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Injury Notes: Cirelli, Pacioretty, Siegenthaler, Thomas, Protas

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Lightning center Anthony Cirelli is a game-time decision for Game 2 vs. Florida tonight after departing Game 1 early with an undisclosed injury, tweets Colby Guy of the Palm Beach Post. It’s not yet certain whether Cirelli will participate in warm-ups. He initially left the game early in the second period after awkwardly landing a hit and only came back for a couple of shifts before sitting out the third period. If he’s not able to go for Game 2, it doesn’t look like he’ll carry anything more serious than a day-to-day designation and shouldn’t be ruled out when the series shifts to Sunrise for Game 3. Cirelli was a minus-two with just one shot on goal in 6:21 of action Tuesday, a rare statline for one of the league’s best two-way centers. Now in his eighth year in Tampa, Cirelli had a career-best +30 rating, 27 goals, and 59 points in the regular season.

Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NHL:

  • Maple Leafs winger Max Pacioretty will draw into the lineup for Game 3 on a line with Game 2 overtime hero Max Domi and Bobby McMann, according to line rushes at morning skate (via Chris Johnston of The Athletic and TSN). He’s been out since the 4 Nations break with an undisclosed injury, but was available if needed for Games 1 and 2. After sitting as a healthy scratch, he’ll come in for Nicholas Robertson, who has an assist in the series but just one shot attempt in over 20 minutes of ice time across the two games. The 36-year-old Pacioretty scored 5-8–13 in 37 regular-season games for the Leafs between injury-related absences.
  • Devils rearguard Jonas Siegenthaler practiced today for the first time since undergoing lower-body surgery in February, tweets the team’s Amanda Stein. Head coach Sheldon Keefe said they’re “getting more aggressive with [his timeline] now to see how we can push it just given the circumstances,” via NHL.com’s Mike Morreale. New Jersey went without defenders Brenden Dillon and Luke Hughes in Game 2 and isn’t expecting to get either back for Game 3 against Carolina tomorrow.
  • Blues star Robert Thomas, who missed practice yesterday for rest/maintenance, was at today’s morning skate and is good to go for tonight’s Game 3, per Tracey Myers of NHL.com. The 25-year-old center is dealing with a minor lower-body injury he sustained in the final game of the regular season. He scored the series’ opening goal but has otherwise gone without a point and has a minus-four rating as St. Louis trails Winnipeg 2-0.
  • Capitals winger Aliaksei Protas is inching closer to a return and will at least travel with Washington for Games 3 and 4 in Montreal, head coach Spencer Carbery said (via Tarik El-Bashir of Monumental Sports Network). The breakout Belarusian hasn’t played since sustaining a skate cut on his foot on April 4. Washington has overcome the loss of his 30 goals and 66 points so far with a 2-0 series lead, but a return would be big news nonetheless to help close the door for Montreal to gain momentum.

Blues’ Robert Thomas, Colton Parayko Expected To Play Despite Illness

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5:00 PM: The Blues have announced that Thomas and Parayko are both expected to play through their illness on Sunday. Kessel and Walker will step out of the lineup in their place.

4:00 PM: The St. Louis Blues could be without two pillars of the lineup when they visit the Utah Hockey Club on Sunday. Top centerman Robert Thomas and top defenseman Colton Parayko are both questionable for the matchup due to illness NHL.com’s Lou Korac reports. Parayko also missed St. Louis’ Friday loss to the Colorado Avalanche, while Thomas left the team’s Sunday practice early.

St. Louis turned toward depth defenseman Matthew Kessel to fill in for Parayko on Friday. He was paired with Parayko’s typical partner, Cam Fowler, and recorded no scoring and a -2 in the outing. The Blues aren’t carrying any other extra defenders, meaning Kessel will step up once again should Parayko miss another matchup.

How to fill in for Thomas will be a much harder question. He has served as the team’s top-line center for the entirety of the season. The team struggled significantly when Thomas missed 12 games between October and November, posting a 4-7-1 record and getting outscored 3.75-to-2.33 on average. The Blues turned towards their litany of depth forwards to fill in for Thomas’ vacancy, with each of Alexandre Texier, Radek Faksa, and Nathan Walker earning routine ice time in his absence.

