Senators’ Linus Ullmark Out With Illness, Hunter Shepard Recalled
The Ottawa Senators will be without their star goaltender in their final game before the NHL’s break for the Winter Olympics. Linus Ullmark will sit out due to flu-like sympyoms, per TSN’s Bruce Garrioch. The news comes just under an hour before puck drop. James Reimer will assume the starting role in Ullmark’s absence, while Hunter Shepard has been recalled to the NHL to serve as backup.
Reimer is back in the NHL after a mid-season professional try-out turned into a one-year contract with the Senators. He has recorded two wins and a .862 save percentage in six games with Ottawa, while adding another loss and .786 Sv% in his sole AHL game. Both numbers are far south from the 10 wins and .883 Sv% that Reimer recorded in 24 games last season – 22 spent with the Buffalo Sabres and two with the Anaheim Ducks. The 37 year old has continued to offer a presence in the crease, though he’ll still be a shaky hand to rely on as Ottawa looks to continue a 4-1 record over their last five games.
The Senators have only received marginally better play from de facto starter Ullmark. The former Vezina Trophy winner has posted 16 wins and a .884 save percentage in 30 games this season. It is his first year with a save percentage south of .900 – a feat he has curbed in each of his 10 other seasons in the league. That includes his first year with Ottawa last season, when Ullmark put up 25 wins and a .910 Sv% in 44 games. That was the seventh-highest save percentage from any NHL starter last season.
Shepard, who will serve as backup, has posted six wins and a .888 Sv% in 14 AHL games this season. He managed a .891 Sv% in 39 games with the Hershey Bears last season.
Such a late scratch should indicate that Ullmark will be good-to-go when Ottawa returns on February 26th. The Senators currently sit last in the Atlantic Division, though they’re tied with the Florida Panthers in total points (61). They are the only club in the bototm five of the Eastern Conference with a positive goal-differential (+6).
Team Canada To Replace Injured Brayden Point With Seth Jarvis
After five days of practices, Tampa Bay Lightning forward Brayden Point has determined he will not be healthy enough to join Team Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympics. He has been removed from the roster and will be replaced by Carolina Hurricanes’ winger Seth Jarvis, per Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
Point sustained a knee injury in Tampa Bay’s January 12th win over the Philadelphia Flyers. The injury knocked him off the ice until last Saturday, when he returned to practice with the hopes of working back to health in time for a trip to Milan, per Eduardo A. Encina of Tampa Bay Times. Despite that return, Point has determined he won’t be at 100 percent before games kick off. Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois commended Point – and Tampa Bay teammate Anthony Cirelli – for their selflessness in giving up their spot rather than trying to play through injury in a text to LeBrun.
This switch will bring on some stylistic changes for Team Canada. Point is often used as a center, though seemed headed for a wing-role in Milan in part thanks to his 45.9 faceoff percentage this season. He is a reserved scorer who has managed 11 goals and 30 points in 37 games, typically finding his scoring chances from the slot. Jarvis has proven much more aggressive in recent years, typically operating as the first-man-in on Carolina’s forecheck and cutting his teeth in board battles. He has 69 hits on the season to Point’s four. Jarvis has also scored 25 goals and 43 points in 48 games, continuing his knack for strong scoring after cresting the 30-goal and 65-point mark in each of the last two seasons.
Both players found an impact for Team Canada at the 2025 4-Nations Face-Off. Point served up the lineup and managed two points in four games, while Jarvis defaulted to the bottom-six and scored one assist in three games. They were both on the ice for the tournament finale against Team USA, where Point’s 21 minutes of ice time ranked second on the offense behind only Connor McDavid. Jarvis played roughly 13 minutes in that game – second-lowest on the team ahead of Brad Marchand.
That deployment goes far in painting Canada’s view of the two stars. While Jarvis has acheived more success this season, he is still the junior to two-time Stanley Cup winner Point. Jarvis is six years younger and still carving out his presence in the NHL. This year’s Winter Olympics could go far in helping cement his status, especially after Jarvis only attended two tournaments with Canada – the 2019 World U-17 Hockey Championshp and Hlinka Gretzky Cup – prior to his selection to the 4-Nations roster. This will be his biggest stage yet and it comes at a perfect time. Jarvis is red-hot, with 10 points and a plus-eight in his last nine games, of which Carolina has won seven.
