Owen Power To Miss A “Few Games” With Upper-Body Injury
Buffalo Sabres defenseman Owen Power will miss the team’s Tuesday night game, per head coach Don Granato, who shares that the former first-overall pick could miss a few games. Power left the team’s Monday practice with an apparent hand injury and isn’t expected to be out long-term.
Power becomes the third impact player to suffer injury recently, with Buffalo also set to be without Mattias Samuelsson for the remainder of the season and Jack Quinn for the next eight weeks. Power plays the biggest role of the trio, averaging over 22 minutes a game through 51 games this season. He’s scored two goals and 18 points, a step down in his scoring pace from last season when he totaled 35 points in 79 games. The 21-year-old is in his second full NHL season since being drafted with the top selection in the 2021 NHL Draft. He’s totaled 138 career games and 56 points – ranked third in his draft class in career games behind Cole Sillinger and J.J. Moser.
Power’s absence will likely open space for rookie Ryan Johnson to take on an expanded role. Johnson was the Sabres first-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft and made his NHL debut this season – playing in a total of 32 games and recording six assists. It’s Johnson’s first season of professional hockey, with the 22-year-old also tallying four assists in nine AHL games this season. He’s still searching for his first professional goal – though scoring goals has never been his forte, as he totaled just nine goals across four seasons and 143 games with the University of Minnesota. Jacob Bryson will also benefit from Power’s absence. The 26-year-old has appeared in just five NHL games this season and is still searching through his first point of the year.
Vegas Golden Knights Announce Multiple Roster Moves
The Vegas Golden Knights have activated defenseman Ben Hutton off of injured reserve ahead of their Monday night loss to the Minnesota Wild. Hutton served as a healthy scratch for the outing, but he’s now poised to make his return from an upper-body injury that had him designated as week-to-week. The Golden Knights have also moved forward Pavel Dorofeyev onto injured reserve with an upper-body injury that’s held him out of Vegas’ last four games. No update was provided on Dorofeyev’s timeline, though the team has recalled forward Sheldon Rempal, as well as goaltender Jiri Patera, for additional depth. Both recalls were made to address illness on Monday, with Rempal filling in for Paul Cotter and Patera filling in for Logan Thompson.
Vegas swaps out a depth forward and a depth defenseman with their IR moves. Hutton has played in 31 games on a bottom-pair role this season, scoring one goal and nine points – one point more than he recorded in as many games last year. Dorofeyev has found similar success, scoring 14 points, split evenly, through 29 games in Vegas’ bottom six. It’s Dorofeyev’s official rookie season, though he did appear in 20 NHL games prior to this season. He’s up to 23 points across 49 career NHL games.
To help mend the lineup in the face of injury, the Golden Knights bring up two players who have each played in five NHL games this season. Forward Rempal has scored two goals in his outings, appearing in some of the first NHL games of his career. He currently ranks second on the AHL’s Henderson Silver Knights in scoring, with 21 goals and 33 points through 43 games. Goaltender Patera will be approaching this call-up looking for more, setting a 1-3 record and .901 save percentage this season. Patera is also a rookie, with his only NHL experience prior to this season coming through just two games last year. He’s served as Henderson’s starter when he’s in the minors, recording seven wins and a .903 save percentage in 17 games.
Penguins Notes: Letang, Harkins, Malkin
Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports is reporting that Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang left practice today for what is being described as precautionary reasons. Not much else is known about the 36-year-old’s status, but head coach Mike Sullivan told reporters that Letang is banged up a little bit.
Letang could be dealing with a nagging issue as his play has slipped as of late. He has just a single point in his last seven games despite having been elevated to the team’s top power-play unit in place of Erik Karlsson. Overall, he is having one of the finest seasons of his career with four goals and 26 assists in 49 games while playing some of his best defensive hockey. He has flourished in a different role this season even if his play has trailed off as of late.
