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Afternoon Notes: Seguin, Orlov, Hutson, Ostman

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The Dallas Stars may take inspiration from their Central Division rival, the Colorado Avalanche, when it comes to easing a star player back into the lineup. Head coach Pete DeBoer shared that the team is deciding whether or not to place winger Tyler Seguin on an AHL conditioning loan as he eases his way back from a hip injury, per Sam Nestler of DLLS Sports. Seguin has missed Dallas’ last 55 games with injury. He is expected to be back to full health in time for the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but may not be up to full speed in time to contribute to must-win games. Colorado recently assigned team captain Gabriel Landeskog to an AHL conditioning loan. Neither Seguin nor Landeskog have played any AHL games in their careers.

Seguin was a major piece of the Stars lineup at the beginning of the season. He scored nine goals and 20 points in 19 games to start the year, good for third on the team in points and fourth in goals at the time of his injury. It was an offensive explosion for Seguin, who has struggled to cross the 50-point mark in each of his last four healthy seasons. Regardless of a minor-league conditioning stint, Seguin will soon return to a very different Stars lineup – with feisty youngster Logan Stankoven replaced by high-upside veterans Mikko Rantanen and Mikael Granlund. Adding another flashy winger to that mix could make Dallas a sneaky favorite to win games this postseason.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Dmitry Orlov is set to hit unrestricted free agency this season, and seems unlikely to receive a confident extension from the cap-strapped Hurricanes. Speculation has connected Orlov to his native KHL for much of the season, but Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman dispelled those rumors in his recent 32 Thoughts article. Orlov is instead expected to stick in the NHL, where he’ll no doubt get plenty of attention from needy teams this summer. Orlov fills a premium, well-rounded role in Carolina. He has scored six goals and 26 points in 71 games this season, averages 20 minutes of ice time each game, and leads the Hurricanes defense with 97 hits. Those marks fall closely in line with how Orlov has performed throughout his 13-year career in the NHL – maintaining the role of well-rounded bruiser through tenures with the Washington Capitals and Boston Bruins. Orlov signed a two-year contract with Carolina in the summer of 2023 – his first time entering unrestricted free agency.
  • Friedman also reported that there’s plenty of Western Conference interest in Boston University forward Quinn Hutson, with the end of his collegiate career in sight. Hutson has been a major contributor to the Terriers offense over the last three seasons. His scoring has improved in every year – growing from 28 points, to 36, and to 50 this year. Those improvements have been coupled with clear growth in his game. He’s become a stronger skater and more confident in finding space in the middle of the ice. Those improvements – and his scoring track record – lend themselves to clear pro upside. Hutson, who had a late start to his juniors career, went undrafted through the 2020, 2021, and 2022 NHL drafts. With this news, a team could soon reverse their mistake in looking past him and award the third of four Hutson brothers with his pro hockey debut.
  • Finally, the Seattle Kraken have reassigned goaltender Victor Ostman to the minor leagues. Ostman made his NHL debut in relief of Joey Daccord on Tuesday, after the latter allowed seven goals on 22 shots through the first two periods. Ostman saved all 12 of the shots he faced in relief. The 24-year-old netminder is playing through his first season of professional hockey, after spending the last four years at the University of Maine. He’s spent the bulk of the year in the ECHL, where he’s recorded a 21-7-4 record and .903 save percentage in 32 games. Ostman has also contributed a stout 2-1-1 record and .927 save percentage in four AHL games this season. He will head back to the AHL with this move, and could get a chance at plenty more ice time with a clean sheet in the NHL under his belt.

Oilers Expecting Healthy Lineup For Playoffs

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A laundry list of injuries has pulled the end of the Edmonton Oilers season into disarray. The bunch of inactive Oilers is led by superstars Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, who has missed the team’s last two and eight games respectively. They’re joined by a seemingly endless list of impactful Oilers on the sideline – including starting goaltender Stuart Skinner (six missed games), top-four defensemen John Klingberg (five games) and Mattias Ekholm (six games), and freshly-injured top-six centerman Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. On top of that, Edmonton has only received one game out of Trade Deadline acquisition Trent Frederic, and continues to grapple with uncertainty around Evander Kane.