Notably, this decisions will leave Winnipeg Jets star Mark Scheifele and Chicago Blackhawks cornerstone Connor Bedard both at home. Scheifele hasn’t represented Canada internationally since the 2017 World Championship when he scored eight points in 10 games. Nearly a decade later, the Jets alternate captain is on pace for 40 goals and 100 points this season – so far at 27 goals and 68 points in 56 games. Bedard has offered plenty of offensive punch of his own, with 23 goals and 53 points in 43 games on a struggling Blackhawks offense. The duo are two of the league’s most skilled scorers but will be superceded by a winger who offers a bit more intangibles.
Photo courtesy of Sergei Belski-Imagn Images.
Kraken Reassign Oscar Fisker Molgaard, Place Berkly Catton On IR
2/5: As expected, Fisker Molgaard was reassigned on Thursday morning. He played just under seven minutes of ice time in Seattle’s Wednesday night win over the Los Angeles Kings, and did not record any notable stat changes.
2/4: The Seattle Kraken have swapped around the rookies on their active roster. Winger Berkly Catton has been placed on injured reserve with an injury sustained in Seattle’s win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on January 29th. The rookie took a hit to the head from Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson but was able to get off the ice under his own power, after a moment. He has missed two games since.
Catton was knocked out of the lineup in the midst of a running cold-streak. He has fallen to a depth role with one goal, two points, and a minus-one over his last nine games. Through what is officially his NHL rookie season, Catton has totaled only 11 points in 40 games. It has been a quiet year after back-to-back 100-point seasons in the WHL. Catton hasn’t yet made his AHL debut – something that could come on the other side of his recovery from this long-term injury. He will have the next three week to heal up before Seattle returns of February 25th.
With the roster spot created by Catton’s designation, the Kraken have called up winger Oscar Fisker Molgaard. He will have a chance to step into the lineup in Seattle’s final game before the three-week break for the Winter Olympics. Fisker-Molgaard will likely be returned to the minors before NHL rosters freeze on Friday, allowing him to stay on the ice while Kraken teammates Kaapo Kakko, Eeli Tolvanen, and Philipp Grubauer represent their countries in Milan.
Fisker Molgaard played the first two games of his NHL career in November. He recorded one assist, one shot on goal, and one hit. He has spent the rest of the season in a prominent role with the AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds, where his 22 points in 36 games rank fourth in scoring. Fisker Molgaard has served as the team’s second-line center in his rookie season in North American pros. He spent the last three speasons in Sweden’s SHL, where he racked up 47 points in 129 games. It isn’t clear if Fisker Molgaard will step into the NHL lineup before the break. He was briefly recalled, but didn’t play, in January.
Trade Deadline Primer: Dallas Stars
With the Olympic break approaching, the trade deadline is about a month away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We begin our look around the league with teams that have clear plans at the extremes of the standings, next up with the Stars.
This season has been what you would expect from a roster as talented as Dallas’. Despite their success, they sit third in the very gifted Central Division and would face the Minnesota Wild in the first round if the season started today. That kind of series could be a coin flip and might be the kind of matchup that forces Dallas to add to an already talented roster. The Stars have only a few more kicks at the proverbial can in this contention window, and with a significant extension for Jason Robertson looming, this could be the year they go all in.
Record
33-14-9, 3rd in the Central
Deadline Status
Buyer
Deadline Cap Space
$3.267MM on deadline day, 0/3 retention slots used, 47/50 contracts used, per PuckPedia.