In other Penguins notes:
- Rorabaugh is also reporting that Penguins forward Jansen Harkins has been placed on the injured reserve with a concussion. The 26-year-old had become a regular on the Penguins fourth line alongside veterans Noel Acciari and Jeff Carter and had been taking much of the team’s defensive zone starts in recent weeks. Harkins has been okay in a depth role for the Penguins, although he hasn’t provided much in the way of offense with just four assists in 34 games this season. No word yet on a timeline for Harkin’s return but he will presumably miss the Penguins games this week.
- Rorabaugh has also reported that Pittsburgh forward Evgeni Malkin had a maintenance day today and did not practice with his teammates. The 37-year-old skated briefly in a sweatsuit before the team’s practice while he was monitored by Penguins medical staff. Malkin hasn’t been himself this season as it appears the aging curve has started to catch up with the former Hart Trophy winner. In the last ten games, Malkin has struggled with just a single goal, and this is the second maintenance day he has received in the last few weeks leading to speculation that he could be dealing with a nagging injury of his own.
Pacific Notes: Tanev, Couture, Schultz, Thompson, Patera
The Flames aren’t generating the level of interest they’d hoped for in pending UFA defenseman Chris Tanev as the March 8 trade deadline approaches, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman told CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal on Monday. Calgary GM Craig Conroy has only received offers consisting of second-round picks (and extras) for Tanev, not the first-round pick he’s holding out for.
Tanev, 34, isn’t performing up to his shutdown expectations this year – a tough spot for the Flames to be in as they try and recoup as much value as possible for his services over the past four years. He’s been one of the best pure possession-control blue-liners since signing with the Flames in 2020, even earning some Norris Trophy consideration in 2022, but his possession numbers this season look quite pedestrian. Despite his respectable +10 rating, Tanev’s expected rating is now in the negatives after posting a combined expected +37.3 rating over his first three seasons in Calgary. The Flames are generating less and allowing more at even strength with Tanev on the ice than in years past, and contending teams with keen analytics departments are likely tempering their trade offers in kind.
More updates from the Pacific Division to kick off the week:
- Sharks captain Logan Couture is now listed as week-to-week after suffering a setback related to the groin issue that sidelined him for the first 45 games of the season, head coach David Quinn said Monday (via Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now). He will not travel with the team on their upcoming road trip and has been ruled out of the next two games as a result, but his absence now appears to be much longer than that. He’d played in just six games this season before the All-Star break, recording one assist and averaging 18:45 per game. With that news, the already basement-dwelling Sharks will be without each of their top two centers for the foreseeable future – Tomáš Hertl is undergoing knee surgery and could miss the rest of the season. For now, offseason trade pickup Mikael Granlund is expected to anchor the top line, while emerging rookie William Eklund will get a longer look at center on the second line.
- Kraken defenseman Justin Schultz took part in Monday’s morning skate after missing Saturday’s game against the Flyers for personal reasons, Alison Lukan of Root Sports reports. As such, he’s expected to return tonight against the Devils, placing rookie Ryker Evans alongside Brian Dumoulin on the team’s bottom pairing. The 22-year-old Evans has been the far superior two-way player this season, but the Kraken’s 28th-ranked offense needs Schultz’s puck-moving ability and power-play expertise to help get the team on the scoresheet. Now in the second season of a two-year, $6MM deal, the 33-year-old Schultz has 16 points and a -11 rating in 42 contests this season while averaging 15:58 per game.
- Golden Knights netminder Logan Thompson is dealing with an illness and is unavailable for Monday’s game against the Wild, per the team. The 26-year-old has started the majority of Vegas’ games this season, with Adin Hill missing a significant chunk of the campaign due to injury, posting a 16-10-4 record and .906 SV% in 31 games. Hill is now healthy, and he’ll be backed up tonight by Jiří Patera, who the team has recalled from AHL Henderson under emergency conditions with Thompson out. The 24-year-old has made four starts for the Golden Knights this year and one relief appearance, recording a passable .901 SV% and 3.75 GAA.
Atlantic Notes: Tarasenko, Power, Fabbri, Shattenkirk, Richard
Senators winger Vladimir Tarasenko said Monday that he’s “open to all options” ahead of the March 8 trade deadline, including remaining with the team (via Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch).