But with so much to bear through, Edmonton isn’t expecting the injuries to carry into the postseason. Head coach Kris Knoblauch shared in a Wednesday press conference that he expects to get “everybody” back from injury before the end of the season. He further specified that McDavid and Draisaitl will remain out on a day-to-day basis, up to a week. That timeframe puts the pair of superstars on track to return just ahead of Edmonton’s final games of the regular season, which take place on Monday April 14th and Wednesday April 16th.

The Oilers haven’t technically clinched a playoff spot just yet – but with a six-point advantage over the rest of the Pacific Division, a locked-in spot is a matter of when not if. That will make their half-strength run through the end of the season a bit easier to withstand, though the Oilers will still be icing an unprecedented lineup on Wednesday night. They’ll be without eight routine NHL players including Kane. That equates to $42.2MM in cap space that will be left on the shelf, as shared by Jason Gregor of Sports 1440.

The decimated Oilers will move forward with rookies Noah Philp and Olivier Rodrigue respectively filling the role of fourth-line center and backup goaltender. Second-year defenseman Ty Emberson will also stick in the Oilers lineup with this news, giving him a chance to continue the search for his first goal of the season. Emberson has 10 assists in 71 games this season, while Philp has recorded two assists in the first 12 games of his NHL career this year. Rodrigue has also played in the first two games of his NHL career this season, and has 25 saves on 29 shots (0.862 save percentage) and a 0-1-0 record.

Together, the trio of young additions will look to push Edmonton past a hard-nosed St. Louis Blues team, fresh off the end of a 12-game win-streak, on Wednesday night. They’ll be rewarded with a lighter game against the San Jose Sharks on Friday, but then close the year with matchups against the top-ranked Winnipeg Jets, playoff competition Los Angeles Kings, and another match against San Jose.

Senators Considering Shutting Down Nick Jensen For Regular Season

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The Senators are mulling shutting down defenseman Nick Jensen for their final few regular season games after clinching a playoff berth last night, general manager Steve Staios told Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia on Wednesday.

Jensen, 34, is still dealing with the mid-to-lower-body injury that’s cost him small stretches of games since late January. He last sat out a quartet of contests in mid-March but has made nine consecutive appearances since then.

Ottawa acquired the veteran righty last summer in the trade that sent Jakob Chychrun to the Capitals. He’s fit well into his usual second-pairing role, spending the season almost exclusively with Thomas Chabot. The duo has been paired in 68 of Jensen’s 69 appearances as a Senator and has controlled 49.2% of expected goals at 5-on-5 while outscoring opponents 44-36, per MoneyPuck.

Removing Jensen from his top-four spot would force either Travis Hamonic or Nikolas Matinpalo into extended minutes alongside Chabot for Ottawa’s final four games of the season before he presumably returns for Game 1 of the first round. With Matinpalo gelling well with Tyler Kleven on the Sens’ third pairing, it’ll likely be the former. Hamonic has arguably been Ottawa’s worst skater this season, resulting in him spending the last eight games in the press box. He’s posted just 1-5–6 in 56 showings with a team-worst -17 rating.

Jensen’s averaged over 20 minutes per game with the Sens, just the second time in his nine-year career he’s done so. The Minnesota native was a fifth-round pick by the Red Wings back in 2009 but didn’t debut with Detroit until the 2016-17 campaign after years of serving as a farmhand. He’s been a full-time NHLer ever since as a dependable two-way piece. He’s churned out 3-17–20 with a +19 rating this year, the second-highest points per game pace of his career (0.29).

Metro Notes: Hamilton, Hurricanes, Penguins

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Heading into the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs, the New Jersey Devils will be without their top forward and defenseman. However, it may not be long before the latter returns. Earlier today, Peter Baugh of The Athletic relayed a note from the Devils’ head coach, Sheldon Keefe, indicating Dougie Hamilton could return for Round One.

Originally, Hamilton had been ruled out for the regular season in mid-March, with a projected return date of Round Two of the postseason. A week ago, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported that Hamilton was recovering faster than expected, with the likelihood of a Round One return increasing exponentially now that he’s returned to skating.

There’s no question the Devils could use him. Hamilton scored nine goals and 40 points in 63 games for New Jersey this season, with 15 coming on the team’s powerplay. The Devils have slowed down since Hamilton and forward Jack Hughes exited the lineup, while their projected Round One opponent, the Carolina Hurricanes, have managed a 9-4-0 record since the trade deadline, meaning New Jersey will need every advantage available.

