Injury Notes: Tkachuk, Guenther, Thrun, Penguins
The Ottawa Senators will be without team captain Brady Tkachuk for a second straight game on Thursday night per Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen. Senators head coach Travis Green told Garrioch that there was no update on Tkachuk’s injury after his first missed game. The top-line forward continues to carry a day-to-day injury designation after sustaining an upper-body injury in the overtime period of Ottawa’s Sunday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Ottawa suffered a tough 5-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres without Tkachuk on Tuesday. Fabian Zetterlund held onto a top-line role, and David Perron into a second-line role, in Tkachuk’s absence. Perron has managed four goals and five points over his last 10 games, while Zetterlund has recorded just one assist – hardly enough to make up for Tkachuk’s 11 points in 15 games since the start of march. The Senators’ captain is up to 29 goals and 55 points in 71 games on the season. Tkachuk is on pace for 64 points on the season – which would be the lowest he’s scored since breaking out with 67 points in the 2021-22 campaign. But even in a down year, the Senators will need to find a way to make up for Tkachuk’s net-front presence in his absence. They currently have a firm grip of the Eastern Conference’s first Wild Card.
Other notes from around the league:
- Utah Hockey Club forward Dylan Guenther is going to stick in the lineup despite breaking his nose in Tuesday night’s loss to the Florida Panthers, shares Belle Fraser of the Salt Lake Tribune. Guenther took a puck to the face but opted to play through Tuesday’s game, telling Fraser after that his nose is a far away from his legs after the game. He added earlier today that he had to get nine stitches and that his breathing is at about 70 percent, but neither fact will hold him out of the lineup on Thursday. Guenther has three points in his last five games, and a dazzling 26 goals and 52 points in 63 games this season. He stands as Utah’s leading goal scorer – at the young age of 21 – and should continue to contribute to Utah’s playoff race. Utah currently sits nine points out of the Western Conference’s second Wild Card, with one game in hand.
- San Jose Sharks defenseman Henry Thrun has confirmed that he’ll be returning to the lineup on Thursday, per Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now. Thrun has been out of the lineup since February 27th with an upper-body injury, save for making a spot start on March 8th where he reaggravated his injury. Thrun was finding his NHL legs in the games leading up to his injury, and even played in a career-high 24 minutes of action in San Jose’s February 24th loss to the Winnipeg Jets. He’s recorded 10 points, 30 penalty minutes, and a minus-16 in 52 games this season. Those marks fall just narrowly shy of his 11 points, 16 penalty minutes, and a minus-22 in 51 games last season. Thrun is expected to return to San Jose’s third pair alongside veteran Marc-Edouard Vlasic on Thursday.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins embarked on a three-game road trip on Thursday. They brought with them star Evgeni Malkin, who hasn’t played since March 23rd, while leaving behind Thomas Novak and Pierre-Olivier Joseph, per Penguins play-by-play voice Josh Getzoff. The pair of depth skaters will be forced to miss the next few games with undisclosed injuries. In the meantime, Malkin will look to make his return on Pittsburgh’s final multi-game road trip of the season. He’s continued to be a force in the Penguins lineup, with 15 goals and 46 points in 62 games this season. That’s the lowest scoring pace of Malkin’s career, though he still ranks fifth on the team in total scoring. Of the missing duo, only Joseph has managed a point – netting one assist in 24 games -while Novak has no scoring in two games with Pittsburgh. With two holes to fill, Pittsburgh is expected to enter Joona Koppanen and Ryan Shea back into the lineup.
Senators Holding Out Brady Tkachuk With Upper-Body Injury
The Senators are scratching captain Brady Tkachuk tonight against the Sabres due to an upper-body injury, per Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia. He’s been dealing with a nagging lower-body issue since the 4 Nations Face-Off that’s threatened his availability but sustained a new injury when he was hit away from the play by Penguins defenseman Ryan Graves late in the second period of Sunday’s game, head coach Travis Green confirmed to Claire Hanna of TSN. Winger Angus Crookshank has been brought back up from AHL Belleville under emergency conditions and will replace Tkachuk in the lineup, the team announced.
Tkachuk did return to the game after the collision with Graves, who was assessed an interference penalty on the play. His ice time remained somewhat conservative, though, skating 15:41 in an overtime loss. While Tkachuk’s averaged north of 18 minutes per game on the season, he’s hit that mark just once in his last 11 games.