The 32-year-old remained unsigned weeks into free agency last summer after failing to secure a longer-term deal, leading him to make a rare agent change just days after July 1. He eventually inked a one-year, $5MM deal with Ottawa on July 27 with a full no-trade clause.
That clause leaves him in full control of his destiny over the next few weeks. Tarasenko would not confirm Monday if his representation has had conversations with the Senators’ front office about an extension or about waiving the clause.
One would assume if a trade to a contender materializes, assuming it’s an offer Ottawa is willing to accept, Tarasenko would approve the move and spend the next few months hunting for his second Stanley Cup. The 2010 first-round pick notched 11 goals and 17 points in 26 playoff games en route to a championship with the Blues in 2019.
Tarasenko has played good hockey for the Senators this year after an understandably slow start in a new environment, rebounding to post 14 goals (fourth on the team) and 34 points (fifth on the team) in 46 games. He’s currently playing a third-line role at even strength alongside Ridly Greig and Shane Pinto, helping mentor a pair of projected future core pieces in Ottawa. He should net at least a second-round pick should the Senators receive interest from a team Tarasenko is willing to accept a trade to, but he still has value to the team if they choose to keep him around and risk letting him walk to free agency this summer.
Other updates from the Atlantic Division:
- Sabres sophomore defenseman Owen Power left practice with an apparent hand injury on Monday and is undergoing additional imaging, head coach Don Granato said (via Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News). Power’s status for Tuesday’s game against the Kings is now uncertain. The 2021 first-overall pick has seen his point production drop after last season’s third-place Calder Trophy finish, notching two goals and 18 points in 51 games this year, but he’s made up for it by making major strides defensively. He’s been on the ice for 0.74 expected goals against per game at even strength compared to 1.05 last season, per Hockey Reference, all the while seeing a tad more defensive-zone usage than he did in 2022-23. Averaging 22:28 per game, those minutes will be hard for the Sabres to replace if he’s gone for any length of time, especially with Mattias Samuelsson already done for the season after undergoing upper-body surgery. If Power can’t play Tuesday, rookie Ryan Johnson could slide into a top-four role alongside Connor Clifton, while depth defender Jacob Bryson could play for only the sixth time this season.
- Red Wings left winger Robby Fabbri won’t play Tuesday against the Oilers due to personal reasons, according to head coach Derek Lalonde (via Ansar Khan of MLive.com). He is expected to rejoin the team on their road trip before their game in Vancouver on Thursday. The 28-year-old missed significant time early in the season with a lower-body injury but has rebounded to be an important bottom-six contributor for Detroit, posting 13 goals and 21 points in 39 games while logging 13:27 per game. Depth forward Klim Kostin will draw back into the lineup against his former team tomorrow after he was scratched for Saturday’s overtime win over the Canucks.
- Bruins defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk was absent from Monday’s practice due to illness, Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald reports. Shattenkirk, 35, has slipped down the Bruins’ depth chart lately, serving as a healthy scratch in four out of their last seven games in favor of 26-year-old farmhand Parker Wotherspoon. The 2007 first-round pick signed a one-year, $1.05MM deal to join Boston in free agency, and he’s provided some solid two-way play in bottom-pairing minutes with 13 points and a 1.1% relative Corsi share at even strength in 42 games.
- The Bruins also summoned winger Anthony Richard from AHL Providence after sending him down early Monday morning, per the NHL’s media site. The 27-year-old skated on the third line in this morning’s practice and could play his second straight game when the Bruins host the Lightning on Tuesday. The 27-year-old is second on Providence in scoring with 19 goals and 19 assists for 38 points in 41 games.
Tomáš Hertl To Undergo Knee Surgery, Out Several Weeks
Sharks center Tomáš Hertl will be out for several weeks while he recovers from a surgical procedure to clean out loose cartilage in his left knee, GM Mike Grier said Monday. Hertl has been placed on injured reserve as a result, per the NHL media site.