Upcoming Draft Picks
2026: DAL 2nd, SEA 3rd, DAL 5th, DAL 6th, DAL 7th, TOR 7th
2027: DAL 1st, DAL 2nd, DAL 4th, DAL 5th, DAL 6th, DAL 7th
Trade Chips
Dallas doesn’t have a lot to work with in terms of prospects and picks, which is the cost of being a consistent Stanley Cup contender over the past half-decade. The Stars do have some young pieces they could move, though, if they go big-game hunting on the trade market. Defenseman Lian Bichsel was a first-round pick in 2022, and at 6’7”, he is the kind of hulking presence on the blue line that teams line up for. His transition to the NHL hasn’t been smooth, as the 21-year-old has dealt with injuries and inconsistency this season. Bichsel appeared ready to break out last season, but he hasn’t delivered this year and has struggled through 26 games, failing both the eye test and the analytics test. Bichsel has a lot of upsides, though, and could be the centrepiece of a much bigger deal if Dallas goes all in.
Another prospect Dallas could look to move is right winger Emil Hemming. The 19-year-old was selected in the first round (29th overall) of the 2024 draft and is having a strong offensive season with the Barrie Colts of the OHL. Hemming is a potential NHL power forward with a good shot and isn’t afraid to get dirty at the net. He also plays a solid two-way game, which should endear him to teams seeking well-rounded wingers. The Stars could pair Hemming with a second- or third-round pick if they are on the hunt for trade deadline candidates that aren’t in the upper tier of trade targets but are solid NHLers.
Another potential trade piece for the Stars is young WHL forward Cameron Schmidt of the Seattle Thunderbirds, who was recently involved in a significant trade in that league. The Stars took Schmidt in the third round of last year’s draft (94th overall) and might have gotten a steal given his performance in the WHL thus far this season. Schmidt is currently third in league scoring and likely would’ve been a first- or second-round pick had it not been for his size (5’8” and 161 lbs). Dallas had no problem rolling the dice with Schmidt after succeeding with small centre Logan Stankoven, who is now in Carolina, and they could go that route with Schmidt as well.
Now, the Stars might have a pretty barren prospect cupboard, but they do have another promising young player on the NHL roster in Mavrik Bourque, who, at 24, is far from a finished product. Bourque was a late first-round pick in 2020 (30th overall) and has blossomed into a depth scorer, but there is still untapped potential in his game. Bourque tore up the AHL in 2023-24 with 77 points in 71 games, but struggled through his rookie campaign last year, finishing with just 11 goals and 14 assists in 73 games.
This year, Bourque’s offensive numbers have ticked up slightly, a good sign, especially given that many of his underlying numbers are also moving in the right direction. It’s hard to say whether Dallas is willing to part with Bourque, as they have been patient with his development, but if they have a chance to acquire a player who pushes them over the top, one would have to believe they would part with him.
Team Needs
Right-Shot Top Four Defenseman: The Dallas Stars will be joined by several teams seeking a right-shot top four defenseman. The Stars are solid on the top pair, but Thomas Harley has had a tough year on the second pairing, paired with depth options, and the results have been underwhelming to say the least. Harley’s offensive numbers are only slightly off his usual pace from the past two years. Still, his underlying numbers and on-ice results have taken a steep drop, likely due to instability on the right side and playing with depth options such as Ilya Lyubushkin and Nils Lundkvist. A stable right-side partner, such as Dougie Hamilton, would go a long way toward alleviating some of the pressure on Harley. However, the math doesn’t exactly work with Hamilton unless Stars general manager Jim Nill gets extremely creative with the accounting, or forward Tyler Seguin is, in fact, done for the season and the playoffs.
A Top Nine Forward: The Stars would likely look to add a top-nine forward to improve depth up front, ideally on the left wing. Currently, the Stars are deploying Justin Hryckowian on the top line alongside centre Wyatt Johnston and Mikko Rantanen. Hryckowian is solid defensively and has some playmaking ability, but he is unlikely to be a top-six player for a team that fancies itself a Stanley Cup contender. There is some versatility with Hryckowian, as he can play centre, so the Stars have options to add a winger and shift the 24-year-old down the lineup and over to centre, depending on their configurations.
