Sweden’s Leo Carlsson, Jonas Brodin Expected To Miss Olympics
With 22 days left before the men’s hockey tournament kicks off at the 2026 Winter Olympics, Team Sweden has been hit with a double-whammy of bad injury news. Star forward Leo Carlsson and top-four defenseman Jonas Brodin are both expected to miss the tournament with injuries head coach Sam Hallam told Sweden’s Hockey Sverige. The team will hold out hope for something “extraordinary” but expect to have to replace both players on their official roster per Hallam.
Carlsson recently sustained a thigh injury that formed a lesion, requiring surgery and a three-to-five week recovery. Brodin has been out since January 12th, when he was finally forced out of the lineup by a nagging lower-body injury. Minnesota designated him as out week-to-week and placed him on injured reserve.
The impact that Carlsson and Brodin bring to the Olympic roster can not be understated. Both would have cemented roles near the top of the lineup and could have been X-factors that led the Tre Kronas to Olympic Gold.
Carlsson made his debut on Sweden’s men’s national team at the age of 18, in the 2023 World Championship. He scored three goals and five points in eight games, though the Swedes ultimately lost in the quarterfinals. Carlsson was left off of Sweden’s 2024 roster, during his NHL rookie season, but returned with a purpose in 2025. He scored 10 points in 10 games, third on the team in scoring as Sweden pushed for a Bronze medal finish.
Carlsson’s game has continued its exponential growth since he represented Sweden this summer. He leads the Anaheim Ducks in scoring with 44 points in 44 games, an incredible pace for the 21-year-old forward. He is taking on bigger roles and could have offered top-six upside for Sweden in the Olympics.
Brodin, 32, is on the other side of his career but still brings an impactful, two-way style to the lineup. He has averaged the lowest expected-goals-against per-60 (xGA/60; 2.75) on the Minnesota defense per HockeyStats.com. The Wild have, in total, outscored opponents 35-to-26 in Brodin’s even-strength ice time. That goal-differential (+9) is tied with Quinn Hughes for the best on the team.
Brodin has contributed 15 points in 42 games this season, bringing his NHL career up to 275 points in 895 games. He represented Sweden at the 2024 and 2025 World Championships, where his scoring jumped to a combined 11 points in 20 games. He has never represented Sweden at the Olympics, and may never get to on the back of this injury. Brodin is signed through the 2027-28 season by Minnesota. He could aim to land one more two-year deal on the other side of that contract, which would carry him through his age-36 season and provide one more chance to become a Swedish Olympian. For that to happen, Brodin will first need to work through the nagging injury that’s plaguing him.
Sweden will now face the tough task of how to replace two key pieces of the lineup. Their Olympic roster featured a long list of cuts, with the most surprising exclusions on defense. Sweden opted not to bring Edmonton’s Mattias Ekholm, Boston’s Hampus Lindholm, or Detroit’s Simon Edvinsson. All three players – each left-handed shots, the same as Brodin – will now step back up to vie for the role of injury replacement.
The 21-year-old Edvinsson represented the country most recently, having played in all 10 games of the 2025 World Championship, while Ekholm and Lindholm were in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Edvinsson contributed one assist to the tournament in what was his debut with the men’s national team. It will be Ekholm who likely holds the strongest bid. The 35 year old served as an alternate captain on Sweden’s 4-Nations Face-Off roster in 2025, where he scored one point in three games. He, like Brodin, brings an interesting two-way upside. Meanwhile, Lindholm would offer a shutdown role, though he has faced his own challenges with injury this season.
While Sweden is separating hairs on defense, they will also have to find another forward. San Jose Sharks winger William Eklund appeared to be the biggest exclusion on offense, especially after posting his first 40-assist season in the NHL last year. He has never played for Sweden’s men’s team and only appeared in two notable junior tournaments – five games at the 2020 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and two games at the cancelled 2022 World Junior Championships. Eklund would bring a dose of speed and playmaking ability, though he may not supplant the top-six role Carlsson was vying for.
Sweden could get a bit more assuredness from Calgary Flames captain Mikael Backlund. The veteran center offers a chippy, two-way game but has added a nice bit of offense this season. He has scored 12 goals and 31 points in 49 games this season, putting him on pace for the second-highest scoring season of his 18-year carere behind his 56 points in 2022-23. Sweden could also turn towards plays like Emil Heineman or Marcus Johansson.
