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Injury Notes: Josi, Tanev, Milano

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It doesn’t appear the Nashville Predators will have their captain tomorrow night against the Winnipeg Jets. Beat reporter Brooks Bratten reported earlier that defenseman Roman Josi is still being evaluated for an upper-body injury suffered in Tuesday’s game against the Florida Panthers.

Approximately halfway through the second period of the game, Josi was checked from behind by Panther Sam Bennett causing his head to hit the plexiglass. The Norris Trophy-winning defenseman played through the injury for the remaining minutes of the second period but was ruled out for the third. Bennett was assessed a two-minute minor penalty for boarding on the play.

When asked about Josi’s ongoing injury evaluation, head coach Andrew Brunette said (as reported by Predators’ reporter Nick Kieser), “Yeah, I don’t know. I’m not a doctor. I don’t really know. With those things it’s day-to-day, could be week-to-week, could be season-ending, we don’t really know yet.” Although speaking vaguely, Brunette mentioning a longer-term injury when speaking to reporters should raise concerns regarding Josi’s availability for the foreseeable future.

Other injury notes:

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs have reportedly avoided a worst-case scenario with their top shutdown defenseman. The Hockey News’ David Alter shared that Chris Tanev’s recovery timeline is only considered day-to-day although he’s been ruled out for Friday’s contest against the New York Rangers. Tanev was seen wearing a sling after missing the final two periods of Toronto’s game yesterday evening against the Boston Bruins.
  • After missing the last four months of action due to an upper-body injury, a return to game action is on the horizon for Washington Capitals’ forward Sonny Milano. According to Bailey Johnson of the Washington Post, Milano was upgraded to a full-contact jersey for today’s practice. Unfortunately for Milano, given the likelihood of the league-leading Capitals’ adding one or two forwards before next Friday’s trade deadline, Milano is a strong candidate for waivers upon his activation from the long-term injured reserve.

Rangers’ Chris Kreider Day-To-Day, Brennan Othmann In

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In the moments leading up to Tuesday night’s game, the New York Rangers shared that winger Chris Kreider won’t play due to a day-to-day upper-body injury. Kreider participated in the Rangers’ morning practice and even took reps on the team’s power-play unit, making his last-minute absence a bit of a surprise. He will be replaced by top prospect Brennan Othmann, who is playing in his first NHL game of the season.

This news sets Othmann up for his season debut after a red-hot February in the minor leagues. The Rangers’ top prospect has eight points in his last 10 AHL games, bringing him up to 12 goals and 20 points in 27 games this season. That’s good enough to rank Othmann fourth on the Hartford Wolf Pack in point-per-game scoring, though he ranks sixth in total points. It’s been a year of finding his footing for Othmann. He missed two months with an upper-body injury sustained on October 19th. He’s scored in 14 of his 24 games since returning, and hasn’t gone longer than one game without a point – save for a four-game cold streak in mid-January. Othmann scored an admirable 21 goals and 49 points in 67 games as an AHL rookie last year but didn’t find any scoring through the first three NHL games of his career.

While Othmann fights for his first career point, Kreider will look to find his own footing as he works his way back to health. It’s been a historically down year for the 33-year-old winger, who has just 17 goals and 21 points in 48 games this season. But there are signs of life. He entered the 4-Nations Face-Off break with three points in his last five games – spurring a stretch of two points in eight games. He scored once in two games with Team USA at the 4-Nations tournament and notched a goal in New York’s return on February 22nd. Those gradual improvements seem to point towards the wind finally being back behind Kreider’s sails, but he’ll now face the challenge of maintaining the momentum through an injury absence.

Red Wings’ Andrew Copp Out For Season

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The Red Wings announced this morning that center Andrew Copp underwent surgery to repair his left pectoral tendon and will miss the remainder of the season. He’ll miss four to six months as a result, meaning he should be ready for training camp in the fall.