Dallas could also opt for a right winger on the trade market and bump Bourque down the lineup, if they want, or perhaps Sam Steel. Given the players currently in the lineup, there is significant shuffling that could occur, but Dallas likely wants to add one more piece to that group so it can place all of their remaining depth into roles that better suit their skill sets.
Photo by Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Wild Reassign David Jiricek, Cal Petersen, Tyler Pitlick
The Wild have reassigned defenseman David Jiříček, goaltender Calvin Petersen, and winger Tyler Pitlick to AHL Iowa, per a team announcement. Minnesota won its final game before the Olympic break yesterday, a 6-5 overtime thriller over the Predators, so those three will now be able to continue playing over the next few weeks in the minors.
Players can still be reassigned during the ongoing roster freeze if they’ve played fewer than 16 of the team’s 20 games before the freeze, or have been on the NHL roster for fewer than 80 league days before Jan. 21. All three of them meet that criteria.
Up-and-down movement has been a hallmark of Jiříček’s season. The once-highly touted prospect continues to struggle to lock down a full-time NHL role. Since being drafted sixth overall by the Blue Jackets in 2022, he’s scored 13 points in 84 career NHL games. None of them has come this season. He’s posted zeroes across the board in 25 outings for the Wild. He only has two career points in a Minnesota uniform, both of which came in a six-game stint last year after being acquired from Columbus.
Lack of ice time surely has something to do with the lack of output from the talented puck-mover. He’s only averaged 11:48 of ice time per game this year, although it’s hard to argue he’s earned more. His possession numbers are underwhelming, only controlling 46.1% of shot attempts at 5-on-5.
Things in the minors haven’t gone terribly well for Jiříček since last year’s move, either. He’s notched a goal and five points in 15 outings for Iowa this year after seven assists in 27 games in 2024-25. He’s only clicking at a 0.29 points per game rate with the club, with a -10 rating.
While Jiříček may be coming back up after the break, Petersen isn’t. He was only rostered for Minnesota’s last two games before the break to back up Filip Gustavsson while Jesper Wallstedt dealt with the flu. The Iowa native signed in free agency with the Wild last season to serve as a minor-league depth option in his home state. Now 31 years old, the former Kings hopeful has managed a .897 SV% with a 2.82 GAA in 17 AHL games, including two shutouts and a 4-13-0 record.
Pitlick, 34, also arrived with the Wild in last summer’s free agency period. After spending all of last year in the minors in the Bruins organization, he’s re-established himself as a fringe NHLer in Minnesota. He’s been up with the team for a good chunk of the year but cleared waivers last month, so he’s within the 30-day exempt period.
A second-round pick back in 2010, Pitlick doesn’t offer much more upside than being a physical fourth-line checker at this stage of his career. He has two goals and a -4 rating in 31 games for the Wild while averaging 7:48 of ice time per game. While his 41.3 CF% is among the team’s worst, he does rank fourth on the club with 76 hits and third on a per-game basis (2.45).
Jets Reassign Elias Salomonsson, Isaak Phillips
The Winnipeg Jets announced two reassignments as the team prepares for the Olympic Break: defensemen Elias Salomonsson and Isaak Phillips have been sent to the AHL’s Manitoba Moose.
Both Phillips and Salomonsson have been depth defensemen for the Jets this season, each splitting time between the NHL and AHL.
Salomonsson, 21, is a 2022 second-round pick and one of Winnipeg’s better defensive prospects. He’s played in 25 games at the AHL level this season, skating in a major role, and has gotten into 13 NHL games. In the NHL, Salomonsson is averaging 16:57 time on ice per game including sporadic usage on the penalty kill.
Phillips, 24, is in the middle of his first full season with Winnipeg after being acquired by the team in January of last year. He’s occupied a spot below Salomonsson on the depth chart, and has just two NHL games played this season. In the AHL, Phillips has scored 15 points across 35 games played in 2025-26, which ranks third on the Moose in terms of scoring by a defenseman.
With Manitoba sitting third place in the AHL’s Central Division, those reassignments will help reinforce their defense and give them greater odds of utilizing the Olympic break to make a push for the No. 2 spot in their division, which is currently being held by the Chicago Wolves.
