Injury Notes: Larkin, Reaves, Blackwell
In a positive report for the Detroit Red Wings organization, captain Dylan Larkin was back at practice this morning as a full participant (X Link). It is undetermined whether or not Larkin will be available in the team’s important game tomorrow night against the New York Islanders.
Working his way back from a lower-body injury suffered on March 2nd, the team as a whole as certainly looked different without their captain in the mix. Since Larkin’s exit after the game against the Florida Panthers, the team has produced a 2-6-0 record, coupled with a pedestrian 2.5 GF/G.
With only 13 games remaining in the regular season for Detroit, they will be hoping that Larkin’s return to the lineup will bring an added boost to the rest of the roster. Amid a battle for the last wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, the Red Wings are looking to break a seven-year playoff drought by the end of the season.
Other injury notes:
- David Alter of The Hockey News is reporting that Toronto Maple Leafs forward Ryan Reaves will miss tonight’s game due to an eye injury. The injury was suffered in the team’s most recent game against the Philadelphia Flyers and was likely due to Reaves’ fight against Flyers grinder Nicolas Deslauriers. In Reaves’ absence, depth forward Noah Gregor will draw into the lineup after not having played since March 16th.
- Sticking with the Original Six theme, the Chicago Blackhawks have some injury concerns as well, as Scott Powers of The Athletic reports that forward Colin Blackwell is out with an upper-body injury. Without much to play for down the final stretch of the season, it is still unfortunate news for the organization. Over the team’s last five games, Blackwell has been on a solid streak, scoring three goals and four points, with all three of those goals coming in a game against the Arizona Coyotes.
Joshua Roy Out Indefinitely With Undisclosed Injury
Canadiens rookie winger Joshua Roy will be out indefinitely with an undisclosed injury, GM Kent Hughes said in a team release. The 20-year-old sustained the injury in Tuesday’s game against the Oilers and has left the team’s Western Conference road trip to return to Montreal for evaluation. TVA’s Renaud Lavoie reports the injury occurred when Roy blocked a shot from Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard in the third period of yesterday’s 3-2 overtime loss, although he didn’t appear to miss a shift.
It’s been an otherwise promising season for the youngster, who’s climbed his way to the NHL ranks earlier than expected. Still in the first season of his entry-level contract, the 2021 fifth-round pick exploded in the minors with 13 goals and 32 points in 40 games for AHL Laval, one of the best per-game rates on the team. He received an 11-day recall in January and was summoned again to the Canadiens on Feb. 11, where he’s remained aside from a brief loan to Laval on March 8, the day of the trade deadline, to make him eligible to play with Laval in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Roy hasn’t looked out of place in the majors, recording four goals, five assists, and nine points with a -2 rating through his first 23 games. He’s managed solid possession metrics for a rookie on a rebuilding squad, logging a 49.5 CF% at even strength as well as a 2.9 relative CF%, and he’s averaging just under a minute per game on the power play. He’s logged middle-six minutes overall, averaging 12:08 per game, and is shooting at 11.8%.
For the Canadiens, it’s another disappointing injury to a young forward in a development year. They’ve been without Kirby Dach since Game 2 of the regular season due to a knee injury, while Alex Newhook and Rafaël Harvey-Pinard have also missed significant chunks of the season.
If Roy’s evaluation yields a week-to-week timeline for a return, he may be done for the season. The team has 14 games and 27 days remaining on their regular-season schedule.
Snapshots: Kovalenko, Chmelar, Joshua
Earlier today, the Colorado Avalanche announced that the team had finally brought up-and-coming prospect, Nikolai Kovalenko, to North America. Not under the best pretenses, however, as the team announced Kovalenko would start with their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles, to rehabilitate from a leg injury suffered during his time in the Kontinental Hockey League.
The obvious hope for the Avalanche is that Kovalenko is eventually able to play at the NHL level at some point this season. Playing for Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod of the KHL for the last two years, Kovalenko has scored 32 goals and 89 points in 98 games after being a sixth-round pick by Colorado in the 2018 NHL Draft.
The Eagles do have a game tonight as well as one tomorrow against the Milwaukee Admirals, but it is unlikely that Kovalenko will draw into the lineup for either of those two matchups. After that, AHL Colorado does not have another game until March 29th, which may set a timeline for Kovalenko’s debut within the Avalanche organization.
Other snapshots:
- Although nothing is official, Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal is reporting that the New York Rangers are expected to sign Jaroslav Chmelar after his season with Providence College came to an end on Saturday. Chmelar was originally a fifth-round pick of the Rangers back in the 2021 NHL Draft and has spent the last two years in the United States after coming over from his native Finland. Over 59 games in the Hockey East Division, Chmelar scored 12 goals and 28 points overall, after a leg injury requiring surgery cut his season short this year.
