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Golden Knights’ William Karlsson Out Week-To-Week With Lower-Body Injury

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11:31 a.m.: Laczynski has been recalled from AHL Henderson along with winger Brendan Brisson, the team announced. The pair of recalls indicates both Karlsson and Schwindt have been placed on IR. This is the first recall for the 23-year-old Brisson since October, after he went pointless in seven games to begin the year. The 2020 first-rounder has struggled with just four goals and 14 points in 31 AHL games since his demotion.

10:48 a.m.: The Golden Knights announced Thursday that center William Karlsson will be out week-to-week with a lower-body injury.

Karlsson, 32, also missed the first eight regular season games with an undisclosed injury. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet wrote this morning that there’s been a lingering injury bothering Karlsson that could prevent him from suiting up for Sweden in next month’s 4 Nations Face-Off, so it stands to reason the two are related.

One of three players remaining on Vegas’ roster from their inaugural season, Karlsson has operated as the Knights’ third-line center when healthy in 2024-25. With the reduction in role has come a slight decrease in minutes, with his 17:11 ATOI clocking in as his lowest during his Vegas tenure by a slight margin.

Likely due to a combination of his reduction in power-play usage and his nagging injury, this season has been a tough one for Karlsson offensively. He’s scored seven goals and 11 assists for 18 points through 38 games, down sharply from last year’s resurgent 30-goal, 60-point campaign.

Karlsson has remained valuable to Vegas in other ways. He’s winning faceoffs at a career-best 58.9% rate, leading the team. He also grades out as their top defensive forward this season, recording team-best marks at even strength in CF% (54.8) and GA/60 (1.8), the latter of which only leads Knights forwards.

The alternate captain’s absence is a big one for the Golden Knights, who will likely turn to Nicolas Roy to increase his minutes at even strength and on the penalty kill to compensate. Roy’s point production isn’t dissimilar to Karlsson’s this season, but his defensive play is a sizeable downgrade. Vegas allows 3.2 GA/60 at even strength with Roy on the ice, and his Corsi share while shorthanded is the worst among the team’s regular penaltykillers.

Vegas has a full active roster, and they also received news Tuesday that depth forward Cole Schwindt carries a week-to-week designation with a lower-body issue. One of them will presumably land on injured reserve today to allow the Knights to recall a forward for tonight’s game against the Blues. Tanner Laczynski, a natural center with a goal in six appearances for Vegas earlier this season, is the likeliest recall option.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Wild Activate Kirill Kaprizov, Jared Spurgeon

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Jan. 23: The Wild officially activated Kaprizov from LTIR and Spurgeon from IR Thursday morning, per a team announcement. Jiříček was indeed reassigned to AHL Iowa yesterday, clearing the cap space for the former’s reinstatement.

Jan. 22: The Wild look to have superstar winger Kirill Kaprizov and captain Jared Spurgeon back in their lineup Thursday against Utah, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports. Both were full participants in Wednesday’s practice.

Kaprizov, 27, has missed 12 games with a nagging groin injury and has not played in nearly a month. On Dec. 23, the date of his last appearance, he was tied for second in the league in goals (23) and fourth in points (50) through 34 games.

Spurgeon, 35, returns after a slew-foot from Predators winger Zachary L’Heureux caused him a lower-body injury on New Year’s Eve. L’Heureux has since served and returned from a three-game suspension for the play, while Spurgeon missed nine contests, assuming he’s cleared to draw into the lineup tomorrow.

Minnesota entered Wednesday with a pair of roster spots, so taking Spurgeon off standard injured reserve won’t be a problem. However, Kaprizov is on long-term injured reserve, and the Wild lack the cap space to reinstate his $9MM cap hit.

They don’t need to open up a ton of flexibility, though, so they have a few ways of creating the required funds quickly. The simplest and likeliest is sending down defenseman David Jiříček, who projects to exit the lineup with Spurgeon returning anyway, Russo adds. They could also retroactively place defenseman Jonas Brodin on LTIR with his lower-body injury if he’s due to remain out until at least Feb. 1 or place defenseman Travis Dermott on waivers with the intent to send him to AHL Iowa.

Kaprizov looks to skate in his usual top-line role alongside Marco Rossi and Mats Zuccarello, according to Minnesota’s line rushes at today’s skate. Spurgeon will return to his new role as the Wild’s No. 2 right-shot defenseman behind Brock Faber with Declan Chisholm on his left flank as usual top-four option Brodin remains sidelined.