There’s no timeline for his return, and there will be understandable anxiety in Ottawa until the team gives their next update on Tkachuk’s status. The team’s leader in goals (29 in 71 GP) is a must-have in the lineup ahead of the Senators’ overwhelming likely return to the postseason before even considering his off-ice importance and intangibles as one of the league’s most antagonizing power forwards. Since he was able to return to the Pittsburgh contest over the weekend, there’s likely hope for a day-to-day timeline compared to anything threatening his playoff availability with just two weeks left on the regular season schedule.
The absence should provide a brief reset for Tkachuk, who’d gone without a point in his last three games but has 8-3–11 in 15 appearances since returning from the 4 Nations break. He only has 55 points (29 G, 26 A) in 71 games overall on the season, though, his worst points-per-game rate since the abbreviated 2021 season. Historically a mediocre finisher, he’s shooting right around his career average of 9.7%. He continues to generate loads of shot attempts, leading the team with 500 with a 96-attempt lead over second-place Thomas Chabot.
Crookshank will slot in for his second appearance of the season and first since Feb. 26. The 25-year-old winger was on hand for the loss to the Pens but was scratched and returned to the B-Sens yesterday before being summoned again today. He has 2-1–3 in 14 career NHL games, all with Ottawa over the last two seasons. The 2018 fifth-rounder also has 22-18–40 in 60 AHL games this season, down from last year’s pace but still leading the team in goals.
Ottawa Senators Reassign Stephen Halliday
Mar. 25: Halliday’s first call-up was short-lived, as the Senators announced they’ve reassigned him to AHL Belleville. The roster move indirectly confirms that Tkachuk should be in the Senators’ lineup tonight when they match up against the Buffalo Sabres.
Mar. 24: The Senators announced they’ve recalled center Stephen Halliday from AHL Belleville. It would be his NHL debut if he enters the lineup tomorrow against the Sabres. That’s a distinct possibility as captain Brady Tkachuk was absent from today’s practice, Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reports, after logging only 13:23 of ice time against the Devils on Saturday.
It’s been a huge year for Halliday, who the Sens selected in the fourth round (No. 104 overall) in the 2022 draft. Selected after being passed over in the 2020 and 2021 drafts, the 6’4″, 212-lb pivot headed to Ohio State immediately following his selection after four years in the United States Hockey League. The big, playmaking pivot averaged nearly a point per game across two seasons for the Buckeyes, posting 19-58–77 in 78 appearances and finishing as a nominee for the Hobey Baker Award in 2023-24. Ottawa signed him to his entry-level contract last March, paving the way for him to jump to the pros.
Here in 2024-25, Halliday has flourished in Belleville. After impressing with nine points in seven Calder Cup Playoff games to end last season, he leads the B-Sens in scoring with 15-28–43 in 59 games. He has some work to do defensively; his -19 rating is the worst on the team by a significant margin. It’s nonetheless an impressive step for the 22-year-old, who’s tied for fifth in AHL rookie scoring.
That impressive offensive performance will, at the very least, get him his first appearance on an NHL roster, even if he doesn’t play. If he does, the left-shot forward could slot in on the wing instead of down the middle with Tkachuk absent. The captain has seen his minutes managed carefully since returning from the lower-body injury he sustained at the 4 Nations Face-Off, only seeing more than 19 minutes in a game twice this month. He’s clearly still nursing the injury, so with a five-point cushion on a playoff spot with 13 games to go, they may opt to give him some rest against a Buffalo squad that’s slated to finish last in the conference.
Halliday still has another year left on his ELC, which carries a $950K cap hit. Ottawa has just $130K in cap space after the recall, even while using Nick Cousins‘ LTIR placement to stay compliant. The Sens, who haven’t been carrying an extra forward for a while now, will presumably send Halliday back to Belleville once Tkachuk is ready to play again.