- Recently being put on the team’s long-term injured reserve, Vancouver Canucks forward Dakota Joshua is progressing with his injury recovery, but the team is still being cautious with his load management (X Link). An important depth scorer for the Canucks this season, Joshua has scored 13 goals and 26 points over 53 games this year.
Evening Notes: Trouba, Foote, Pelletier
New York Rangers captain Jacob Trouba has returned to the practice sheet after missing the last five games with a lower-body injury. It’s Trouba’s first significant absence of the season, after playing in 60 of the team’s 63 games up to the point of his injury. Head coach Peter Laviolette told The Athletic’s Arthur Staple (Twitter Link) that the team wants to take their time with transitioning Trouba back into the lineup, wanting to make sure he’s fully healthy first.
Trouba is managing another strong season, despite seeing a dip in his scoring – netting just three goals and 22 points in 60 games this year and likely to miss the 30-point mark for the first time in three years. His value has instead come on the other side of the puck, with Trouba ranking third on the Rangers in hits-per-game (2.73), behind William Cuylle and Matt Rempe. Laviolette has employed a physical presence in his first year with the Rangers and Trouba has been happy to comply, leaning into the presence that’s made him one of the league’s most divisive players. The Rangers will need to make sure Trouba is fully ready to go before returning because there’s no doubt he’ll jump right back into his heavy-hitting role.
Other notes from around the league:
- New Jersey Devils forward Nolan Foote is facing an undisclosed injury and did not join the team on their three-game road trip last week, per Ryan Novozinsky of NJ.com. Foote was assigned to the AHL on a four-game conditioning stint in early March, scoring three goals and four points in four games. He was formally activated off of season-opening injured reserve on March 12th, though he’s yet to make his season debut in the NHL. It’s unclear when fans can expect him to work his way into the Devils lineup.
- The Calgary Flames have sent Jakob Pelletier to the AHL (Twitter Link) after placing him in the press box for their last two games. Pelletier is playing out his formal rookie season in the NHL, with one goal and three points in 13 NHL games on the year. He appeared in 24 games with Calgary last year, netting three goals and seven points. Despite scoring at nearly a point-per-game pace in the minors – 102 points in 105 games since 2021-22 – Pelletier is still searching for his scoring groove at the top level. He’ll get another chance to hone his craft, now again with the Calgary Wranglers.
Metropolitan Notes: Gruden, Wotherspoon, Marino
With Jeff Carter out with an upper-body injury tonight, the Pittsburgh Penguins were in a position to recall a forward to fill his spot in the active lineup. In doing so, the Penguins brought up Jonathan Gruden from their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins via an emergency recall.
Recalled oftenly this season by Pittsburgh, this transaction will mark Gruden’s sixth call-up of the season in total. In now his fourth season with the Penguins organization, Gruden has accrued the most NHL games played in a single year for his short career, scoring one goal in 11 games for Pittsburgh this year.
While still failing to make a name for himself at the NHL level, Gruden is been an solid contributor to the WBS Penguins over the last four years. Over 204 regular season games overall, Gruden has scored 45 goals and 96 points in total, while also chipping in one goal and three points in five playoff games, as well.
Other Metro notes:
- In a similar transaction, Pittsburgh’s opponent tonight, the New Jersey Devils, have recalled defenseman Tyler Wotherspoon by way of an emergency recall. In his second emergency recall in only his last week, Wotherspoon has had an elevated opportunity to play in the NHL due to multiple injuries on New Jersey’s back end. Unfortunately, Wotherspoon has yet to play with the Devils this season, but has registered four goals and 19 points in 54 games for the organization’s AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets.
- Paving the way for another emergency recall to Wotherspoon, earlier reports indicated that defenseman John Marino would miss the game tonight due to an upper-body injury (X Link). With Marino now out with an injury for at least this evening, New Jersey will be without three of their top-four defensemen, leading to a 5-11-0 record over the last 16 games for the organization.
West Notes: Seguin, Hakanpaa, Hertl, Pietrangelo
Top Dallas Stars forward Tyler Seguin has hopefully worked his way back from a long-term absence, with head coach Pete DeBoer designating him as a game-time decision on Wednesday (Twitter Link). DeBoer was still cautious about saying too much, though, mentioning the team will see how Seguin feels tomorrow. The Stars were also without defenseman Jani Hakanpaa at practice on Tuesday. He’s facing a lower-body injury and carries a day-to-day timeline.