Despite missing an extended period, Kaprizov still has a nine-point cushion ahead of Matt Boldy for the team lead in points. He also leads the club with a +21 rating and 4.5 GF/60 at even strength.

While not the Norris nomination threat he once was, Spurgeon is still a comfortable top-four piece coming off left hip and back surgeries that capped his 2023-24 campaign at 16 appearances. In 37 contests this year, he’s posted four goals and nine assists for 13 points with a plus-three rating, averaging 20:43 per game. That’s still the 35-year-old’s lowest usage since his rookie season with Minnesota 14 years ago, though.

Although it hasn’t translated into a dominant rating, Spurgeon still tracks as the Wild’s best possession-controlling defenseman, at least at even strength. His 52.5 CF% leads Minnesota blue-liners and ranks second on the team behind Marcus Foligno’s 52.7.

Avs’ Valeri Nichushkin Downgraded To Week-To-Week

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Avalanche star winger Valeri Nichushkin is now considered week-to-week after sustaining a second setback in his recovery from a lower-body injury, head coach Jared Bednar said on Altitude Sports Radio on Wednesday (via Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette).

Nichushkin last played on Dec. 31 against the Jets, leaving the game midway through the second period. Bednar said later that week he expected Nichushkin to miss seven to 10 days.

He then told reporters early last week that Nichushkin wouldn’t make it back within that window and still had a ways to go in his recovery after sustaining a setback, but he reversed course a few days ago. The 29-year-old practiced over the weekend but hasn’t been on the ice since, leading to today’s update.

Colorado has only had Nichushkin available for 21 of their 48 games. He missed the first 17 games of the campaign while serving the end of his automatic six-month suspension levied by the NHL when he was placed in Stage 3 of the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program during the Avs’ second-round loss to the Stars.

When available this season, Nichushkin has remained an extremely effective top-six piece. His 11 goals and six assists for 17 points through 21 games equate to 0.81 points per game, down from last season’s career-high 0.98 but still fifth on the team.

The Avalanche have a 14-7-0 record with Nichushkin in the lineup in 2024-25 compared to a 14-12-1 mark without. Nonetheless, his reputation as one of the league’s premier two-way wingers hasn’t held up in his small play sample. His 51.2 CF% at even strength is right in line with the team’s average, so while he’s stayed above water, he hasn’t had an overtly positive impact on the team’s puck possession.

Nichushkin, signed through 2030 at a $6.125MM cap hit, remains on the active roster. However, he can be retroactively placed on injured reserve anytime to open a roster spot if necessary.

While Colorado’s forward corps is healthier than it’s been for a good chunk of the season, they’re still without bottom-six energy winger Miles Wood, who hasn’t played since late November because of an upper-body injury. Captain Gabriel Landeskog remains sidelined due to the multiple right knee surgeries that have kept him from playing since the team’s 2022 Stanley Cup win but has become a more frequent participant in morning skates in recent days.

Ducks’ Brock McGinn Out For Season Following ACL Surgery, Trevor Zegras Activated

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Jan. 22: The Ducks announced later Tuesday that forward Trevor Zegras, who’d missed the last six weeks after undergoing right knee surgery, was activated from injured reserve. McGinn was already on IR and Anaheim had an open roster spot, so there was no corresponding transaction. Zegras suited up in last night’s game against the Panthers, recording a minus-two rating and four shots in 15:48 of ice time. His point totals remain at a sluggish four goals and six assists through 25 appearances.

Jan. 21: Ducks winger Brock McGinn underwent successful ACL reconstruction surgery in Los Angeles last week, the team announced. McGinn has a seven-to-nine-month recovery window as a result, ending his 2024-25 campaign and putting his availability for the start of the 2025-26 regular season in jeopardy.

McGinn, a pending unrestricted free agent, last played on Dec. 23 against the Golden Knights. The 30-year-old left that game in the first period after awkwardly twisting his knee while attempting to throw a check. It didn’t appear he’d miss too much time after skating off under his own power and initially being termed day-to-day by the club, but he’ll now finish the season hurt for the third time in his three seasons in Anaheim.

A second-round pick of the Hurricanes back in 2012, McGinn’s tenure in Southern California has been riddled by injuries. He first missed the final four regular season games of the 2022-23 campaign with an upper-body issue after being acquired from the Penguins at the trade deadline in exchange for defenseman Dmitry Kulikov. McGinn then missed over half of the 2023-24 season due to various injuries, including season-ending back surgery in March.

