain Rasmus Dahlin. Timmins has faired pretty well in the second-pair role, recording three assists and 24 blocked shots in nine games. Metsa has been less productive, with no scoring and just two blocks in four games. Kesselring should step ahead of Timmins on the depth chart, placing him next to former first-overall pick Owen Power. Power’s sturdy defense could be a great match for the typically aggressive Kesselring.

Meanwhile, Metsa’s brief appearance in the NHL will come to an end. He played the first NHL games of his career this season, after starting the year with two pointless games with the Americans. Metsa led Rochester’s blue line with 46 points in 69 games last season. It was his second pro season. He posted 24 points in 54 games as an AHL rookie. The 27-year-old will look to return to his top role on the Rochester blue line, and could remain a call-up option should Buffalo face any more injuries.

Injury Notes: Hurricanes, Maple Leafs, Blackhawks, Sharks

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Carolina Head Coach Rod Brind’Amour told Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News that K’Andre Miller could be back shortly, however, Jaccob Slavin could be absent for “a while”. Miller has not played since October 20th, but has been off to a great start in his Carolina tenure with four points in six games. Meanwhile, Slavin was placed on IR last week with a lower-body injury, appearing in the Canes’ first two games before going back down. The ailment has bothered the star defenseman throughout October, and the team has been vague on further details. 

Carolina has been great so far despite missing both defensemen, with a 6-2-0 record. Based on Brind’Amour’s comments, it seems a real possibility Miller could be all set when his Hurricanes go to Madison Square Garden to take on the Rangers next week, after an offseason blockbuster sent the talented 25-year-old to Carolina. 

Elsewhere across the league:

  • Nick Barden of The Hockey News Toronto updated earlier today that William Nylander and Calle Jarnkrok could play versus Calgary tomorrow, as both are dealing with lower-body injuries. Additionally, veterans Scott Laughton and Chris Tanev could rejoin the team later in the week ahead of Saturday’s tilt in Philadelphia. Nylander, who missed just his second regular season game since 2020-21, has dazzled with 14 points in 8 games so far. Laughton was injured in the preseason and has yet to debut in 2025-26, as he looks to get more comfortable as a Leaf, having put up just 4 points in 20 regular season games after being traded to Toronto. 
  • Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times shared this morning that two Blackhawks veterans, Ilya Mikheyev and Tyler Bertuzzi, did not appear at practice. Mikheyev left Sunday’s game versus Los Angeles after crashing hard into the boards. Thankfully, he is considered day-to-day as it appears a more serious issue was avoided. Meanwhile, Bertuzzi missed yesterday’s game altogether, and is also thought to be day-to-day. Chicago hosts Ottawa tomorrow, and they will hope to have their wingers back before long, as they try to stay above the .500 mark. 
  • Sunday’s big shootout win for the Sharks at Minnesota came at a cost, as Adam Gaudette left due to an upper body injury and did not return, as per the team. His status is unknown as San Jose hosts their in-state rival the Kings tomorrow night. The 29-year-old center has 3 goals in 9 games. 

Islanders Notes: Romanov, Injuries, Waivers

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Stefen Rosner, New York Islanders beat reporter, shared several items on the team today. First, Rosner noted this morning that defenseman Alexander Romanov was seen in a red non-contact jersey in practice. Rosner went on to provide an update on several injuries affecting the club: Romanov will be out tomorrow but is expected to play at some point on the team’s road trip, perhaps Thursday in Carolina. Fellow defenseman Scott Mayfield, however, is expected to play tomorrow in Boston despite missing practice. 

Finally, per Rosner, the team will make a gameday decision on 24-year-old rookie defenseman Marshall Warren, who was a great story over the weekend, as the Long Island native made his debut for his hometown team, posting two helpers in what was eventually a shootout loss. Although Adam Boqvist could draw back into the lineup, given Warren’s impressive debut, it will be interesting to see which way Head Coach Patrick Roy goes. 

Elsewhere on the Islanders:

  • The Bridgeport Islanders shared this morning that top prospect Calum Ritchie is day-to-day with a lower body injury. The 20-year-old, acquired from Colorado in the Brock Nelson deal, has scored a goal and an assist in his first two AHL games in Bridgeport. The Islanders will hope Ritchie’s ailment is not serious, as he is a contender for a call-up at some point, and could especially push pending free agent Jean-Gabriel Pageau, as the team looks to the future. 
  • Rosner went on to make another interesting point this afternoon, that the Islanders could be interested in claiming forward Mitchell Chaffee, who was waived earlier today by Tampa Bay. Rosner mentioned that as the club is currently down to 12 forwards, Chaffee, who has connections from the Lightning with new GM Mathieu Darche, could bring some needed depth. At 27, Chaffee is not necessarily in the mold of younger, more intriguing reclamation projects that sometimes hit the waiver wire. However, he posted 12 goals as a regular on the Lightning’s bottom six in 2024-25, and possibly, New York could have interest. 