Blackhawks Reassign Sam Rinzel
2/5/2026: The Blackhawks reassigned Rinzel back to Rockford today, returning him to the AHL in time for the Olympic break.
Rinzel played in three NHL games during his most recent recall, tallying one goal. Notably, his ice time was up considerably from his last NHL stint. In his final game of his recall, against the Blue Jackets yesterday, he played nearly 26 minutes.
1/30/2026: The Chicago Blackhawks have made a move to fortify their blue-line. Top prospect Sam Rinzel has been recalled to the NHL, putting him on the Blackhawks roster for the first time in 2026. This move comes amid a quiet spell for fellow top youngster Artyom Levshunov, who was on the ice for five goals against in Thursday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Attention will hone in on which young defender Chicago decides to roll out with three games left on their schedule before the Olympic break. Levshunov has struggled through much of January. In 15 games since the new year, he has been on the ice for 16 goals-against, while only posting three points of his own. The only Blackhawk to see more goals is Levshunov’s defense partner, Wyatt Kaiser, who has been on the ice for 17 goals-against.
Levshunov has recorded 21 points and a minus-27 in 52 games on the year. His scoring is up, but his plus-minus is down, from the six points and minus-13 that Levshunov recorded in 18 games last season. Even with the pit he’s in, Levshunov has still averaged 19 minutes of ice time each game, emphasizing that Chicago hasn’t lost faith in their former second-overall talent.
With this move, Chicago will open the door to potentially resting Levshunov for the short-term, while giving Rinzel another chance to stamp his spot in the NHL lineup. The Blackhawks assigned Rinzel to the AHL after he scored just eight points in 28 games to start the season. His first stint in the minors got off to a roaring start – with Rinzel scoring seven points in his first four AHL games – but it has quieted down as of late. Rinzel has scored only three points in his last 15 games, bringing his totals with the Rockford IceHogs up to 10 points and a minus-10 in 19 games. It’s another cold spell that Chicago is hoping to snap with this roster move. Rinzel scored five points in the first nine games of his NHL career at the end of the 2024-25 season. He has shown strong sparks that could help lift Chicago out of their recent four-game losing streak.
Washington Capitals Activate Pierre-Luc Dubois
The Washington Capitals announced today that forward Pierre-Luc Dubois has been activated off injured reserve and will play tonight.
Dubois has not played since October and has been recovering from abdominal surgery that he underwent in early November. Dubois told The Hockey News’ Sammi Silber that he wasn’t able to skate at full speed earlier in the season and could feel the lingering effects of the injury before undergoing surgery in the aftermath of a collision with New York Islanders forward J.G. Pageau.
In hindsight, it’s not a huge surprise to hear from Dubois that he was not fully healthy to start the year. He missed some time before landing on IR, and failed to register a point in his six NHL games. After scoring 66 points in his debut season with the Capitals, it didn’t take much to observe that something was out of order for Dubois earlier in the season.
While Dubois’ return comes just before the Olympic break, meaning he’ll have to wait to get into the rhythm of playing regularly again, his activation comes at a crucial juncture of the season for the Capitals.
The team is currently on the outside of the Eastern Conference’s playoff picture, sitting six points behind the Boston Bruins for the final Wild Card spot and four points behind the Islanders for third place in the Metropolitan Division.
Getting Dubois back should be a significant boost to the Capitals’ hopes of rallying and making a push for a playoff spot. Even if it takes him some time to get back up to speed, he should immediately upgrade the Capitals’ standing at the all-important center position.
While Justin Sourdif has been something of a revelation in his first full campaign in the NHL (he has 12 goals, 26 points in 54 games) he’s not at the point in his career where he’s a true top-six center. Dubois is, and his return to the Capitals lineup should create a ripple effect that allows a player like Sourdif to occupy a more appropriate spot in the lineup.
Dubois’ return to the lineup is no guarantee Washington will be able to return to the playoffs. But given how good he was for the team last season, it will certainly help.