The 6’0″, 187-lb forward also missed seven games earlier this season with a lower-body issue. It’s unclear if the two are related or if a cumulative/re-aggravated knee issue led to such a major procedure being required.

Understandably, the once productive bottom six piece’s production has taken a hit in Anaheim due to his health and the team’s underwhelming roster. He’s managed only seven goals and 14 points in 65 appearances as a Duck since the 2023 trade, averaging 11:38 per game. His eight points in 26 games this year was on pace to be his best offensive showing since posting 22 points in 64 games with Pittsburgh in 2021-22, however.

While McGinn was already going to need to take a pay cut on his expiring $2.75MM AAV on the open market this summer, the injury likely locks him in as a candidate for a PTO in September. He likely won’t be cleared to resume contact until around then, so any interested teams will likely be wary of giving him a guaranteed contract earlier in the summer.

For the Ducks, McGinn’s continued absence leaves a permanent hole in the bottom six. That opening should mean more playing time for fringe youngsters like Sam Colangelo and Nikita Nesterenko in addition to veteran AHL call-ups like Jansen Harkins.

Pittsburgh Penguins Reportedly Considering Fire Sale At Deadline

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From the end of October until the end of December, the Pittsburgh Penguins were inching closer to the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference due to a 14-9-4 record in 27 games. Unfortunately, that solid run has been sandwiched between a 3-7-1 record at the beginning of the season and a 3-5-3 record over their last 11 games.

The Penguins have already made a prudent move by sending struggling netminder Tristan Jarry through waivers a few days ago but that may only be the start of larger things to come. According to a report from Marco D’Amico from RG.org, and corroborated by other outlets, Pittsburgh is reportedly leaning toward a full-scale fire sale at this year’s trade deadline.

It’s easier to list the names of those reported not on the trade block rather than those that are. D’Amico asserts that a source close to the Penguins believes Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust, Philip Tomasino, and Owen Pickering are the only players Pittsburgh has no interest in moving.

Using deductive reasoning, not only are the Penguins considering moving on from pending unrestricted free agents such as Marcus Pettersson, Matt Grzelcyk, and Anthony Beauvillier, but will additionally dangle those with length left on their deals such as Rickard Rakell, Erik Karlsson, Kris Letang, and Ryan Graves.

Considering his mild eight-team no-trade clause, Pittsburgh will likely have the easiest time moving Rakell if they go that route. Aside from a tepid season last year, he’s been a productive forward for the Penguins, since being acquired from the Anaheim Ducks in 2021-22.

It will be more challenging to determine the market for Karlsson and Letang. However, it is not unusual for a player with multiple years remaining on their contract and a full no-movement clause to be traded at the deadline. A recent example is the Vegas Golden Knights’ acquisition of Tomáš Hertl last year.

Still, considering Karlsson is making a hefty $10MM salary until 2026-27, and the fact that Letang isn’t playing up to his $6.1MM salary, it’s more than likely these trades will have better traction in the offseason. Pittsburgh will have to retain salary in any deal for either defenseman but D’Amico didn’t indicate the Penguins had any desire to do so at the time being.

Navigating the current situation is quite challenging for Pittsburgh. The team needs to balance the goal of remaining competitive during the final years of Crosby’s career while also considering their future. Currently, they find themselves in a difficult position, sitting 13th in the Eastern Conference, while only projected to have the 10th overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.

There’s room for change on either front given there are 33 games left in the regular season but the Penguins will have to choose a direction relatively soon considering the magnitude of any hypothetical trade. At any rate, it’ll be unfamiliar territory for general manager and president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas.

Oilers’ Connor McDavid, Canucks’ Tyler Myers Given Three-Game Suspension

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Jan. 20th: The NHL Department of Player Safety has issued their punishments to McDavid and Myers. Both players have been issued three-game suspensions for cross-checking.

Jan.19th: Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid will have a hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety for cross-checking Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland on Saturday. Garland grappled with McDavid in the final seconds of Vancouver’s 3-2 win, and McDavid responded by hitting Garland in the face. In the ensuing scrum, Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers also cross-checked Oilers defender Evan Bouchard in the face. Myers will also have a hearing with Player Safety. Both McDavid and Myers received match penalties for their infractions. The date and time of either hearing are yet to be determined – as is whether the hearings will be virtual or in-person, which will change the length of suspension both players will be eligible for.