Other notes from the Metropolitan Division:

  • Speaking of Carolina, the Hurricanes are expected to welcome forwards Jordan Staal and Andrei Svechnikov back to the lineup for tonight’s contest against the Buffalo Sabres. Staal and Svechnikov had missed a handful of games for Carolina over the past week. Unfortunately, in the report from Chip Alexander of The Raleigh News & Observer, the Hurricanes are expected to be without center Jesperi Kotkaniemi for the next week. Still, Alexander did reiterate a sentiment from head coach Rod Brind’Amour indicating it’s not a serious ailment for Kotkaniemi.
  • Earlier today, Seth Rorabaugh of The Tribune Review contextualized Matthew Nieto’s emergency recall last night. Rorabaugh reports that forward Philip Tomasino has been diagnosed with a concussion, and forward Blake Lizotte is considered day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. Unfortunately, the concussion will likely result in the end of Tomasino’s 2024-25 season. Still, he’s had a promising run with the Penguins since being acquired from the Predators earlier in the year, scoring 10 goals and 20 points in 48 contests with the new organization.

Florida Panthers Injury Updates

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It’s challenging to think of a team that has dealt with more injuries over the last few weeks than the Florida Panthers. Two weeks ago, the Panthers were the top team in the Atlantic Division. Unfortunately, injuries have limited Florida to a 1-4-1 record in their last six games, watching the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning pass them in the standings.

However, there may be light at the end of the tunnel. Speaking to reporters this morning, head coach Paul Maurice commented on the status of nearly every injured member of the typical roster. First, Colby Guy of The Palm Beach Post reports that captain Aleksander Barkov will return to the lineup for Florida’s important matchup against Toronto tomorrow night. He had missed the Panthers’ past three contests with an upper-body injury.

Barkov’s importance in Florida’s lineup can’t be understated. As one of the premier two-way forwards of this era, Barkov helps the Panthers keep the puck out of their net just as much as he helps them put pucks in their opponent’s net. Since beginning his career during the 2013-14 season, Florida has a 60-63-16 record during the regular season when Barkov isn’t in the lineup.

Guy later reported that trade deadline acquisition Nico Sturm should also return on Wednesday, with defenseman Dmitry Kulikov expected back toward the end of the week. Shortly thereafter, TSN’s Mark Masters shared that Sam Reinhart and Gustav Forsling are also expected back in the lineup on Wednesday.

By the end of the week, Sam Bennett, Matthew Tkachuk, and Aaron Ekblad will be the only regular players who haven’t returned to the lineup. It appears that Bennett will not play in another regular season game for the Panthers.

Senior digital content manager for the team Jameson Olive shared that Bennett’s next game for Florida will be Game One of their Round One matchup, primarily for precautionary reasons. The physical middleman is dealing with an upper-body injury, and the Panthers want him to be as close to 100% as possible for what is bound to be a hotly contested opening round of the playoffs.

Florida has five games left in their regular season schedule, and it will be a challenge to overcome the difficulties they have faced in recent weeks. Currently, they are four points behind the Lightning and six points behind the Maple Leafs in the Atlantic Division. They risk losing home-ice advantage for their Stanley Cup defense. Still, with one game against Toronto and one game against Tampa Bay sandwiched between relatively easier matchups against the Detroit Red Wings and Buffalo Sabres, the Panthers could control their destiny for their opening-round matchup.

Kings Downgrade Tanner Jeannot To Out Week-To-Week

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Los Angeles Kings winger Tanner Jeannot will take longer than expected to recover from an undisclosed injury that’s held him out of the team’s last six games, per NHL.com’s Zach Dooley. Jeannot was designated as out day-to-day ahead of Los Angeles’ road loss to the Colorado Avalanche on March 27th.

Jeannot sustained the injury in March 25th’s win over the New York Rangers, though it’s not clear when he was hurt. His last shift came with 16 minutes left in the third period, and it appears he could have hurt his ankle on a no-contact injury while setting up to block a shot. But without any confirmation from the team, Kings fans will be forced to trust that the ailment isn’t too severe.

Jeannot was red-hot in the games leading up to his injury, with four points in his last three appearances. That represented nearly a quarter of Jeannot’s scoring all year long, bringing him up to seven goals and 13 points in 67 games this season. He’s fallen to the role of fourth-line bruiser and leads the Kings in hits with 211 – 80 more than anyone else on the roster. But Jeannot has struggled to find the shooting luck that led him to a 24-goal, 41-point season with the Nashville Predators in 2021-22. That scoring upside was certainly what Los Angeles was hoping for when they traded a second-round and fourth-round pick to the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for Jeannot this summer.