Hertl was previously listed as day-to-day with a recurrent lower-body injury. He issued the following statement on his decision to play in this month’s All-Star Game despite missing the two prior games with the knee ailment:
I have been experiencing soreness in my left knee on and off this season. After speaking with doctors and our medical staff earlier this year, it was clear that the injury was not going to get any worse and I could continue to play through it, including attending the NHL All-Star Weekend in Toronto. After returning from Toronto and having additional conversations with my family and our team medical staff over the last week, I made the decision to have this procedure done now so that I can return to 100% as soon as possible. I look forward to returning to the ice and getting back with my teammates as soon as I can.
With just over two months remaining in the regular season and the Sharks contending for the draft lottery instead of the postseason, the surgery could very well be season-ending. If so, San Jose will have had their top two centers, Hertl and captain Logan Couture, available for the same game only four times in 2023-24.
Now two seasons into an eight-year, $65.1MM extension signed in 2022, Hertl has done everything he can for a bottom-feeder Sharks team without much of a supporting cast this year. The 30-year-old is averaging nearly 21 minutes per game, a career-high, and leads the team in goals (15) and points (34). He’s excelled in the faceoff circle, too, winning upwards of 56% of his draws for the first time since his rookie year.
He’s managed to stay above water possession-wise relative to his teammates despite extremely difficult usage, posting a 46% Corsi share at even strength that ranks seventh on the team. Hertl’s been worth the money early into his massive extension, even if the team’s lack of success has largely rendered it irrelevant.
San Jose’s 17th overall pick in the 2012 draft, the Sharks lifer has now appeared in over 700 games for the club in parts of 11 seasons. He ranks seventh in franchise history in games played (712), fifth in goals (218), seventh in assists (266), and sixth in points (484).
With Hertl out long-term, expect shutdown men Ryan Carpenter and Nico Sturm to see a slight increase in minutes for the rest of the year, especially with Couture still not at full health. It could also mean another NHL look for 2020 second-round pick Thomas Bordeleau, who has 19 points in 26 games with AHL San Jose this season.
East Notes: Richard, Lajoie, Smith, Vaněček, Foerster
The Bruins reassigned winger Anthony Richard to AHL Providence on Monday, per CapFriendly. Richard, 27, was summoned from the minors on Thursday and made his Boston debut in Saturday’s 3-0 loss to the Capitals, recording one shot on goal in 10:38 of ice time.
Bruins GM Don Sweeney will likely make a corresponding recall ahead of Tuesday’s game against the Lightning, whether it’s bringing up Richard again or someone else. After sending Richard down, the Bruins are carrying 13 forwards on the NHL roster, but only 12 of them are healthy. Rookie Matthew Poitras remains on the roster despite requiring season-ending shoulder surgery, meaning he’ll end up on long-term injured reserve at some point, but they remain without an extra forward to insert into the lineup if a game-day injury strikes or if head coach Jim Montgomery wants to tinker with his personnel.
Despite being undersized, Richard has leveraged his speed to be a point-per-game producer in the AHL over the past two seasons. He has 49 goals and 105 points in 101 games since the beginning of 2022-23 and has posted 19 goals and 38 points in 41 games for Providence. After spending last season in the Canadiens organization and playing a career-high 13 NHL games as a result of his strong production with their AHL affiliate in Laval, Richard earned a relatively lucrative one-year, two-way deal from the Bruins in free agency that guarantees him $475K in salary.
Drafted 100th overall in the 2015 draft by the Predators, Richard is in his eighth season of professional hockey after wrapping up his junior career with the QMJHL’s Val-d’Or Foreurs, during which he won a league championship in 2014. He will be a UFA this summer upon the expiration of his contract.