Photos courtesy of Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
Vancouver Canucks Reassign Three Players
The Vancouver Canucks announced a series of transactions to prepare their roster for the Olympic break: forward Jonathan Lekkerimäki, defenseman Victor Mancini, and netminder Nikita Tolopilo have all been reassigned to the club’s AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks. The team also announced that netminder Jiri Patera has been recalled from the AHL on an emergency basis.
The move allows this trio of players to play in games for Abbotsford while the NHL Canucks are on pause. Lekkerimäki, 21, is the club’s 2022 first-round pick and has split time this season between Vancouver and Abbotsford. He has scored 10 goals and 16 points in 16 AHL games this season, and has three points in 16 NHL games.
Mancini, 23, is in the middle of his first full season as part of the Canucks organization. A part of last season’s J.T. Miller trade, the blueliner has skated in 10 NHL games this season, averaging 13:38 time on ice per game. In 23 AHL games this year, he has eight points.
By sending Tolopilo down as well as the two skaters, the Canucks have returned a key tandem goalie to Abbotsford. The 26-year-old Belarus native played in 36 games last season, posting a .902 save percentage on a team that ended up winning the Calder Cup. So far this season, he has a .901 save percentage in 13 AHL games. Tolopilo has impressed at the NHL level so far this year, posting a .910 save percentage in nine games.
While Abbotsford loses their most frequent starting goalie by recalling Patera, today’s move gives Tolopilo the chance to sustain his positive momentum by getting in some starts at the AHL level during the break.
Oilers Reassign Josh Samanski
2/5/26: The Oilers announced that Samanski has been reassigned to the AHL Bakersfield. This is not a transaction with immediate on-ice implications for Samanski, as he won’t be spending the Olympic break in California playing in the AHL. Instead, he’ll be in Italy, competing for Germany.
The Oilers won two of their five games with Samanski in the lineup, and Samanski managed to register his first two NHL points, both of which were assists.
1/26/26: The Edmonton Oilers have swapped forward prospects on the NHL roster. Winger Isaac Howard has been assigned to the minors and, in his place, Edmonton has awarded forward Josh Samanski with the first call-up of his career. Samanski is in his first AHL season after joining the Oilers as an undrafted free-agent this summer. He spent the last four seasons in the DEL, Germany’s top league.
Samanski has been a quick revelation down the Oilers’ depth chart. He ranks fourth on the Bakersfield Condors in scoring with seven goals and 28 points in 39 games. He is also tied for third on the offense in plus-minus with a plus-eight. After a standout start to his career in Germany, Samanski is proving his responsible, two-way presence can stick on North American ice.
Samanski was born in Germany and emerged as a star youth player in the Jungadler Mannheim program. He scored 106 points in 36 games of his age-14 season, while playing on Mannheim’s U16 club. After that breakout, Samanski and family moved to Canada, where he was able to pursue one year of youth hockey and one year in the OHL.
After that, Samanski returned to Germany and made a quick splash in the DEL-2. He scored 22 points in 41 games as a 17-year-old rookie. That performance, and four points in seven DEL-2 games to start the next year, earned Samanski a spot on the Straubing Tigers’ DEL roster in 2021-22. He only scored eight points in 42 games as a rookie, but has seen his scoring rise in every season since. He climbed all the way to 14 goals and 40 points in 52 games last season, while serving as one of Straubing’s alternate captains.
Samanski made a return to North America to test his chance in an NHL depth chart this summer. In the midst of his rise to prominence in the AHL, he was also named to Team Germany’s roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics. The 23 year old will have to try and put that tournament in the back of his mind for the short term, with his NHL debut set for Monday night. He will step onto the third-line wing previously occupied by Howard.
Meanwhile, Howard will return to the minors having recorded two assists in 11 games on his latest recall. He is now up to five points and a minus-six in 28 NHL games this season. He’s struggled to emerge at the NHL level but has proven to be a conduit of offense for the Condors. His 23 points in 16 games leads the team in points-per-game while his plus-12 leads in plus-minus. Howard will be an exciting addition to the AHL lineup, where he’ll look to rediscover a scoring touch before his next call-up to Edmonton.