Atlantic Notes: Tkachuk, Armia, Baddock
Despite missing the final few minutes of Thursday’s game with a nagging hip issue, Senators winger Brady Tkachuk is expected to play tonight against Toronto, notes Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. The 25-year-old suffered an undisclosed lower-body injury at the 4 Nations Face-Off that caused him to miss a couple of games and it wouldn’t be surprising if that is this lingering hip injury that he’s continuing to battle through. Tkachuk hasn’t quite been able to produce at the same level as a year ago that saw him collect 74 points but he still has 27 goals and 25 assists through 63 games this season while once again being one of the more physical players in the league.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic:
- Canadiens winger Joel Armia is expected to return to the lineup tonight against Florida, relays Sportsnet’s Eric Engels (Twitter link). He missed Wednesday’s contest against Seattle due to an upper-body injury sustained the night before in Vancouver. The 31-year-old has 11 goals and 14 assists through 64 games this season while being one of the most utilized forwards shorthanded. If there isn’t another injury among Montreal’s forwards, they will have to either convert Joshua Roy’s recall from an emergency one to a regular recall (counting against their post-deadline limit) or return him to AHL Laval.
- Before yesterday’s AHL trade deadline, the Maple Leafs’ affiliate made a move. Per a release from Chicago’s farm team in Rockford, the Marlies acquired winger Brandon Baddock in exchange for future considerations. The 29-year-old has seven points and 86 penalty minutes in 38 games this season but was often scratched due to the IceHogs having one veteran over the limit. That shouldn’t be the case for Baddock with Toronto, giving him a chance to play more down the stretch. Baddock has one career NHL game under his belt from back in the 2021-22 season.
Senators’ Brady Tkachuk, Joshua Norris, Shane Pinto Nearing Return
Friday’s practice brought plenty of positive injury updates to the Ottawa Senators, captured by the Ottawa Citizen’s Bruce Garrioch. Captain Brady Tkachuk has confirmed he’ll return on Saturday after missing Ottawa’s last two games with a lower-body injury sustained at the 4-Nations Face-Off. Centers Joshua Norris and Shane Pinto were also full participants at Friday’s practice and seem close to a return of their own, though they haven’t been confirmed just yet. Both centermen are recovering from upper-body injuries. Pinto has been out for Ottawa’s last four games, while Norris has missed the last six.
The Senators are in desperate need for this wave of replacement. They’ve dropped their last five games, dating back to before the 4-Nations break, while getting outscored eight-to-23. That imbalance is largely thanks to the absence of Tkachuk and Norris, the team’s top two goal scorers. Tkachuk has 21 goals and 44 points through 56 games, while Norris has 19 goals and 31 points in 50 games. They’re closely followed by Shane Pinto, who has managed 11 goals and 22 points in 46 games and grown to a second-line role. Tkachuk leads the Senators in shots-per-game, while Pinto and Norris rank third and sixth among the team’s forwards. Their return should instantly spur a Senators team that’s managed just 26.8 shots-per-game over their losing streak.
The wave of returnees will force the Senators to shake up their lineup once again. Forwards Angus Crookshank and Jan Jenik are likely the first on the chopping block, after making their first and second NHL appearances of the season in Ottawa’s last game. Neither has managed any scoring.
Ottawa will also need to shelve a defender after icing seven in their last effort – but deciding who could be a challenge. Top-four defender Nick Jensen left Ottawa’s Friday practice early nursing a limp, per Garrioch. No update on Jensen’s pain was provided, but Garrioch adds the defender was already playing through an injury. Tyler Kleven was also absent from practice with what head coach Travis Green referred to as a “strain”. Green did not rule out Kleven for Saturday’s matchup. Both defenders have found a routine groove on Ottawa’s right-side. Jensen has 18 points in 53 games this season. He also ranks second on the team with a plus-11. Kleven hasn’t been as lucky, with just four points and a minus-five in 58 games.
Ottawa Senators Reassign Angus Crookshank, Jan Jeník
Feb. 27: The Senators announced they’ve reassigned both forwards to AHL Belleville. The move indicates Ottawa will have Tkachuk and/or Pinto back by Saturday. Neither Crookshank nor Jeník scored in last night’s loss to the Winnipeg Jets.
Feb. 26: Despite a mild three-day break since their first game back from the 4 Nations Face-Off, the Ottawa Senators still required a few extra forwards for tonight’s game. Ottawa announced they’ve recalled Angus Crookshank and Jan Jeník from their AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators.
The two will replace Brady Tkachuk and Shane Pinto in the lineup against the Winnipeg Jets. Fortunately, it doesn’t sound like they’ll be needed for long, as multiple reports out of Ottawa indicate Tkachuk and Pinto fully participated in the Senators’ optional skate this morning.