Other morning updates from the Eastern Conference:
- The Maple Leafs returned left defenseman Maxime Lajoie to AHL Toronto from his emergency loan on Monday, according to CapFriendly. Lajoie was rostered for Saturday’s 5-3 loss to the Senators but was a healthy scratch, as he has been eight other times this season for Toronto. The 26-year-old was brought up in case all three Maple Leafs defensemen who were questionable for Saturday’s loss were unable to play, but only Mark Giordano and Conor Timmins were ruled out of the contest due to a lower-body injury and an illness, respectively. Lajoie has averaged 9:31 per game in his four showings with Toronto this year and has two goals, 15 assists, 17 points, and a +5 rating in 31 AHL games. The 2016 Ottawa draft pick is in his first season with the Maple Leafs after signing a one-year, two-way deal worth $775K in the NHL and $450K in the AHL in free agency.
- Devils defenseman/left wing Brendan Smith participated in their morning skate on Monday but won’t return from a knee sprain tonight against the Kraken, Amanda Stein of the Devils’ official site reports. His return to the lineup seems imminent, however, and New Jersey will have an open roster spot to activate him from injured reserve after left wing Max Willman clears waivers or is claimed later today. He has not been ruled out of Tuesday’s game against the Predators. The 35-year-old has been out for nearly a month, sustaining the injury in the first period of a Jan. 15 game against Boston. He has one goal and five points in 34 games, averaging 14:25 per game with average possession metrics. The 2007 first-round pick will be a UFA this summer upon completion of his two-year, $2.2MM contract signed in free agency in 2022.
- One Devil absent from practice is goaltender Vítek Vaněček, who Stein says is dealing with both an illness and a lower-body injury. The 28-year-old has started New Jersey’s four games and has seen a rare hot streak in an otherwise poor season, recording a 1-2-1 record and .914 SV%. If he’s not healthy enough to back up presumptive starter Nico Daws tonight, the Devils will summon farmhands Akira Schmid or Erik Källgren on an emergency basis.
- Flyers forward Tyson Foerster is doubtful for Monday’s game against the Coyotes with an undisclosed injury, head coach John Tortorella said (via The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz). Foerster, 22, was absent from this morning’s practice. The rookie has played in 52 consecutive games after being scratched for the season opener, recording ten goals and 21 points while averaging nearly 17 minutes per game and cementing himself in the team’s top nine. Their 2020 first-round pick has also controlled possession well with a 53.7% Corsi share at even strength, third on the team behind Sean Couturier and Travis Konecny.
West Notes: Foligno, Dewar, Couture
Wild winger Marcus Foligno will not travel on the team’s upcoming two-game road trip, according to Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He was absent from practice earlier on Sunday after sustaining a lower-body injury in the third period of Friday’s game against the Penguins.
The 32-year-old has missed a handful of games with injuries this season but has again been a mainstay in the Wild lineup, recording 20 points in 47 games while averaging 14:35 and posting a team-high +12 rating. The former Sabre is now in his seventh season with the Wild and boasts a full no-movement clause as part of his pending four-year, $16MM extension that will run through 2028. He has not been placed on injured reserve, maintaining hope that he’ll be able to dress against his former team when the Wild return home next weekend.
Other updates from the Western Conference:
- Foligno’s injury necessitated the recall of Adam Beckman from AHL Iowa earlier today, but he may not make his season debut against the Golden Knights tomorrow after all. McLellan also reports that Connor Dewar will likely be cleared to return from a lower-body injury that’s kept him out since Jan. 19 and will replace Foligno in the lineup. He’s expected to remain in a fourth-line role skating alongside Vinni Lettieri and Jake Lucchini, while Brandon Duhaime slides up to Minnesota’s third line in place of Foligno. Dewar has seven goals in 45 contests this season, his third with Minnesota.
- Sharks captain Logan Couture has missed the last two practices with soreness related to the groin injury that’s sidelined him for all but six games this season, head coach David Quinn confirmed Sunday (via Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now). He’s listed as day-to-day and hasn’t been ruled out for the Sharks’ next game, a Wednesday tilt against the Jets. Couture, 34, has yet to score since returning last month and has one assist while averaging 18:45 per game.