Copp landed on injured reserve yesterday and was replaced on the roster by veteran AHL call-up Sheldon Dries. The latter will serve as Detroit’s extra forward while Michael Rasmussen nurses an upper-body injury. At the same time, J.T. Compher will continue to see a bump in minutes centering Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane, as he did in Sunday’s overtime win over the Ducks without Copp.

The loss of Copp is a significant but not season-ending blow for the Wings, who are currently in position to end their eight-season playoff drought. They aren’t carrying any other long-term injuries among their forward corps. While the 30-year-old has been a strong depth piece for Detroit, ranking sixth on the team in scoring with 10-13–23 through 56 games, he’s averaged under 15 minutes per game and won’t be overwhelmingly complicated to replace internally.

His unavailability likely shifts general manager Steve Yzerman’s trade deadline plans somewhat, though. Detroit probably won’t need to move Copp to long-term injured reserve ahead of March 7 – they can currently add up to $13.65MM in cap hits as things stand, per PuckPedia. But while acquiring a top-four defenseman was and likely still is Yzerman’s top priority, Copp’s absence does bump the acquisition of a rental center up his wish list. The only big-ticket option on the rental market is the Islanders’ Brock Nelson, but they won’t be moving him – especially to a conference rival – if they’re still in competition for one of the East wild-card spots in 10 days. Lesser rental options (and more suited for a middle-six role) include Chicago’s Ryan Donato, Montreal’s Jake Evans, Boston’s Trent Frederic, and Seattle’s Yanni Gourde. The most expensive among that group is Gourde, who costs a shade over $5.1MM, still leaving them with plenty of flexibility to add on defense.

Of course, Copp’s injury could also increase Yzerman’s urgency to add a younger center with term. It’s something he’s been weighing for most of the season, namely in connection to the Sabres’ Dylan Cozens. But Buffalo, looking to end their own playoff drought next season, likely won’t risk moving the high-ceiling pivot to a division rival.

Copp arrived in Detroit in the 2022 offseason, inking a five-year, $28.125MM contract in free agency. He’s in the third year of that deal, which carries a cap hit of $5.625MM. It’s largely been an overpay, as he’s produced much closer to his career-average 82-game pace of 13 goals and 35 points in Detroit than his platform year of 21 goals and 53 points between the Jets and Rangers. His ice time this season was its lowest in six years, although his possession metrics (46.7 CF%, -1.9 expected rating at even strength) responded well to the decrease in usage.

Canadiens Recall Owen Beck

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The Canadiens have recalled center prospect Owen Beck from AHL Laval, per a team announcement. They have an open roster spot and don’t need to make a corresponding transaction. The team said there is an injury-related motivation for his recall, though – Kirby Dach is being evaluated for a lower-body injury and won’t participate in today’s practice.

Montreal selected Beck from the Ontario Hockey League’s Mississauga Steelheads with the first pick of the second round in the 2022 draft. While he signed his entry-level contract in October of that year, it just came into effect for 2024-25 after he spent two post-draft campaigns on loan back to the OHL.

That means the 21-year-old Beck is in his first professional season, which has already included six NHL appearances with the Habs over the past two months. While he made his NHL debut in January 2023 amid a championship-winning campaign in juniors, this year marks his first multi-game run in the pros.

His adjustment to the next level has been smooth. After a pair of seasons above a point per game to close the book on his major junior career, the two-way pivot ranks second on Laval in scoring with 13-19–32 in 47 appearances. His +11 rating ranks third, helping fuel the success of a Laval club projected to finish second in the North Division behind the Sabres’ farm club in Rochester. Beck has yet to record his first NHL point and averaged just 9:45 per game across his sextet of appearances over the past few weeks. He went 11-for-21 on draws and averaged one shot on goal per game with 13 hits and positive possession impacts, so he’s making his presence known outside of the box score as most expected, given his intelligent play style.