Seguin has been out since February 22nd, missing Dallas’ last 11 games. He’s been a force when he is on the ice, scoring 20 goals and 45 points in just 58 appearances this season. That puts him on an 82-game pace of 28 goals and 64 points, which would mark the most Seguin has scored since his 80-point season in 2018-19. His return to form is part of an emphatic wave of offense taking over Dallas this season, with nine different Stars carrying 45 or more points this season. They rank second in the league in total goals for and goals-per-game, sat behind the Colorado Avalanche in both stats.
Seguin will likely bump Ty Dellandrea out of the lineup, while Hakanpaa’s absence will open the way for Nils Lundkvist to return. If he does step in, Lundkvist will be playing in his first game since March 8th, when he appeared in just over nine minutes of Dallas’ 6-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks. He’s been purely a bottom-pair defenseman this season, averaging roughly 15 minutes of ice time and serving as a prime candidate for reduced minutes if the flow of the game requires it. But he’s managed the best scoring pace of his career, with two goals and 15 points in 46 games. He’ll look to chase his career-high of 16 points, set last year, if he’s able to step back into a gameday role.
Other notes from around the league:
- The newest Vegas Golden Knight, Tomas Hertl, is expected to resume skating by the end of this week or early next week, sources shared with SinBin.Vegas (Twitter link). When asked about Hertl after Tuesday’s practice, head coach Bruce Cassidy said, “Our medical team has a timeline. I’m not gonna give it to you. I don’t want to say out of sight of mind… but when he gets here it’ll be a luxury.” Hertl has been facing loose cartilage in his left knee that required surgery in February. He’s scored 15 goals and 34 points in 48 games with the San Jose Sharks this season and could be poised to make a huge impact on the Vegas roster, as he’s set to play outside of San Jose for the first time in his 11-year career.
- The Vegas Golden Knights were without top defenseman Alex Pietrangelo at Tuesday’s practice. The veteran defender is now expected to miss the team’s Tuesday game with illness, per Cassidy (Twitter link). Pietrangelo has four goals and 32 points in 62 games this season, and plays in a commanding 23-minutes a night. That leaves big shoes to be filled, with newcomer Noah Hanifin and seventh-man Zach Whitecloud poised to get more ice time as a result.
Predators’ Jeremy Lauzon Week-To-Week With Lower-Body Injury
The Nashville Predators are facing yet another injury to their blue line, announcing that Jeremy Lauzon is out week-to-week with a lower-body injury (Twitter Link). He’s the third Preds defenseman to earn a week-to-week injury designation in the last week, joining Dante Fabbro and Spencer Stastney on the absentee list.
This is a tremendous blow to what was a very consistent Predators defense, with six defensemen playing in 49 or more games. Lauzon has served in one of the more meager roles among that corps, averaging just short of 18-and-a-half minutes of ice time through his 68 games this season. He’s managed six goals and 13 points in that span – a mark that represents Lauzon’s career-high in scoring, beating out his 12 points in 67 games last season. Lauzon has also managed a career-high 90 penalty minutes this year, far ahead of his previous high of 67 penalty minutes. He’s continuing to establish a day-to-day NHL presence with the Predators, after joining the team via trade at the 2022 Trade Deadline.
With Lauzon joining the list of injured Predators, the team will turn toward recent recall Marc Del Gaizo, who played in the first five NHL games of his career earlier in the season. He’s performed well, managing three assists, two penalty minutes, and a +2. But Del Gaizo’s promotion leaves Nashville without a seventh defenseman, likely prompting a recall soon. But, interestingly, the Predators haven’t relied on any other defenders this year – meaning whoever they recall will be making their season debut in the NHL. Kevin Gravel, the captain of the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals, will likely be the team’s top option – boasting 132 games of NHL experience and a prominent role in the AHL. Nashville signed Gravel to a two-year contract extension earlier this season.
Evening Notes: Hronek, Eriksson Ek, St. Ivany
There’s always something to look forward to for the Vancouver Canucks, who now have full focus on extending defenseman Filip Hronek after extending star forward Elias Pettersson. This deal should cost the Canucks a pretty penny as well, with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggesting in an appearance on CHEK’s Donnie and Dhali (video link) a cap hit within the range of $7.5MM.