Robert Thomas, Jake Neighbours Out Tonight, Day-To-Day

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St. Louis Blues Head Coach Jim Montgomery told Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic that two key players will both be out in Pittsburgh tonight: Robert Thomas and Jake Neighbours. Both are thought to be day-to-day. 

Thomas was banged up Saturday against Detroit, leaving in the third period due to what the team designated as an upper-body injury. Meanwhile, Neighbours has been dealing with a lower-body injury. Both players were top line contributors before going down. 

St. Louis’ #1 center, Thomas, will be missed sorely, usually playing north of 20 minutes a night, with 6 points in 8 games so far. The Ontario native has broken out as a true star over the last two seasons, surpassing the 80-point mark in each. Neighbours is also a key absence, as he leads the Blues in goals with six in just 8 games. The 23-year-old was an 82 game player last year, with a career high 46 points. Once healthy, the Blues will count on him to be a key offensive driver, perhaps breaking the 30 goal mark for the first time in his career. 

Neighbours’ goal scoring aside, St. Louis will be particularly thin tonight in Pittsburgh down the middle. Pius Suter, added last July for the exact reason of center depth, will be called upon for a larger role. The Blues, of course, also have their mainstay captain Brayden Schenn, but the 34-year-old has just one point in his last 5 games, and could be on the path to regress offensively this year due to age. 

Although still early, the injuries are costly as St. Louis has not come out so hot, currently at the bottom of the Central Division, and among the fewest goals scored in the league by a team. However, it also must be mentioned that the club has played 1-2 fewer games than their counterparts. 

Going into a back-to-back, Pittsburgh tonight and Detroit again tomorrow, points will be much needed, as the group looks to hold down the fort until two of their top forwards can return. 

Penguins Place Rickard Rakell On IR, Recall Ville Koivunen

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10/27: Pittsburgh made Rakell’s move to injured reserve official on Monday evening.

10/26: The Pittsburgh Penguins have announced that Rickard Rakell underwent a successful procedure on his left hand this morning, and the forward is expected to miss 6-8 weeks recovering. Just last night Rakell took a puck to the hand vs Columbus, was clearly bothered, and did not return. 

It is a very tough blow for the team, who have come out of the gates looking much better in 2025-26, facing serious pressure to push for the postseason for the aging legends on their roster. Rakell in particular, who has been revitalized in Pittsburgh, headlined by a career high 70 points last year, has also been off to a great start with 8 in 9 games. 

In a corresponding move, the Penguins recalled Ville Koivunen, who has already bounced back and forth between the NHL and AHL so far. The skilled 22-year-old forward, acquired in the Jake Guentzel trade, did not appear on the scoresheet in 2 games so far with the Pens, but jumps out with 11 points in just 6 games so far with AHL Wilkes-Barre. Now he, along with 18-year-old Benjamin Kindel could be in order for a larger role with Rakell sidelined. Kindel however, is nearing his 10-game threshold as a rookie, and it will be interesting to see GM Kyle Dubas’ plan for their 11th-overall selection last summer. 

In particular for Rakell, the ailment is also especially unfortunate as it means he will miss the 2025 NHL Global Series in his home country of Sweden, as the Pens take on Nashville in mid-November. 

In a critical season for the Penguins as they continue to teeter between win-now for their iconic players, and turning toward the future, the club is already being tested. Yesterday it came out that Caleb Jones, who had been playing well early in his Pittsburgh tenure, will miss eight weeks. Now a star, in the form of Rakell, is set to be absent for a similar timeline.

Capitals Place Rasmus Sandin On IR

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After recalling forward Ethen Frank earlier this morning, the Washington Capitals needed to make one corresponding roster move to maintain roster compliance. Defenseman Rasmus Sandin will move to the injured reserve with an upper-body injury, according to Tom Gulitti of NHL.com.

Sandin’s move to the IR should be considered positive news for the Capitals. He has missed the last two games due to an upper-body injury and would be eligible to return on Halloween against the New York Islanders, assuming the IR placement is made retroactive to October 21st.

The expectation is that Sandin will be ready to play in that game, or the one immediately after that. Earlier today, Gulitti reported that Sandin returned to the ice for Washington’s practice, though he was skating in a non-contact jersey.

Further, it can only be considered positive news regarding Dylan Strome’s injury status. Strome left the Capitals’ most recent game with a lower-body injury, and there was some concern in the organization regarding his immediate availability.

Bailey Johnson of the Washington Post shared this morning that although Strome won’t play in Washington’s next game against the Dallas Stars, he’s only considered day-to-day. He would have missed the Capitals’ next three games had he been placed on injured reserve. Since the team decided not to place him on IR, it indicates that he is expected to return by the end of the week.

In his seven games before suffering the upper-body ailment, Sandin had continued as a reliable top-four blueliner for the Capitals. He’s tallied two assists in those games, averaging 19:24 of ice time while maintaining a 97.9% on-ice save percentage at even strength.

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