If Dach can’t play tomorrow against the Hurricanes, Beck will likely enter the lineup in a fourth-line role while rumored trade chip Jake Evans sees his minutes elevated. The oft-injured Dach has managed to appear in all 57 games for the Habs this year. He’s struggled in extended top-six deployment, though, posting just 10-12–22 with a team-worst -29 rating. His possession numbers back up the allegations of poor defensive play – his 44.8 CF% at even strength is higher than only Patrik Laine and David Savard among active Montreal skaters this season.

Matthew Tkachuk Expected To Play Again This Season

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The Panthers may have star winger Matthew Tkachuk out for more than the next few games, but his absence won’t persist for the rest of the season. Head coach Paul Maurice confirmed as such on the Joe Rose Show on Monday, saying “he’s playing for us this year” even with the “possibility [his recovery] a bit longer term” (via George Richards of Florida Hockey Now).

Tkachuk missed the Panthers’ 2-1 loss to the Kraken on Saturday with the lower-body injury, which multiple reports indicate is a groin issue, he sustained while playing for the Americans at the 4 Nations Face-Off. Maurice said he’s undergoing final evaluations to determine a recovery timeline today.

Florida is comfortably in a playoff spot, but their final standing in the Atlantic Division remains to be seen and could be significantly impacted by Tkachuk’s absence. They’ve been passed by the Maple Leafs once again for the top spot, now one point back with one more game played, and they’re facing pressure from the surging Lightning in third place. There’s now a 20% chance of the Cats slipping to third and another 6.1% of them falling to a wild-card spot, per MoneyPuck. The Panthers have gone 6-4-1 in 11 games without Tkachuk since acquiring him in a blockbuster trade with the Flames in 2022.

Tkachuk isn’t on pace to reach the 40-goal, 109-point heights of his first season in Florida, but he remains at a 1.10 points-per-game pace and ranks second on the team with a 22-35–57 scoring line. He’s been limited to 52 of 58 games, missing five contests back in October with an illness, but remains the team’s leader in power-play goals with 11 and even-strength assists with 23.

In the meantime, rookie Mackie Samoskevich will be the biggest benefactor of Tkachuk’s minutes. He stepped into the latter’s usual second-line role alongside Sam Bennett in the Seattle game. While he didn’t record a point, he logged a season-high 17:23 of ice time and recorded two shots on goal and three hits. The 2021 first-round pick hasn’t played much over the past month due to injury and illness, but he’s been a solid depth piece in his first entire NHL campaign with 8-9–17 through 49 appearances.

An anticipated return before the postseason or early into the first round likely won’t impact the Panthers’ trade deadline strategy too much. Their top priority will continue to be adding a name to a blue line that’s punched above its weight this year after losing key names on last summer’s free-agent market, contributing to an increase of 0.47 goals against per game compared to 2023-24’s league-best defensive effort.

Vancouver Canucks Recall Victor Mancini, Place Thatcher Demko On IR

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6:01 PM: The Canucks officially announced the roster moves.  Demko’s placement is retroactive to February 8th, meaning he’ll be eligible to be activated at any time.

3:02 PM: According to the team’s play-by-play radio commentator Brendan Batchelor, the Vancouver Canucks have recalled defenseman Victor Mancini from their AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks. Vancouver will open up a spot on the active roster for Mancini by placing netminder Thatcher Demko on the injured reserve.

Demko’s placement on the IR will likely be made retroactive to February 8th. He left the Canucks’ game against the Toronto Maple Leafs after only 10 minutes due to a lower-body injury. During the 4 Nations Face-Off break it was announced that Demko wouldn’t join the team on their current five-game road trip and his recovery timeline is considered week-to-week.

It’s becoming somewhat of a lost season for the eight-year netminder. Due to lingering injury issues from the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs, Demko’s 2024-25 debut was delayed until December 10th. He hasn’t been inspiring when healthy either managing a 6-6-3 record in 17 starts with a .891 save percentage and 2.87 goals-against average.

The newfound injury concerns are especially unfortunate when considering Demko’s season last year. The San Diego, CA native was instrumental in Vancouver’s return to the postseason posting a 35-14-2 record in 51 starts with a .918 SV% and 2.45 GAA. His 21.2 Goals Saved Above Average according to Hockey Reference accounts for 82.8% of his total GSAA throughout his career.