This time around, Oskar Sundqvist seems like the depth option that’d get the nod, with Faksa and Walker already playing routinely. Sundqvist has been a routine healthy scratch under Jim Montgomery’s reign, and has just three points in 10 games in January and nine points in 38 games this season. He’s fallen to the role of de facto extra forward for the Blues, but Thomas’ absence could force him back into the lineup. That circumstance would likely elevate Brayden Schenn to the Blues’ top line and slot Sundqvist in between Jake Neighbours and Zachary Bolduc on the third line.

Blues To Activate Robert Thomas From Injured Reserve

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The Blues will activate Robert Thomas from injured reserve, reports Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic. The star center will return to the lineup against the Wild on Tuesday.

Thomas’ return comes weeks ahead of schedule. The 25-year-old fractured his ankle in a game against the Jets on Oct. 22 and was given a six-week return timeline, which would have kept him out until early December. Instead, he’s back in the lineup less than a month after sustaining the injury.

Before the fracture, Thomas had one goal and five assists for six points in seven games. Now in his seventh year in the league, the 2017 first-round pick was dealing with some poor puck luck and was shooting at a career-worst 8.7%. That should turn around in the next couple of weeks as he looks to record over a point per game for the second season in a row.

Away from goals and assists, Thomas was having an excellent start to the season. He averaged 20:33 per game, won 62.6% of his draws, and posted career-best possession numbers with a 58.1 CF% and 64.9 xGF% at even strength.

The Blues don’t yet have an open roster spot, but they will in about an hour after Kasperi Kapanen is claimed by another team or clears waivers. Thomas’ official activation will thus take place after 1:00 p.m. CT.

“He’s put in a lot of work to get to this point,” Bannister said on Thomas’ quick recovery (via Rutherford). “It doesn’t look like he’s missed a beat; he’s in great shape. He went away for 1-2 weeks to do some work in Toronto with his doctors, and I think that really sped up the process.”

St. Louis is now fully healthy up front, hopefully counteracting a rash of injuries on defense. In addition to Torey Krug being ruled out for the year, Philip Broberg and Nick Leddy have hit injured reserve since the start of the season. Pierre-Olivier Joseph is day-to-day with a lower-body injury but hasn’t been ruled out tonight against Minnesota.

The lack of puck-moving defenders available will lead the Blues to experiment with a five-forward first power-play unit tonight, one that Thomas will be quarterbacking, per Lou Korac of NHL.com. Thomas has just one power-play point this season, but 27 of his 86 points last season came with the man advantage.

At even strength, Thomas will return to his standard first-line center role. After spending most of the early going with Jordan Kyrou on his right and Brandon Saad on his left, Pavel Buchnevich will now slide up to first-line duties while Saad skates on the second line with Brayden Schenn and Jake Neighbours, per Korac.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Blues Place Robert Thomas On Injured Reserve, Activate Oskar Sundqvist

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12:35 p.m.: The Blues have activated Sundqvist off IR, per a team release. That fills Thomas’ vacant roster spot and has the Blues back at the maximum of 23 players. He’ll likely play tomorrow for the first time since sustaining a torn ACL against the Golden Knights in late March.

11:18 a.m.: The Blues have placed center Robert Thomas on injured reserve, per a team release. The star forward sustained a fractured ankle in last night’s loss to the Jets and will be re-evaluated in six weeks.

Thomas left the game in the second period after blocking a shot from Winnipeg’s Neal Pionk. A standard IR placement means he’d be eligible to return on Oct. 29, but he’ll be out until at least Dec. 4. That means Thomas will miss St. Louis’ next 19 games at the very least – nearly a quarter of the regular season.

The 2017 first-round pick has a laundry list of minor injuries throughout his seven-year NHL career, but seldom few have lasted more than a couple of weeks. Only one, a broken left thumb sustained in February 2021, sidelined him for as long as this ankle fracture will.

However, no injuries affected Thomas last season; he played in all 82 games for the first time. Various injuries and illnesses cost him nine games in 2022-23, and he’s also had a pair of semi-serious shoulder injuries in the past few years. But he’s still made at least 70 appearances on four occasions, including last year’s career-best 60-assist, 86-point campaign.