This news brings a peak to McDavid’s recent violent streak. He gained notoriety after, seemingly, inadvertently elbowing Minnesota Wild forward Marcus Johansson in the teams’ January 15th matchup. Johansson was placed on injured reserve with a concussion the next day. McDavid also earned scour with a high-stick against Canucks defenseman Filip Hronek in Saturday’s game, catching the defender up high after breaking into the zone. McDavid’s match penalty for cross-checking Garland was his first in-game penalty for any of these infractions – and, coupled with a game ejection, earned him a career-high 15 penalty minutes in one game.

It will be hard to determine how long either McDavid or Myers could miss with their looming hearing. Both players committed similar infractions, at the tail-end of an already-won game. But nine other players also received penalties for the late-game scrum, which could lead the league to react lighter to two big pieces of a larger scrum. Alternatively, this will be an opportunity for NHL Player Safety to send a message on stick infractions and headshots across the league, by coming down hard on the face of the NHL.

Canucks’ J.T. Miller Trade Falls Through, Elias Pettersson Wants To Stay

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The Vancouver Canucks are at an impasse with star forwards J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson. Both players are amidst deep cold spells, inspired by an off-ice rift and resulting in plenty of trade rumors. The team took one step forward in figuring out their plan with the duo on Saturday when Miller was nearly held out of Vancouver’s lineup to support a trade to the New York Rangers per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The deal fell through and Miller ended up playing in Vancouver’s 3-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers. He contributed two primary points in the effort, his first scoring since he managed four points on January 6th.

Miller’s dwindling impact has become a focal point of Vancouver’s 4-6-0 skid. Head coach Rick Tocchet shared harsh words after benching the forward, insinuating that he had quit on his teammates amid another tough loss. Miller has seen his numbers crater since the calendar turned over. He has seven points in nine games – most among any Canucks forwards – but he only scored in three of those outings. Miller has also posted a 40% goals-for percentage (GF%), the third-lowest of Vancouver’s top-six forwards behind Pettersson (25%) and Jake DeBrusk (33.3%).

While theatrics surround him, Miller is still an incredibly impactful forward. He has 31 points in 35 games this season, putting him on an 82-game pace of 73 points. That would be the lowest scoring Miller has managed in a full season since the 2019-20 campaign when he notched 72 points in his first year with the Canucks. He’s since been red-hot – recording 99 points in 2021-22, 82 points in 2022-23, and a career-high 103 points in 2023-24. No other Canuck has come close to Miller’s 433 points in 399 games since he joined the team, with Quinn Hughes’ 380 points in 401 games and Pettersson’s 375 points in as many games the next closest.

That would be an invaluable impact for the Rangers to acquire. They’re in the midst of their own chaotic season, with similar rifts and trade rumors surrounding longtime Rangers Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad. A swap for Miller would likely have to involve one of those two, though Vancouver would need substantially more behind them to warrant moving their team’s top-scoring forward. The Rangers have enticing prospects in the gritty Brennan Othmann and ever-improving Gabe Perreault, but their depth falls quickly thin behind them. Perhaps it was the challenge of figuring out complimentary pieces that ultimately pulled the rug from under the trade talks.

Nonetheless, this news is a sign of progress being made in moving Miller out of Vancouver. He’ll be one of the biggest names to watch as the NHL Trade Deadline approaches on March 7th. Meanwhile, Pettersson is leaning towards sticking with the program that bet on him so many years ago. Vancouver drafted Pettersson fifth-overall in the 2017 NHL Draft. He joined the team two seasons later, and won the Calder Trophy for ’Rookie of the Year’ with 28 goals and 66 points in 71 games. He matched the scoring in three fewer games in his following year, after improved on it slightly in year-four after year-three was limited by injuries.

That all set up Pettersson for a smash season in the 2022-23 campaign, when he scored a career-high 39 goals and 102 points. It was the fifth-most a Canucks player has scored since the turn of the century – behind the Sedin twins, Markus Naslund, and Miller. While Miller has taken to dazzling scoring, Pettersson has donned the role of face of the franchise next to Hughes. Vancouver seems poised to hold onto that duo, while trimming off negative impacts, with this latest update.

In one additional note, Friedman also shared that Vancouver sent a clear message to teams to not tamper with their players – and that any teams wishing to talk to Miller or Pettersson would need approval first. It is believed that a few teams have been granted permission to talk with Miller, but none are currently speaking with Pettersson. Both forwards are signed for the forseeable future – Petterson signed through 2031-32 with a $11.6MM cap hit, and Miller signed through 2029-30 with a surprisingly-cheap $8MM price tag.