Jeník is the only one of the duo who’s suited up for Ottawa this season. The former high-end prospect for the Arizona Coyotes is in his first year with the Senators organization after being acquired via trade this past offseason. Unfortunately, Jeník’s scoring production has noticeably declined this year. He’s scored seven goals and 13 points in 30 games with AHL Belleville after averaging 0.72 points per game over five years with the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners.
Meanwhile, Crookshank has spent the entire 2024-25 campaign with AHL Belleville after making his NHL debut last season. The former 126th overall pick has scored 18 goals and 33 points in 48 AHL contests this year, ranking first on the team in goal-scoring. It will be his first NHL contest since April 2, 2024, should he suit up tonight against the Jets.
East Injury Notes: Tkachuk, Trocheck, Copp
Earlier today, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that captain Brady Tkachuk would likely sit out of the Ottawa Senators’ first game back from the 4 Nations Face-Off due to a minor injury. Tkachuk’s recovery timeline is only considered day-to-day but his absence from tonight’s game was later confirmed when the Senators shared their lineups.
Any of the multi-million viewers of the 4 Nations Face-Off likely could have predicted this outcome. Tkachuk was one of the most noticeable players on Team USA scoring big goals and delivering even bigger hits. He did have some mild injury concerns due to colliding with the net during the game against Sweden but he never missed a game.
Due to his rough-and-tumble style of play and the playoff atmosphere throughout the tournament, it’s understandable that Tkachuk could use additional rest. Thankfully, although his absence is felt tonight against the Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa has a three-day break until their next game giving their captain plenty of time to rest and recuperate.
Other injury notes from the Eastern Conference:
- According to Arthur Staple of The Athletic, New York Rangers’ center Vincent Trocheck suffered a broken finger during the United States’ penultimate game against Sweden. Although he did not practice with the team yesterday, Trocheck miraculously suited up for the Rangers this evening. Unfortunately, the matchup didn’t turn out how he and New York would have hoped as Trocheck managed a -2 rating in 18:04 of ice time in an 8-2 blowout loss to the Buffalo Sabres.
- Before the Detroit Red Wings let a third-period two-goal lead collapse to the Minnesota Wild this afternoon, they lost one of their forwards to an apparent injury. After Alex DeBrincat landed a massive hit on Wild defenseman Brock Faber, center Andrew Copp joined the ensuing scrum. The altercation didn’t last long for Copp as he immediately fell to the ice and grabbed at his left shoulder. Copp finished the game with one assist in 10:20 of action.
Senators Owner Accuses Rangers Of ‘Soft-Tampering’
The first day of the NHL Board of Governors meeting has started with some dramatics. According to TSN’s Pierre LeBrun, the owner of the Ottawa Senators, Michael Andlauer, has accused the New York Rangers of “soft-tampering.”
It’s safe to say there’s now a Brady Tkachuk-sized wedge between the two organizations. Andlauer’s statement was regarding a report from Larry Brooks of the New York Post indicating the Rangers were aggressively pursuing Tkachuk in a trade with the Senators.
Nothing indicates that Brooks’ report came from a leak within the Rangers organization but the Senators organization believes it did. Andlauer told LeBrun that Ottawa hasn’t discussed Tkachuk with any team and he hopes he will be the team’s leader for many years.
The accusation is understandably heavy and will likely be discussed at the Board of Governors meeting. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports the Rangers responded to the accusation by saying, “This is an irresponsible accusation and we defer to the Commissioner’s office.”
It’s a situation the league will likely investigate given its updated policies on tampering. The league was reportedly displeased with the number of contracts preemptively announced before free agency began on July 1st and sent a memo to all 32 teams.
Any team caught tampering could face fines as large as $5MM, lose draft capital, or even have contracts voided (although that wouldn’t apply in this scenario) should they be caught tampering. The last time a team has been charged with tampering by the league came back in 2016 when former-general manager for the Vancouver Canucks, Jim Benning, made public comments regarding P.K. Subban and Steven Stamkos which resulted in a $50K fine.
Atlantic Notes: Tkachuk, Yzerman, Nečas, Buffalo
Before the New York Rangers traded defenseman Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks, rumors began to swirl around the team’s reported interest in Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk. These rumors were quickly squashed when Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen immediately reported the Senators had no interest in moving on from their leader.