Demko’s future in British Columbia became even cloudier yesterday when the Canucks’ signed fellow netminder Kevin Lankinen to a five-year extension. Lankinen has been objectively better for Vancouver this season and his new contract will run four years longer than Demko’s current deal with the team.

Meanwhile, the freshly acquired Mancini could debut with the Canucks this evening. He’s tallied one assist in five games in AHL Abbotsford since being acquired from the New York Rangers as a part of the package for J.T. Miller.

Vancouver may still need an injury replacement for Quinn Hughes during tonight’s contest and Mancini would have to battle defenseman Elias Pettersson for that role. Pettersson has proven better defensively in limited action but Mancini has outscored him with one goal and four assists throughout 15 games with the Rangers.

Injury Notes: Kreider, Grzelcyk, Cooley

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Before today’s game against the New York Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins, the former announced a minor injury just before puck drop. The Rangers shared winger Chris Kreider is out with an upper-body injury although his recovery timeline is only considered day-to-day.

It’s difficult to pinpoint any specific moment for Kreider’s current injury. The veteran forward has been dealing with a recurrent back spasms issue for much of the regular season, while he could also be one of the several players to succumb to a minor injury throughout the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament.

Still, despite the specifics of the injury, Kreider did participate in the Rangers’ first game back from the tournament. Despite the team being completely outclassed by the Buffalo Sabres, Kreider scored one goal over 15 minutes in yesterday’s contest joining Mika Zibanejad as the only New York forward to not have a negative rating.

Other injury notes:

  • Hopping over to the other side of today’s Metropolitan Division tilt, the Penguins announced defenseman Matt Grzelcyk won’t return to the game due to an upper-body injury. The pending unrestricted free agent only skated in five minutes of today’s action before being hit from behind by Ranger forward Matt Rempe. Rempe was originally reprimanded with a five-minute major only to be downgraded to a two-minute minor call.
  • The Utah Hockey Club could be short-handed when they play their first home game in 19 days tonight. According to Brogan Houston of Deseret News Sports, Utah forward Logan Cooley is a game-time decision for this evening’s event. Cooley is confirmed to be dealing with a lower-body issue but it’s not severe enough to warrant a concrete absence from the lineup. The sophomore center is only one point away from tying his total production from last year scoring 15 goals and 43 points in 50 games.

Anaheim Ducks Recall Oscar Dansk, John Gibson Out With Injury

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The Anaheim Ducks will put forth a different goaltending tandem for tonight’s contest against the Detroit Red Wings. According to the AHL transactions page, the Ducks have recalled netminder Oscar Dansk who hasn’t played in an NHL contest since the 2020-21 season.

Anaheim’s reasoning for the call-up was made clear yesterday evening. The Ducks announced shortly after the second period of last night’s action that goaltender John Gibson wouldn’t return to the game due to an upper-body injury. There haven’t been any meaningful updates to Gibson’s injury status but it was severe enough to prohibit him from participating in the second half of the team’s back-to-back.

Despite years having passed since Dansk last sat on an NHL bench during the regular season, he would play tonight if there’s another injury or the score becomes lop-sided in Detroit’s favor. He’s put together a subpar season in his first year with the Ducks organization managing a 10-10-5 record with a .886 save percentage and 3.43 goals-against average in 27 games with their AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls.

At least the 2024-25 campaign has provided Dansk with increased playing time. The now-veteran netminder spent the last two years with the AHL Calgary Wranglers totalling 44 games in a backup role behind Dustin Wolf.

Fortunately for Anaheim, the injury to Gibson won’t be as detrimental as it would have been in years past. Goaltender Lukáš Dostál has a formidable case to be the Ducks’ MVP this season posting a 16-13-4 record through 30 starts with a .911 SV% and 2.86 GAA.