Without the shooting luck, Jeannot’s role has become fairly easy to replace. His bruising role has been split between young center Samuel Helenius – who ranks second on the team with 131 hits – and depth winger Jeff Malott. Malott has torched the AHL this year, scoring at a career-high pace to achieve 23 goals and 51 points in 61 games. He’s added to that 80 penalty minutes and plenty of hits; though he’s yet to record an NHL point through six games this season or one game in 2021-22. Helenius hasn’t been productive at the top level either, with just five points in 44 NHL games this summer. The duo will stand as upside scorers in minimal roles as the Kings coast through their final six games of the season.

Snapshots: Demidov, Nystrom, Landeskog, Schuldt

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The KHL season has ended for SKA St. Petersburg after back-to-back overtime losses to Dynamo Moscow last week. That news was meant ot mark celebration for Montreal Canadiens fans eager for top prospect Ivan Demidov to come overseas, but it seems SKA wants to get the most out of their young star before he departs. Demidov is now expected to partake in the playoffs of both the VHL – Russia’s second-tier pro league – and maybe even the MHL – Russia’s under-21 league – per Marco D’Amico of Responsible Gaming.

SKA’s VHL affiliate – SKA Neva – triumphed over Rubin Tyumen in a six-game series to advance from the first round of the postseason. Meanwhile, SKA-1946 swept Krasnaya Armiya in their first round matchup. Should both squads make it through their respective postseasons, Demidov could be playing between the groups through the third week of April at least. If that’s the case, Montreal may need to win the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in order to ice their star prospect this season.

Demidov carries the precedent of a Russian prodigy. He set the record for U20 scoring in the KHL this season with 19 goals and 49 points in 65 games – beating out Kirill Kaprizov’s previous record of 42 points. Demidov has played his way into top-line KHL consideration – far above the levels of either inferior league he may join now. That point was proven by his dazzling 23 goals and 60 points in 30 MHL games last season, and his 62 points in 41 MHL games in the season before. He’ll be a juggernaut addition for SKA’s depth programs, making both much harder to take down in a seven-game series.

Other quick notes around the hockey world:

  • The Carolina Hurricanes have assigned defense prospect Joel Nystrom to the AHL’s Chicago Wolves after the end of his SHL season, per NHL.com’s Walt Ruff. Nystrom, 22, recorded six goals and 27 points in 51 games with Farjestads BK this season. That mark was an ever-so-slight bump up from his 26 points in as many games last year. Nystrom has been a fixture of Farjestads’ lineup for the last four seasons, and even supported the team to an SHL championship from a third-pair role in 2021-22. He’s a speedy, undersized defenseman who makes quick plays and creates strong offense from the perimeter. Those attributes might translate best to the minor ranks, but Nystrom’s explosive speed and Carolina’s knack for sheltering undersized players could make for a nice mix as the team looks for an offensive spark. Nystrom was drafted in the seventh-round of the 2021 NHL Draft.
  • Dipping out of prospect news, Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar didn’t rule out a possible AHL conditioning stint for captain Gabriel Landeskog when asked about it by Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette. Instead, Bednar succinctly replied “we’ll see”. Landeskog is back to taking full contact at practice – a substantial milestone as he looks to return to game action after missing the entirety of the last two seasons with a right-knee injury. He’ll be eligible for a conditioning stint of three AHL games thanks to his placement on long-term injured reserve. The Avalanche will need to make a decision quickly, as the AHL Colorado Eagles only have five games remaining in their regular season. Any AHL action would be the first of Landeskog’s professional career. He joined the Avalanche immediately after his second-overall selection in the 2011 NHL Draft, and planted his feet with 22 goals and 52 points in his rookie season.
  • The San Jose Sharks have reassigned defenseman Jimmy Schuldt. Schuldt appeared in 10 minutes worth of San Jose’s March 29th loss to the New York Rangers. It was just his sixth NHL game this season and he once again failed to manage any scoring or penalties. Schuldt has also served as the captain of the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda this season, netting six goals and 20 points in 59 games with the club. It’s not yet clear if this move is simply a paper transaction. The Sharks learned on Monday that depth defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin will miss the remainder of the season with an upper-body injury. That could push the Sharks to shore up their AHL blue-line as the Barracuda push for a playoff spot, or it could reaffirm Schuldt’s spot as San Jose’s de facto depth defender through the end of the season. News over the next few days will make that distinction, and lock Schuldt into a hard-fought lineup role one way or another.