Keeping all of those names in mind could be a safe bet as Sweden looks forward to the near-future. The country is also facing injuries to William Nylander, Gabriel Landeskog, Erik Karlsson, Joel Eriksson Ek, and Philip Broberg. Those players haven’t been ruled out of the Winter Olympics just yet, but they represent the heavy load facing a potential medal-favorite with just under a month before puck drop.
Photo courtesy of Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images.
Maple Leafs Assign Anthony Stolarz To AHL On Conditioning Loan
The Toronto Maple Leafs are nearing the return of one of their netminders. The Maple Leafs announced that they’ve assigned Anthony Stolarz to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies on a conditioning loan.
Assuming that Toronto will want Stolarz to participate in at least one AHL contest before activating him from the injured reserve, he’ll likely only miss two more games for the Maple Leafs. The Marlies don’t play again until Friday, whereas the Maple Leafs have two games through Friday evening.
If he’s activated and recalled after the Marlies’ game on Friday night, it’ll mark the end of a 34-game absence for Stolarz. The veteran netminder has missed over two months of action for the Maple Leafs after suffering an upper-body injury against the Boston Bruins on November 11th.
There’s reason to believe that Stolarz had been dealing with the injury prior to being placed on the injured reserve in November. He had a shaky start to the 2025-26 campaign, managing a 6-5-1 record in 13 games with a .884 SV% and 3.51 GAA. That’s a monumental drop-off from how he performed from 2023 to 2025, securing a 37-15-5 record in 61 games with a .926 SV% and 2.10 GAA split between the Florida Panthers and Maple Leafs.
Unfortunately, since it’s unlikely that Toronto carries three netminders on their active roster, Stolarz’s return is bad news for Dennis Hildeby. The second-year netminder has been a boon to the Maple Leafs this season, managing a 5-6-4 record in 19 games with a .910 SV% and 2.90 GAA. Additionally, according to Hockey Reference, he’s earned a 6.7 Goals Saved Above Average.
Still, Hildeby is exempt from waivers, meaning the Maple Leafs can easily reassign him to AHL Toronto once prompted. Given that Stolarz and fellow netminder Joseph Woll are signed through the next several years, Hildeby will remain in the unenviable position of again waiting for an injury to happen to receive another opportunity at the NHL level.
Afternoon Notes: Robinson, Gostisbehere, Rooney
A new injury hit the Carolina Hurricanes during Monday’s game against the Buffalo Sabres. Forward Eric Robinson left the game with roughly eight minutes left in the first period after being awkwardly knocked down by former teammate and Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin. Robinson appeared to be nursing his left shoulder as he left the ice and has been designated with an upper-body injury.
Robinson has continued to offer all-around utility in a bottom-six role this season. He has 10 goals, 15 points, and a plus-seven in 43 games this season. His performance has been a nice continuation on a strong debut with the Hurricanes last season. Robinson recorded 14 goals, 32 points, and a plus-14 while playing in all 82 games last season – all career-highs. He missed his first games as a Hurricane in late October, when an upper-body injury forced him out of six games.
Other notes from around the league:
- The Hurricanes were again without defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere on Monday per NHL.com’s Walt Ruff. It was Gostisbehere’s fourth straight absence due to a lower-body injury and illness. The 32-year-old defenseman has now missed 14 games on the season. Despite that, he still leads the Hurricanes blue-line in scoring with six goals and 32 points in 35 games. He has 10 more points than K’Andre Miller, who ranks second. Gostisbehere will have a clear path into an important role when he returns from another absence.
- The Utah Mammoth have assigned center Kevin Rooney to the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners. He has served as an extra forward all year long and played his only NHL game in late November. Rooney has built a more prominent role in Tucson, where he has seven goals and 10 points in 20 games. He will slot back into a familiar role with the Roadrunners and could be a top call-up option when Utah needs another hand.
Flyers Activate Bobby Brink, Place Daniel Vladar On IR
The Philadelphia Flyers will get a forward back from injury in Monday night’s game against the Vegas Golden Knights. Winger Bobby Brink was activated off of injured reserve earlier in the day while goaltender Daniel Vladar was placed on IR in a corresponding move, per Jordan Hall of NBCS Philadelphia. Vladar’s IR designation can be made retroactive to his last game on January 14th, making him eligible to be activated before Philadelphia visis the Utah Mammoth on Wednesday.
Brink will return to the lineup after missing six games with an upper-body injury sustained on January 6th. The fourth-year pro had appeared in all 41 Flyers games this season before getting injured. He scored 11 goals and 20 points in those appearances. 14 of those points came in two separate eight-game streaks – one at the beginning of the season and another in early December.