Oilers Sign John Klingberg

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2:31 p.m.: Klingberg’s bonus is a signing bonus, not performance incentives, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports. There are no performance bonuses in the deal, but the prorated cap hit now rises to $1.35MM instead of $1MM.

1:57 p.m.: Klingberg’s contract carries a prorated base salary and cap hit of $1MM, Dreger reports. He can earn an additional $350K in performance bonuses. The Oilers confirmed the signing in quick succession.

12:37 p.m.: The Oilers are nearing an agreement with unrestricted free agent defenseman John Klingberg, Darren Dreger of TSN reports Friday.

Edmonton was one of a few Canadian teams and a smaller handful south of the border to express interest in Klingberg over the past few weeks, according to earlier reporting from Dreger. The 32-year-old, who finished as high as sixth in Norris Trophy voting twice early in his career, hasn’t played in well over a year after undergoing season-ending hip resurfacing surgery with the Maple Leafs in December 2023.

Klingberg became an unrestricted free agent last summer after the one-year, $4.15MM deal he signed with Toronto in 2023 lapsed after just 14 appearances. As a player with at least 400 NHL games played who spent at least 100 days on injured reserve in the prior season, he’s eligible to sign a one-year contract with performance bonuses that could lower the initial cap hit of the deal.

As with any contract involving performance bonuses, the Oilers must have the cap room to accommodate any bonuses he may earn as part of his deal. If they don’t, any amount they exceed the salary cap will be applied as a bonus carryover penalty to their 2025-26 picture.

Thanks to Evander Kane’s continuing recovery from multiple surgeries, Edmonton should be in the clear with over $5MM in its LTIR pool. His availability for the rest of the regular season is in doubt after he underwent additional knee surgery earlier this month, carrying an eight-week recovery period and halting his rehabilitation from offseason abdominal surgery.

If he stays healthy, Klingberg serves as an early deadline pickup for the Oilers and takes some pressure off general manager Stan Bowman to give up assets for an additional right-shot defender. Edmonton’s left side of Mattias Ekholm, Darnell Nurse and Brett Kulak have all averaged north of 20 minutes per game this season and done so with decent possession metrics, but the same can’t be said of depth righties Ty Emberson and Troy Stecher.

The Oilers needed another body to throw into the mix on either their second pairing alongside Nurse or their third pairing next to Kulak, and adding Klingberg gives them a far more offensively inclined option – albeit one that comes with significant defensive shortcomings. While still a serviceable power-play quarterback who posted five assists in last year’s injury-shortened campaign and has averaged more than 20 minutes per game in all of his 10 NHL seasons, his -60 rating between the 2021-22 and 2023-24 campaigns is sixth-worst among defensemen. In the 2022-23 season, which he split between the Ducks and Wild, he was on the ice for more expected goals against per game at even strength (1.13) than any other qualified defender in the league.

Edmonton will need to free up a roster spot to sign Klingberg officially. That will likely be demoting center Noah Philp or defenseman Josh Brown to AHL Bakersfield.

Klingberg will be a UFA again in months if his contract is a one-year pact, as expected. It will mark his third consecutive one-year deal after completing a seven-year, $29.75MM commitment with the Stars in 2022.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Blue Jackets Sign Jake Christiansen To Two-Year Extension

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The Blue Jackets signed defenseman Jake Christiansen to a two-year, $1.95MM contract extension Friday, per a team announcement. The deal, which will count $975K against the cap beginning next season, keeps him in Columbus through the 2026-27 season and off this summer’s restricted free agent market.

Christiansen, 25, is logging full-time usage on the Blue Jackets blue line this season for the first time. The two-time AHL All-Star has leapfrogged players like Jordan Harris and Jack Johnson on the Columbus depth chart, appearing in all 45 games this year in a bottom-pairing role.

An undrafted free agent signing by the Jackets out of the WHL’s Everett Silvertips in 2020, Christiansen has routinely lined up to the left of Damon Severson this year. The duo has outscored opponents 17-11 at even strength and boasts a team-high 56.1 expected goals percentage, per MoneyPuck.

While those are substantial underlying numbers, Christiansen’s lack of outright point production and minimal usage limited his earning potential on his next deal. He has a goal and six assists for seven points, but he isn’t a significant part of the Jackets’ special teams units.