Sharks’ Shakir Mukhamadullin Out For Season, Quentin Musty Assigned To AHL

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4:00 PM: In additional news from the Meier trade return, star Sharks prospect Musty has been assigned to the AHL per Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News. He will join the Barracuda for their final few games of the season and potential postseason run. Musty scored a dazzling 30 goals and 59 points in 33 games with the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves this season. His year staggered a bit due to a hand injury suffered in November that forced Musty out of roughly two months of action. But he returned with intent – scoring five points in his first game back from injury and scoring 42 points in 25 games since the start of 2025. Musty is a power-forward with a great drive down the boards and a powerful shot. He’ll slot in as a high-upside addition to the Sharks’ depths for the rest of the season.

3:00 PM: The San Jose Sharks received bad news from their depth on Monday, when the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda announced that defense prospect Shakir Mukhamadullin will miss the rest of the season with an upper-body injury, per Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now. This will include any potential run in the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs, which the Barracuda seem comfortably headed towards.

Mukhamadullin’s second full season in North American pros will come to an end with quiet results. He recorded nine points in each of the NHL and AHL, reaching the mark in 30 games with the Sharks and 21 with the Barracuda. His NHL scoring included the first two goals of Mukhamadullin’s career, after he managed just one assist in the first three games of his NHL career last season. He scored a much more stout 34 points in 55 AHL games last year. That performance lined up far closer to Mukhamadullin’s break-in to the AHL in 2022-23, when he scored 10 points in 12 games after joining the Barracuda following the end of the KHL season.

Mukhamadullin was an accomplished and young Russian pro in his years before San Jose. His six-foot-four frame lent itself to pro opportunity early on, and earned Mukhamadullin his KHL rookie season at the age of 18. He recorded just one assist in 27 games with Ufa that season – enough to convince the New Jersey Devils to draft him 20th overall in the ensuing NHL Draft, but still an indication of room to grow. Mukhamadullin took the steps towards that growth in his second KHL season, growing to 10 points in 39 games. He staggered back to seven points in 34 games in year three, but followed it with a career-high 25 points in 67 games of the 2022-23 KHL season. Partway through that season, New Jersey traded Mukhamadullin to the Sharks as part of the blockbuster deal that sent Timo Meier to the Devils. Winger Fabian Zetterlund and the first-round pick to select Quentin Musty joined Mukhamadullin in the move out West.

Much of the Sharks’ defensive future seemed staked on Mukhamadullin last season. But other top prospects have joined the pro flanks this season, and hot-scorer Luca Cagnoni has seemingly taken over the title of top defense prospect. That takes some heavy weight off of Mukhamadullin’s back as he looks to recover from a difficult shoulder injury. He’s a smooth-moving puck-handler who’s shown prowess at getting the puck across both blue lines and creating chances. Next season will need to bring a wave of good health and returned scoring should Mukhamadullin was to hold his standing in the Sharks organization.

Oilers’ Trent Frederic Re-Injures Ankle

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Oilers deadline pickup Trent Frederic re-aggravated his ankle injury when making his Edmonton debut against the Kings this weekend. He’ll miss tonight’s game against the Ducks as a result, Mark Spector of Sportsnet reports. The team’s Tony Brar adds Frederic is expected back when the playoffs begin later this month.

Injuries are piling up for the Oilers, who will remain without Leon Draisaitl, Mattias Ekholm, John Klingberg, Connor McDavid, and Stuart Skinner tonight as well. That doesn’t leave them with enough cap space for a call-up from AHL Bakersfield to replace Frederic in the lineup. Since they only have 17 healthy skaters without him, they’ll be down a player for tonight’s game before being able to use a $0 emergency exception to add a 12th forward from the AHL for their next game Wednesday against the Blues.

Frederic skated just 7:10 in his debut, recording two shots on goal and a minus-two rating in a 3-0 loss. The Oilers surrendered forward prospect Shane Lachance, young defenseman Maximus Wanner, and a second-round and fourth-round pick to acquire him from the Bruins in a three-team deal with the Devils the week before the trade deadline.