General manager Steve Staios was more than displeased to see Tkachuk’s name in the rumor mill. Garrioch hinted that any working relationship between the Senators and Rangers organization may have been tarnished. In his article regarding the speculation, Garrioch wrote, “Rangers GM Chris Drury may have some explaining to do to the Senators organization due to this talk. Staios won’t be the least bit pleased to hear Tkachuk’s name floating around out there. It’s believed Staios planned to have a conversation with Tkachuk to reiterate there is absolutely nothing to this“.
This update from Garrioch should quiet any future rumors regarding Ottawa and their captain. Tkachuk is in the fourth year of a seven-year contract signed with the Senators in 2021 and there’s been no indication from the player or the team that Tkachuk is close to leaving.
Other Atlantic notes:
- If Steve Yzerman had his way, Trouba would wear the ‘Winged Wheel’ instead of a duck-inspired goalie mask. ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported the Detroit Red Wings were again interested in acquiring Trouba from the Rangers but the two sides couldn’t agree on a working trade. It likely wasn’t a question of assets given the eventual return package for Trouba. The Red Wings likely needed a third team’s involvement to retain salary as they don’t have the salary cap space to absorb Trouba’s $8MM salary for this year and next.
- In a long-lasting meeting with the press in Buffalo, Sabres’ general manager Kevyn Adams could be kicking himself for not capitalizing on an offseason trade. Mike Harrington of Buffalo News Sports reported it was all but confirmed that Buffalo had a deal on the table this past summer for Carolina Hurricanes’ forward Martin Nečas but never went through with it. To Adams’ credit, few analysts predicted Nečas would lead the league in points by early December. He’s scored 14 goals and 41 points in 26 games for the Hurricanes through the first quarter of the regular season.
- According to Heather Engel of NHL.com, Adams offered another interesting tidbit at today’s presser. Engel quoted Adams as saying, “We’re not a destination city right now where you’re going to be able to go out and UFAs that are key guys“. It’s typically uncommon for an active general manager to publicly assert that free agents don’t perceive his organization as a viable landing spot. Still, Adams’ omission is a sign that he agrees there is more work to be done to the Sabres roster.
Atlantic Notes: Benson, Peterka, Tkachuk, Stützle, Poitras
The Sabres may get winger Zach Benson back in the lineup tonight against the Kings. He’s a game-time decision with the lower-body injury that kept him out of the second game of last week’s Global Series against the Devils, head coach Lindy Ruff said today. However, they won’t have John-Jason Peterka‘s services for the home opener – he’s been ruled out against L.A. with a concussion.
Buffalo only has 13 forwards on the active roster, including Benson and Peterka. They don’t have any open spots on the 23-man roster, so if Benson can’t go, the Sabres will run 11 forwards and seven defensemen tonight. That means Jacob Bryson or Dennis Gilbert could make their season debut after sitting in the press box for both Global Series games.
Injuries up front are the last thing the Sabres need after their offense sputtered against New Jersey, producing just one goal apiece in each contest en route to a pair of multi-goal losses. Peterka, who finished fourth on the team in scoring last season with 50 points (28 G, 22 A) in 82 games, is the far more notable loss in that regard, although the sophomore Benson is a valuable middle-six piece in his own right. Rookie Jiri Kulich, who the Sabres picked up with the No. 28 overall pick in 2022, will skate in Peterka’s place on the top line with Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch in just his third career NHL game, per Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:
- If there was any doubt, Senators star forwards Tim Stützle and Brady Tkachuk will play in their season opener tonight after leaving a late preseason game against the Canadiens with upper body injuries, per the team. They’ll reprise their top-line roles with Claude Giroux, who also missed a bit of exhibition action while on personal leave, on their right wing. The Sens host the defending champion Panthers in their first game of the season, which also marks Linus Ullmark‘s first regular-season appearance for Ottawa after inking a four-year, $33MM extension yesterday.
- Bruins sophomore center Matthew Poitras remains on IR with an undisclosed injury but is closer to returning, head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters today, including Conor Ryan of the Boston Globe. He shed his no-contact jersey today, and since his IR placement was retroactive to Oct. 3, he’s now eligible to return at any time. The Bruins have an open roster spot for now, so there’s no corresponding transaction necessary to reinstate him. The 20-year-old had 15 points in 33 games for Boston last season before shoulder surgery truncated his campaign.