While his scoring around those hot streaks hasn’t popped, Brink has still reestablished his role as a sharpshooter in the middle of Philadelphia’s lineup. He is scoring at roughly the same pace that led him to 41 points in 79 games last season, though is already one goal back from the 12 goals he posted last year. That’s a hardy improvement for the 24 year old and has led to a career-high 15 minutes of average ice time.
Brink will step onto Philadelphia’s third-line in place of Rodrigo Abols, who suffered a scary-looking injury in Philadelphia’s last game. Brink will play above options like Garnet Hathaway, Carl Grundstrom, and Lane Pederson. The Flyers are also nursing an injury to winger Tyson Foerster.
While Brink’s return will add another shooter to the lineup, the Flyers will keep their sights on Vladar’s injury. The 28-year-old netminder has stood up as the top Flyers goaltender. He has 16 wins and a .905 save percentage in 28 games this season, a career-year just above the 13 wins and .906 Sv% he posted in 23 games of the 2021-22 season. A placement on IR, rather than LTIR, should indicate Vladar’s return isn’t far away.
Flyers Recall Lane Pederson, Rodrigo Abols Replaced On Olympic Roster
1/19: After being placed on IR by the Flyers on Sunday, centerman Abols has been replaced by Rihards Bukarts on Team Latvia’s roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics per a team announcement. Bukarts currently has eight points in nine games with Presov HC of Slovakia’s Tipsport Extraliga. This move suggests that Abols’ scary-looking injury will indeed knock him out of contention at another Olympic event.
1/18: The Philadelphia Flyers announced today that center Rodrigo Abols has been placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury. In a corresponding move, the club recalled forward Lane Pederson from their AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
Abols suffered a lower-body injury against the New York Rangers on Jan. 17, and will now miss at least a week as a result of his IR placement. He was centering the Flyers’ fourth line in between Garnet Hathaway and Carl Grundstrom, a role that will likely now go to Pederson, who can play center.
The Latvian international was signed out of the SHL by the Flyers in advance of the 2024-25 season, and he earned his way into the NHL with a solid campaign at the AHL level. In 47 games for the Phantoms, Abols scored 32 points, a performance that helped him get into a total of 22 NHL games that year.
So far this season, Abols has been able to carve out a steady role on the Flyers’ fourth line. Though he only has 10 points in 42 games, he’s been able to provide the kind of size and game-to-game reliability teams are looking for in the fourth-line center position. Abols has also seen sporadic deployment on the penalty kill, where he averages 0:39 time on ice per game overall, but has a single-game high of 2:13.
With this recall, it’s Pederson who will get the chance to replace Abols in head coach Rick Tocchet’s lineup. It’s highly unlikely Pederson alone will be able to reverse the Flyers’ recent struggles, but he does have nearly 80 games of NHL experience and a solid record of scoring at the AHL level.
From Pederson’s perspective, this recall is a significant opportunity for him as he’s a pending unrestricted free agent. Depth players in his position often have to squeeze everything they can out of the limited NHL exposure they receive, so he’ll be under some pressure to step up in advance of an important free agent summer for the future of his career.
Sabres Activate Alex Lyon, Place Joshua Norris On IR
The Buffalo Sabres will again carry three netminders on their active roster. According to Rachel Lenzi of The Buffalo News, the Sabres have activated goaltender Alex Lyon from the injured reserve and have placed forward Joshua Norris on it in a corresponding roster move.
Although unfortunate, Norris’ placement on the IR was expected. After suffering an upper-body injury on Wednesday, Norris had his recovery timeline downgraded to week-to-week, following initial reports that it would only be a few days.
Still, it doesn’t appear that a week-to-week timeline is set in stone yet. According to Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News Sports, there’s no sense that Norris will be held out of Buffalo’s lineup through the Olympic Break, with head coach Lindy Ruff saying, “This can turn around in a day or two.”
Meanwhile, Lyon will return to the Sabres lineup after missing several weeks of action due to a lower-body issue. Before losing nearly a month due to injury, Lyon was arguably Buffalo’s best option in net, managing a 10-6-3 record in 21 games with a .906 SV% and 2.82 GAA.
Still, regardless of the stability that he’s provided between the pipes, his tenure in Buffalo could be nearing its end. In his introductory press conference, General Manager Jarmo Kekäläinen stated that he has little interest in carrying three netminders on the roster for the rest of the season.
Given his play this season and an affordable contract through the 2026-27 season, Lyon projects as the most movable netminder if the Sabres go that route. Additionally, Buffalo still has youngster Devon Levi knocking on the door in the AHL, meaning there could be a few goaltenders moved out of upstate New York by the end of the season.