Hampus Lindholm Unlikely To Return This Season

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One of the oft-forgotten aspects of the Boston Bruins’ disappointing 2024-25 campaign is the lack of one of Hampus Lindholm for much of the regular season. This reality isn’t likely to change anytime as general manager Don Sweeney shared (publicized by Conor Ryan of The Boston Globe) that Lindholm isn’t expected to return this season.

The injury update concludes a lost season for Lindholm. The 12-year veteran will finish the 2024-25 season with three goals and four assists in 17 games averaging 20:51 of ice time per night before fracturing his patella on November 12.

If there’s any silver lining for Lindholm, injuries haven’t followed him throughout his career. This year is only the second time he’s played less than 80% of his team’s games. The last time he failed to play in at least 50 games came during the 2020-21 season with the Anaheim Ducks when a wrist injury limited him to just 18 contests.

Still, injuries aside, Lindholm’s performance has declined over the past two years. In Lindholm’s defense, the 2023-24 season wouldn’t have been such a disappointment had he not had a breakout season the year prior. The Helsingborg, Sweden native scored 10 goals and 53 points in 80 games during his first full year in Boston carrying a league-leading +49 rating. It shattered Lindholm’s previous career-high 34 points scoring in 2014-15.

Lindholm’s impressive 2022-23 season earned him a fourth-place finish for the James Norris Memorial Trophy. Unfortunately, he took a dramatic step back last year. He finished the campaign with three goals and 23 assists in 73 games despite increasing his average ice time by six seconds.

Nevertheless, a bone fracture rarely becomes a lingering issue for many players giving Lindholm multiple months to prepare for the 2025-26 season. He’s still a capable top-four defenseman signed to a modest $6.5MM salary until the 2029-30 season giving the Bruins at least some long-term consistency on their blue line.

Flames Expected To Activate Connor Zary, Kevin Bahl

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The Calgary Flames are expected to activate forward Connor Zary and defenseman Kevin Bahl off of injured reserve ahead of Sunday night’s game, per Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet 960. Zary has sat out of Calgary’s last 15 games with a knee injury, while Bahl missed the last eight games. Both players have served impactful roles this season, making their returns a notable addition to a Flames lineup just three points back from a Western Conference Wild Card.

Of the pair, Bahl has been the more utilized Flame so far this year. The 24-year-old defender joined Calgary in the trade that sent Jacob Markstrom to New Jersey this summer, and quickly claimed a top-four role in his new setting. He’s posted a tame stat line, with 14 points, a plus-one, 29 penalty minutes, 67 hits, and 79 blocked shots through 47 games this season – while spending much of it lined up next to top Flames defender Rasmus Andersson. That premier partnership has helped Bahl’s average ice time jump north of 21 minutes, nearly four minutes more than he averaged in New Jersey last season. While he still has improvement to go, this season has been Bahl’s first making a top-of-the-lineup claim, after last season marked his first full season in the NHL. He should quickly return to that top-pair role when he’s able to return, likely bumping Ilya Solovyov out of the lineup.

Zary’s bid back into the lineup will be a bit tougher to anticipate. The Flames added Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost and parted ways with Andrei Kuzmenko via trade during Zary’s absence. That’s sparked a lineup shakeup that Zary will now have to find his footing within. Farabee and Frost have filled a third-line role alongside Yegor Sharangovich, which should leave a top-six role next to Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman open for Zary. But the young forward will need to earn his footing. He has 10 goals and 22 points in 40 games this season, a slight uptick to the 14 goals and 34 points he scored as a rookie last year. If Zary can continue to grow that scoring upside, and his knack for making big plays – his return could be the piece that solidifies Calgary’s top-nine as a group to envy. But tepid offense could be the piece that necessitates further changes.

The pair of returns will give Calgary their first chance to see their roster at full-strength after their trade with Philadelphia. Zary and Bahl are two young, impactful pieces of the Flames lineup – and stood as two of the biggest bright spots on the year before they fell to injury. How the lineup performs amid their return will be closely scrutinized, as Calgary hones in on a potentially lucrative Trade Deadline.

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