Hronek has become a crucial piece of Vancouver’s lineup since joining the team at last season’s Trade Deadline. He’s not only boosted his own impact but made the players around him better as well – serving as the perfect partner for star defenseman Quinn Hughes. Both Hronek and Hughes have recorded a career-high in scoring this season, with 45 and 77 points respectively. The duo is playing upwards of 24 minutes each game – representing the only Canucks pairing averaging more than even 19 minutes of ice time. Hughes is signed through the 2026-27 season, carrying a $7.85MM cap hit. Vancouver will lock up their top defensive pairing for the future if – and hopefully when – they’re able to sign Hronek to a comparable deal.
Other notes from around the league:
- Minnesota Wild centerman Joel Eriksson Ek won’t join the team for the final two games of their California road trip, getting held back by a lower-body injury per The Athletic’s Michael Russo (Twitter Link). Russo adds that Minnesota is holding Eriksson Ek out a bit longer, in an effort to be cautious with his injury. The 27-year-old centerman has missed Minnesota’s last two games. His next chance to return will be on March 23rd when the Wild host the St. Louis Blues. Eriksson Ek’s absence should continue to benefit Marco Rossi’s ice time, after the Austrian played a career-high 20:44 in the team’s last game.
- Jack St. Ivany has been reassigned to the AHL, jumping back-and-forth between the NHL and AHL lineups on a few call-ups since Sunday. (Twitter Link). St. Ivany will hope to receive his NHL debut on his next recall, after serving as an NHL healthy scratch for the first time on Saturday. St. Ivany, 24, has four goals, 12 points, and 30 penalty minutes in 52 AHL games this season – though he hasn’t scored a point since a two-goal performance on February 14th.
Rangers Recall Brandon Scanlin, Ryan Lindgren Week-To-Week
The New York Rangers have recalled defenseman Brandon Scanlin from the minor leagues, with Ryan Lindgren expected to miss a “few weeks” with a lower-body injury, per The Athletic’s Peter Baugh. Scanlin signed a two-year, two-way, $1.6MM contract extension with the Rangers in February, after a strong start to the year with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack.
Scanlin, 24, joined the Wolf Pack following the end of the University of Nebraska-Omaha’s 2021-22 season, recording one assist, one penalty, and a -1 in his first 15 AHL games. He more formally played his rookie pro season last year, tallying 15 points and 30 penalty minutes in 61 games. He’s managed to improve on both of those stats this year, netting 16 points and 39 penalty minutes in 57 games. Scanlin will now get a chance to make his NHL debut, after receiving the first call-up of his young career.
Lindgren joins team captain Jacob Trouba (lower-body) on the team’s absentee list, with both players week-to-week with injuries. That should give Scanlin plenty of time to slot into the lineup, though he’ll have to compete with veteran defenseman Chad Ruhwedel, who is currently serving as New York’s seventh defenseman. Ruhwedel has yet to make his debut with the Rangers since joining the team at the Trade Deadline, with New York sending a 2027 fourth-round pick back to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Ruhwedel has managed one goal and four points in 47 games with Pittsburgh this season, a slight step down from the one goal and five points he managed in the same duration last year. His trade to New York ended an eight-year stint in Pittsburgh.
Injury News: Lindgren, Johnson, Murphy, Carlsson
Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren left today’s game with a lower-body injury, relays Ethan Sears of the New York Post. The injury occurred in the second period and he was helped off the ice without being able to put weight on his left leg. Head coach Peter Laviolette didn’t have an update following the game, noting Lindgren was still being evaluated. The 26-year-old came into today logging over 19 minutes a night on their second pairing but it appears they’ll need to shake things up again after redoing the pairings following Jacob Trouba’s injury. Chad Ruhwedel was acquired at the trade deadline but has yet to play so far, he’d likely draw in if Lindgren isn’t able to suit up on Tuesday against Winnipeg.
Other injury news from around the NHL:
- Blackhawks winger Reese Johnson (concussion) is doing better but won’t accompany the team on their three-game road trip, reports Mark Lazerus of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 25-year-old was injured back on Tuesday. Johnson has played in 42 games so far this season, picking up five points along with 109 hits while averaging just under 11 minutes a night.
- Still with the Blackhawks, blueliner Connor Murphy visited a specialist as he continues to be out with a groin injury, notes Charlie Roumeliotis of NBC Sports Chicago (Twitter link). Murphy has been listed as week-to-week for two months now and head coach Luke Richardson indicated that this is still the case. At this point, it’s unknown if Murphy will return this season.
- The Ducks announced (Twitter link) that center Leo Carlsson was cleared to return from his concussion tonight against St. Louis. The rookie had missed eight straight games because of it. Between injuries and early-season load management, Carlsson has been limited to just 40 games so far this season but he has played well, picking up nine goals and 14 assists in those contests.