Sabres’ Joshua Norris Downgraded To Week-To-Week
1/18/26: Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff issued an update on Norris’ status today, telling the media that Norris won’t travel with the team on their upcoming flight to Carolina. Ruff said Norris is “not really recovering the way we had hoped” and downgraded the player’s recovery timeline to week-to-week. Norris’ injury was previously classified as day-to-day.
1/15/26: Yet another injury has come through for one of the league’s most plagued forwards. Buffalo Sabres centerman Joshua Norris sustained an upper-body injury on Wednesday that will have him out on a day-to-day basis, per a team announcement.
Norris’ final shift came with six minutes remaining in the second period. He received a few cross-checks to the ribs courtesy of Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Nick Seeler. Norris fought through those checks to deliver the primary assist on Buffalo’s fourth goal of the game. It seems those whacks may have caused more damage than it appears, though, and he will now land on the shelf yet again.
Norris missed 25 games between October and December while recovering from a different upper-body injury sustained in the Sabres’ season opener. He has had a bad trend of upper-body injuries through the last few years, sustaining an oblique injury that ended his 2024-25 season early and undergoing multiple shoulder surgeries during his six seasons with the Ottawa Senators.
While this injury doesn’t seem as severe as some Norris has faced, it will still shorthand the Sabres for the near future. Norris has been an electric part of the offense when healthy. His 17 points in 19 games this season gives him the second-highest scoring pace (0.89 points-per-game) on the team behind Tage Thompson (0.98).
This has been a career-year for Norris on the scoresheet. His scoring pace and 0 plus-minus both rank as career-highs. He has reached those heights despite averaging under 16 minutes of ice time each game – a career-low, largely thanks to so often needing eased back from injury. His strong shooting and connection with Buffalo’s stars has still earned Norris a spot on the Sabres’ top power-play unit. They will have to replace that hole, in addition to Norris’ spot in the top-six, for their next slate.
The Sabres have recalled top prospect Konsta Helenius to attempt to fill the gap. Helenius leads Rochester Americans forwards in scoring with 30 points in 34 games. He is in his second AHL season after spending two years in the Liiga, Finland’s top league. Despite yo-yoing prospects like Isak Rosen and Noah Ostlund between leagues, the Sabres have opted for a patient approach with Helenius, leaving him a full-time AHL role through the last two seasons. Now, with Norris out, their patience could come to fruition should Helenius make his NHL debut.
St. Louis Blues To Activate Dylan Holloway
1/18/26: The Blues made it official today, announcing that Holloway will return to the lineup for the team’s game against the Edmonton Oilers.
St. Louis has an open spot on their 23-man active roster, meaning they won’t need to make a corresponding transaction in order to activate Holloway off injured reserve. Once Holloway is activated, the Blues will be down to three forwards on IR: Suter, top pivot Robert Thomas, and winger Mathieu Joseph.
1/17/26: Things are finally swinging towards the positive for the injury-plagued St. Louis Blues. Winger Dylan Holloway was a full participant at practice and will join the team on their upcoming three-game road trip per Lou Korac of The Hockey News. The top-six winger has missed the last 15 games with a high ankle sprain in his right leg.
Centerman Pius Suter won’t be ready for the road trip and will miss the trip. Suter has missed the last nine games with a high ankle sprain of his own. If Suter follows Holloway’s timeline, he could be a candidate to return during St. Louis’ four-game homestand next week.
Returning Holloway will be a major addition for the struggling Blues offense. St. Louis has averaged just 2.33 goals-per-game since Holloway was injured, the second-lowest mark in the NHL behind the New Jersey Devils. The Blues have slipped while continuing to allow a league-average 3.0 goals-against, putting them in a losing stance on a nightly basis.
The explosive Holloway could be the man to end the quiet spell. Even after an extended absence, he still ranks seventh on the team in scoring with eight goals and 17 points in 33 games. That includes four points scored in seven games through the first two weeks of December, the fourth-most of any Blue.
Holloway has been a revelation for the Blues lineup since joining the team in the summer of 2024. He had a career-year last season, scoring 26 goals and 63 points in 77 games in what was his first full season on an NHL roster. Like many Blues, Holloway’s numbers have dipped in the 2025-26 season – but his spot on the team’s top-six has held firm. Holloway is expected to return to the lineup as the spark plug next to Dalibor Dvorsky and Jake Neighbours.