Canadiens Issue Multiple Injury Updates
The Canadiens announced Sunday that winger Rafaël Harvey-Pinard will miss four to six weeks with a lower-body injury after placing him on injured reserve earlier in the day. The team also said that defenseman Jordan Harris is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury, and Kaiden Guhle is being evaluated for an undisclosed injury. Both Guhle and Harris were injured during Sunday’s 7-2 loss to the Blues.
It’s been a trying campaign for the 5-foot-9 Harvey-Pinard. He’s already missed over half the season with multiple lower-body injuries – sidelined for 27 of Montreal’s 51 games – and will miss another 12 to 18 contests if his recovery timeline holds true.
He’s also scored just once in 24 games this season after scoring 14 in only 34 games in 2022-23. The 25-year-old’s limited showing in a top-six role in the absence of Cole Caufield in the back half of last season earned him some All-Rookie Team consideration, but he hasn’t been able to carry that momentum into his first full NHL campaign.
Harvey-Pinard’s extended absence could translate to a long look at rookie Joshua Roy in the team’s top nine. Roy, who was recalled Saturday for the second time this season, suited up in a third-line role against the Blues today and has a goal and an assist through his first six NHL contests. The 20-year-old was a fifth-round pick less than three years ago and has been one of the best players at the minor-league level for Montreal, notching 32 points in 40 games with AHL Laval.
Harris left today’s game early on, while Guhle was injured late after a collision with Blues defenseman Marco Scandella. If both are not cleared to play in Tuesday’s game against the Ducks, Montreal will need to make at least one recall from Laval. Arber Xhekaj is the only extra defenseman on the Canadiens’ roster.
East Notes: Grzelcyk, van Riemsdyk, Harvey-Pinard
Bruins defenseman Matt Grzelcyk has been fined $5K for spearing Capitals winger Max Pacioretty late in the first period of Saturday’s game, the NHL Department of Player Safety announced Sunday. The fine is the maximum allowable under the Collective Bargaining Agreement and comes after Grzelcyk was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct on the play, sidelining him for the last two periods of the game.
The incident occurring in the first period is likely why DoPS opted for a fine rather than a one-game suspension, given that Grzelcyk missed just over two full periods as part of the penalties assessed at the time. This is the first time Grzlecyk has received supplemental discipline of any kind in his eight-year, 420-game NHL career.
It’s been a trying season for Grzelcyk, whose 0.18 points-per-game pace is the lowest of his NHL career (excluding his two-game showing in 2016-17). The 30-year-old is still logging top-pairing minutes at even strength alongside Charlie McAvoy, controlling 55.3% of expected goals when on the ice together, per MoneyPuck. A lack of any notable special teams time has kept his average ice time below 19 minutes per game for the third straight season.
Other updates from the Eastern Conference:
- Capitals defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk will remain sidelined due to illness Sunday against the Canucks, head coach Spencer Carbery said (via Tarik El-Bashir of Monumental Sports Network). The 32-year-old also missed yesterday’s win over Boston and has only appeared in four out of Washington’s last nine games due to illness and a handful of healthy scratches. Now in the first year of a hefty three-year, $9MM extension that makes him a UFA in 2026, van Riemsdyk has eight assists and a -11 rating in 40 games and has seen his possession metrics nosedive from last season’s strong two-way performance. His average ice time (18:30) is also down from last season’s 19:04, and although he should have a more regular role in the lineup if the Capitals move out Joel Edmundson by the deadline as rumored, this year hasn’t been a strong indication that van Riemsdyk will provide much value for his $3MM cap hit as he enters his mid-30s.
- The Canadiens moved winger Rafaël Harvey-Pinard to injured reserve Sunday, according to the NHL’s media portal. The 25-year-old left Saturday’s game against the Stars with a lower-body injury and will now miss a minimum of seven days, ruling him out of Montreal’s next four games. The diminutive winger has seen his ice time dip to exclusively bottom-six minutes since the middle of January and has missed a combined 27 games this season with previous lower-body injuries. A seventh-round pick in the 2019 draft, Harvey-Pinard has one goal and seven points in his 24 showings this season.