The Oilers hoped Frederic, a pending unrestricted free agent, could add some tertiary scoring and, more importantly, physicality to their bottom six in the postseason. That’s still tracking to be the case, but he’s not going to have the adjustment period from one of the league’s worst offensive systems in Boston to one of the best in Edmonton that either side hoped for. He’s posted 8-7–15 in 58 showings this year with 29 blocks and 157 hits. That’s a far cry from the career-best 40 points he recorded with the Bruins last year, but the Oilers hope he can rediscover that production in a more scoring-friendly environment.

While dealing with so many short-term injuries is always a difficult situation to juggle, it comes at a rather inconsequential time for Edmonton. They’re a win away and a Flames loss from clinching a playoff berth, and realistically, they stand very little chance of moving up or falling down from third place in the Pacific Division. They have an eight-point lead on Calgary with six games remaining and trail the Kings by four.

Jets Notes: Ehlers, Vilardi, Pionk, Miller, Kupari

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Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers will be a game-time decision against the Blues tonight, head coach Scott Arniel told Mitchell Clinton of the team’s official site. The 29-year-old is day-to-day with a foot injury and sat out Saturday’s 4-1 loss as a result. He left their previous game, a win over the Golden Knights on Thursday, after taking a shot to the foot in the first period – returning only to leave for a second time in the third period after a shot from teammate Cole Perfetti inadvertently hit him in the knee. Such a short-term absence is welcome news for a Winnipeg forward group already down Gabriel Vilardi and Rasmus Kupari (more on them later) as they try to stave off the Capitals for the President’s Trophy and the Stars for the Western Conference and Central Division titles.

Ehlers’ health will be a crucial factor in winning those races and, ideally, multiple playoff series. The Danish forward is having one of the better seasons of his 10-year career, placing third on the team in scoring with 24-39–63 through 67 games. That’s despite continued inexplicably limited deployment by Arniel – among players with 60 or more points this season, Ehlers’ 15:56 ATOI ranks last. He’s one of just four players to hit the mark while averaging under 17 minutes per game. This spring is also an important one for Ehlers to rebuild his damaged postseason reputation. While he’s produced 0.77 points per game over his regular-season career, he’s clicked at just a 0.38 points per game rate in the playoffs (4-10–14 in 37 GP).

As for Vilardi, Arniel said the first-line fixture has returned to the team and will return to practice soon. The 25-year-old hasn’t played since sustaining an upper-body injury on March 23, missing Winnipeg’s last six games. They’ve managed to go 4-2-0 without him in what marked their first games of the campaign without his services. He’s lined up with Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele in all 71 of his appearances this season and has shattered his previous career-high in points, logging a 27-34–61 scoring line in his second season in Manitoba. He’s also averaging a career-high 18:08 per game. It remains unclear if he’ll return for any of the Jets’ final five regular-season games, but the statement bodes well for his availability for Game 1 of an increasingly likely first-round date with the Wild.

The Jets aren’t just banged up on offense. They’ve also been without second-pair defenseman Neal Pionk since March 14 with a lower-body injury. He remains week-to-week but skated in practice today with the extras, per Clinton. That indicates his return is ahead of Vilardi’s, and he could very well get a couple of games of action before the playoffs to get back to game pace. The pending unrestricted free agent has 9-28–37 in 66 games from the Winnipeg blue line, the second-highest offensive production of his career. He boasts a career-best +21 rating while averaging over 22 minutes per contest, improving his possession play to reestablish himself as the Jets’ unquestionable No. 2 defenseman behind Josh Morrissey.

He won’t be returning against St. Louis, though, and they may be down an additional rearguard in veteran Colin Miller. He wasn’t at practice this morning and will be a game-time decision due to illness, Arniel said. With Pionk out, the depth piece has skated in 11 straight contests. He has 4-10–14 with a +11 rating in 59 appearances after re-signing with the Jets on a two-year, $3MM deal last offseason, missing time with a fractured larynx back in January.

Arniel also said Kupari skated before practice today as the 25-year-old pivot remains in concussion protocol. He’s played just three times since the beginning of last month, sustaining a concussion against the Isles on March 4. He exited protocols after three games but remained on the sidelines as a healthy scratch until March 25 against the Capitals. He had a setback in his post-concussion symptoms after that contest and will remain unavailable for a sixth straight contest tonight as a result. He’s posted 5-3–8 in 59 contests while winning 52.5% of his draws.

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