Now in his prime, the 25-year-old is emerging as the Blues’ top forward and one of the league’s better playmaking centers. He’s produced precisely a point per game since the beginning of the 2021-22 season, tied for 30th in the league over that timeframe. He’s also become a strong option in the dot, winning over half his draws the past few years. That was especially important for St. Louis after making natural winger Pavel Buchnevich their No. 2 center, a tricky proposition considering his career 32.5 FOW%. This year, Thomas had a goal and five assists through seven games.

Thomas joins Nick Leddy and Oskar Sundqvist on injured reserve (Torey Krug is on LTIR and out for the season after ankle surgery). They’ve opened up a roster spot with his IR placement. With Alexey Toropchenko still day-to-day with a lower-body injury, they’ll likely summon a forward from AHL Springfield before tomorrow’s game against the Maple Leafs. Captain Brayden Schenn, who has just two points through seven games but a 51.5 FOW%, could replace Thomas as their top-line center.

Snapshots: Buchnevich, Cajkovic, Leafs, Durandeau

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Just a few months after shopping him around the Trade Deadline, the St. Louis Blues have agreed to terms on a long-term extension with top winger Pavel Buchnevich a year early. But general manager Doug Armstrong acknowledged that the team had to cave to Buchnevich’s term, telling Matthew DeFranks of the St. Louis Post, “We talked [with Buchnevich’s side] again on the first, did the deal on the second. I’ll be honest with you, I budged.” Armstrong added that giving ground on term is the cost of doing business in today’s market.

For their effort in the negotiations, the Blues have now locked up Buchnevich at a manageable $8MM cap hit, set to begin in 2025-26 after his current deal expires. The 29-year-old winger recorded 27 goals and 63 points in 80 games this season, the lowest scoring of his tenure with the Blues. He had a career year in his first year with the club in 2021-22, recording 30 goals and 76 points in just 73 games. Buchnevich scored at a similar pace last year, though an ankle injury would limit him to just 63 games and 67 points.

Buchnevich has emerged as a premier winger in St. Louis, and a great addition to the high-tempo duo of Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou. He’ll look to really get comfortable in that role next year, after agreeing to what will be the longest contract of his career.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Pittsburgh Penguins forward Maxim Cajkovic has signed with HC Verva Litvinov of Slovakia’s Tipsport Extraliga. The Penguins acquired Cajkovic from the Minnesota Wild in January, sending Will Butcher the other way. The deal proved moot for both teams, as Butcher currently awaits a new deal on the free-agent market. Cajkovic, 23, is returning to Europe after spending all year in the minor leagues, tallying five points in 10 AHL games and four points in 13 ECHL games. He’ll be playing in his third European pro league on this deal, after spending time in Sweden’s SHL and Austria’s ICE Hockey League during his U21 career.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced a new ECHL affiliation, signing an agreement with the Cincinnati Cyclones set to begin next season. The duration of the deal hasn’t been revealed. Toronto turns to the Cyclones after their previous affiliate, the Newfoundland Growlers, ceased operations before the end of the 2023-24 season. The Cyclones are a familiar face in the ECHL, appearing in 23 of the league’s last 30 seasons. They’ve won two Kelly Cup Championships in that span – in 2008 and 2010. Cincinnati will look to return to those heights now in partnership with the Leafs: the fifth NHL club they’ve been affiliated with.
  • Montreal Canadiens winger Arnaud Durandeau has signed with Amur Khabarovsk of the KHL, per Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports. Durandeau went on a quick tour around the minor leagues this season, playing for three different AHL clubs this season after a mid-year loan was followed with Montreal acquiring Durandeau from the New York Islanders in exchange for Tyce Thompson. Durandeau scored 24 points across 48 AHL games this season, bringing his career totals to 132 points in 215 games. He also appeared in four NHL games during the 2022-23 season, though he failed to score.

NHL Names Western Conference All-Stars

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Sportsnet is reporting that the NHL has named the first 16 selections from the Western Conference who will appear in the NHL All-Star Game that will take place February 3rd in Toronto.