Christiansen was a restricted free agent last summer and lasted 10 days on the market before agreeing to a two-way deal with a $400K guarantee to return to Columbus. The minor-league structure hasn’t been relevant, though, as he’s remained on the NHL roster all year and collected his league-minimum $775K salary. Christiansen would have had to clear waivers to head to the AHL at the beginning of the season, but after he posted a career-best 46 points in 62 games for Cleveland last year, the team wasn’t sure he’d go unclaimed after he passed through to begin the 2023-24 campaign.

Christiansen could have chosen to take the Blue Jackets to arbitration this summer but will instead lock in an average of a $200K raise for the next two years, even if things turn sour and he ends up on waivers and back in the minors. His salary breaks down as $950K in 2025-26 and $1MM in 2026-27, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports. He joins his partner Severson, Zach Werenski, and Erik Gudbranson as Columbus defenders under contract next season on a one-way deal.

The extension walks Christiansen to UFA eligibility in the summer of 2027. A one-year pact would have given Columbus one more opportunity to negotiate with him as an RFA.

He’s the second depth player who’s established or re-established himself as an NHL regular with the Jackets this season to ink an extension in the past few days. Veteran winger Zach Aston-Reese put pen to paper on a one-year, $775K extension on Monday after resurfacing in Columbus as a bottom-six fixture.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Hurricanes Activate Frederik Andersen From Injured Reserve

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The Hurricanes activated starting goaltender Frederik Andersen from injured reserve Friday, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports. Carolina returned third-string netminder Dustin Tokarski to AHL Chicago in a corresponding transaction to keep their active roster at the 23-player limit.

Whether Andersen makes his first start in nearly three months tonight against the Golden Knights remains to be seen, but he’s been cleared to resume game action after missing almost all of the regular season to date with a knee injury. The 35-year-old last played in a 4-1 win over the Kraken on Oct. 26 before landing on the shelf and undergoing surgery nearly one month later after non-surgical options for his recovery failed.

When Andersen underwent knee surgery in late November, the team issued an eight-to-12-week timeline. His activation comes exactly eight weeks after the Nov. 22 procedure.

Andersen has been gearing up for about a week and a half, returning to the ice on his own early this month. For now, his return should quiet talks of the Hurricanes aggressively pursuing a netminder, although that could change in an instant with Andersen missing the vast majority of the past three seasons due to various injuries and a blood-clotting issue.

The Danish netminder told reporters today, including the team’s Walt Ruff, that he didn’t have any “real setbacks” during his recovery. Andersen missed nearly half of the shortened 2020-21 season with a knee injury while he was a member of the Maple Leafs, and he was also held out of the 2022 postseason with Carolina due to a lower-body injury.

If he can remain healthy, which is a huge caveat at this stage of his career, Andersen is far and away the team’s best option between the pipes. Since signing with the Canes in 2021, he’s had a .919 SV% and 2.19 GAA in 106 appearances, including a .933 SV% in his 20 appearances since the beginning of the 2023-24 season.

In four appearances to begin the year, Andersen sparkled with a 3-1-0 record, .941 SV%, and 1.48 GAA. He saved 2.9 goals above expected at even strength and stopped all 14 of the high-danger chances he faced.

When iced, he’s still an elite netminder, a higher-ceiling option than the far younger but more consistent Pyotr Kochetkov. The 25-year-old has been serviceable as Carolina’s de facto starter this season with Andersen on the shelf, guiding them to a 16-9-2 record in his 28 appearances. His SV% is .901 and his GAA is 2.54. Considering Carolina’s staunch defense has allowed the fewest 5-on-5 shot attempts of any team in the league, those league-average numbers aren’t particularly impressive.

Andersen’s return ends the veteran Tokarki’s first stint on an NHL roster that involved game action since February 2023. The 35-year-old farmhand played well in temporary backup duty behind Kochetkov, posting a 4-2-0 record, a .902 SV% and a 2.18 GAA in six appearances.

It concludes a nice story for Tokarski, who started the season at home after failing to land a contract from a camp tryout with the Senators. He eventually landed an AHL deal with the Hurricanes’ affiliate, the Chicago Wolves, before Andersen’s injury and Kochetkov’s brief absence led Carolina to tear it up and replace it with an NHL pact. Tokarski posted a sparkling .933 SV% in five AHL contests earlier this year and will continue backstopping the Hurricanes’ minor-league prospects.

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