Suter has held down a third-line role in his first season in St. Louis. He scored 14 points, split evenly, in 37 games before going down with injury. The 29-year-old center hasn’t found the same spark that led him to 25 goals and 46 points with the Vancouver Canucks last season. He has provided depth support among a veteran bottom-six and should continue in that role when he’s back from injury.
Evening Notes: Abols, Igram, Love
The Philadelphia Flyers could soon receive bad news about a scary-looking injury. Center Rodrigo Abols needed helped off the ice after his right-foot went into the boards awkwardly during Saturday’s game against the New York Rangers. Head coach Rick Tocchet provided little update after the game, except to say that the injury was “not good” per Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Abols was on Latvia’s official roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics, set to begin in roughly one month. He has represented Latvia at Olympic events in 2017, 2022, and 2025, with 13 points in 13 games in total. A long-term injury would leave Latvia, and the Flyers, without an important bit of depth.
The Flyers have deployed Abols in a fourth-line role in his second season with the club. He has recorded 10 points, 22 penalty minutes, and a minus-one in 41 games. Each of those marks are up from the five points, four penalty minutes, and minus-10 that Abols recorded in the first 22 games of his NHL career last season. He should have a spot carved out at the bottom of Philadelphia’s lineup on the other side of this injury, so long as he returns before hitting unrestricted free agency this summer.
Other notes from around the hockey world:
- The Edmonton Oilers have found a small bit of reliability in net. Goaltender Connor Ingram is expected to stick with the team even after he regains waiver eligibility per Sportsnet’s Mark Spector. The team is expected to carry three goaltenders – Ingram, Tristan Jarry, and Calvin Pickard – through the Olympic break. Ingram has recorded four wins and a .907 save percentage in his first eight games with Edmonton. The performance is a major improvement over the four wins and .856 save percentage he recorded in 11 AHL games to start the year – while this resurgence is wholely a nice rebound for Ingram after losing the Utah Hockey Club’s starting role last season. He seems to have found a new role in Edmonton, where he could earn a heap of starts with strong play. Ingram is currently the only Oilers goaltender with a save percentage above .900.
- The KHL’s Shanghai Dragons have hired Mitch Love as their next head coach after Gerard Gallant stepped down last week per Sergey Demidov of RG. Coach Mike Kelly – a former Florida Panthers coach who served as interim head coach in Gallant’s absence – will stay with the team as an assistant coach. Love was hired as an assistant coach by the Washington Capitals this summer but was placed on team-imposed leave before coaching in his first game. The leave was spurred by an NHL investigation into Love, ultimately revealed to be looking into allegations of domestic abuse against Love. The Capitals fired Love after that investigation. Love will now try to lift up a Dragons club that ranks third-to-last in the KHL’s Western Conference. Shanghai is led by former North American pros Spencer Foo, Austin Wagner, Alexander Burmistrov, and Kevin Labanc.
Bruins Activate Hampus Lindholm, Reassign Billy Sweezey
The Boston Bruins will have a major piece of the defense back for their Saturday matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks. Hampus Lindholm has been activated from injured reserve after missing the last six games with an undisclosed injury sustained in January 3rd’s overtime win over the Vancouver Canucks. To make room for Lindholm’s addition, Boston has reassigned defenseman Billy Sweezey.
Boston kept up their strong season in Lindholm’s absence. The Bruins posted a 5-1-0 record and 4.33-to-2.00 average goal differential over their last six games. The Bruins leaned on their top-four defenders with Lindholm out – but the second pair of Jonathan Aspirot and Henri Jokiharju stood up to the test, while Mason Lohrei offered a nice bit of depth offense.
Lindholm will offer a timely boost to Boston’s firing defense, while Andrew Peeke – the Bruins’ quietest defender as of late – will be a natural scratch from the lineup. Lindholm has recorded 14 points, 36 penalty minutes, and a minus-seven in 34 games this season. He has again served as a pillar of the blue-line, averaging over 22 minutes of ice time each game. He’ll bring a responsible, veteran presence back to the Bruins’ fold as the team looks to extend a five-game win streak.
Meanwhile, Sweezey will return to the Providence Bruins without making his Boston Bruins debut. The 29-year-old defenseman was recalled as an extra defenseman after Thursday’s game against the Seattle Kraken. Sweezey has recorded 11 points, 33 penalty minutes, and a team-leading plus-22 in 34 games with Providence this season. He is in his second season in Providence after spending three seasons with the Cleveland Monsters. That stint saw Sweezey play his first nine games in the NHL with the 2022-23 Columbus Blue Jackets. He recorded one assist, nine penalty minutes, and a minus-three in those games.