The game will be held in Canada for the first time since 2012, when it was held in Ottawa. Toronto hasn’t hosted the game since 2000 and this year will be the first time that the NHL uses a four-team, three-on-three format in combination with the fantasy draft format that was used from 2011-2015. The league will name four captains, one for each team, who will take part in a draft to select their teams on February 1st.

The initial players named from the Western Conference are as follows:

Central Division

Arizona: LW Clayton Keller (4th appearance)
Chicago: C Connor Bedard (1st appearance)
Colorado: C Nathan MacKinnon (3rd appearance)
Dallas: G Jake Oettinger (1st appearance)
Minnesota: LW Kirill Kaprizov (3rd appearance)
Nashville: C Filip Forsberg (1st appearance)
St. Louis: C Robert Thomas (1st appearance)
Winnipeg: G Connor Hellebuyck (3rd appearance)

Pacific Division

Anaheim: LW Frank Vatrano (1st appearance)
Calgary: C Elias Lindholm (1st appearance)
Edmonton: C Connor McDavid (7th appearance)
Los Angeles: G Cam Talbot (1st appearance)
San Jose: C Tomas Hertl (1st appearance)
Seattle: RW Oliver Bjorkstrand (1st appearance)
Vancouver: D Quinn Hughes (1st appearance)
Vegas: C Jack Eichel (1st appearance)

The initial announcements of 32 players (one player to represent each team) tonight will be followed by the naming of the final 12 all-stars in the coming weeks. Those 12 players will be decided by a fan vote on NHL.com as well as several of the NHL’s social media platforms.

Robert Thomas Back Skating With St. Louis Blues

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Some good news for the St. Louis Blues as they enter the final week of the regular season. Lou Korac of NHL.com is reporting that Robert Thomas is back skating today at the team’s optional skate. Thomas has missed the last five games with an upper body injury but took a step towards returning as he did some drills with Blues assistant coach Steve Ott this morning.

Thomas had started to heat up just before his injury with three points in the two games prior to getting hurt. Before that he had been on a cold streak going pointless in four straight. Thomas has been streaky this year putting up points in bunches and then going cold for a handful of games. Despite this, he still has 19 goals and 63 points in 70 games this year.

The Blues have just three games left in the regular season, so it is not yet known whether Thomas will return before the Blues play game 82. St. Louis is already officially eliminated from the playoffs so there is little rush to bringing him back too soon, especially with his eight year $65MM dollar extension kicking in next season.

St. Louis will be an interesting team to watch this offseason. The team has been visibly frustrated with the play of goaltender Jordan Binnington, their defense is old and could use an injection of youth, and they’ve got a solid group of forwards led by Thomas and Jordan Kyrou. They aren’t that far removed from their 2019 Stanley Cup and will likely be looking to push for the playoffs again in 2023-24.

Injury Notes: Capitals, Blues, Tanev, Teravainen

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While the Washington Capitals are near the conclusion of a rare season that finds them outside the Eastern Conference’s playoff picture, the circumstances surrounding their franchise’s greatest player add more meaning to the remaining games on their schedule than those contests might have for other teams. Alex Ovechkin remains locked into his chase of Wayne Gretzky’s all-time scoring record, and until the day he passes The Great One, each Capitals game holds importance.

As a result, any injuries Capitals players suffer at this stage of the season are more meaningful than they might be for another franchise closing out a lost season. So, today’s reporting via the Washington Post’s Roman Stubbs that Capitals veterans T.J. Oshie and Trevor van Riemsdyk will not travel with the team and are each nursing upper-body injuries is notable. While the 36-year-old Oshie may not be the caliber of player he once was, he’s still a reliable contributor to the Capitals’ forward corps and his absence could make life for Ovechkin more difficult. Same for the loss of van Riemsdyk, who as a former undrafted player has carved himself a nice career as a penalty kill specialist at the age of 31.

Some other injury notes from across the NHL:

  • NHL.com’s Lou Korac relays updates from St. Louis Blues head coach Craig Berube on two of the team’s most important players. Per Berube, top center Robert Thomas is a game-time decision tonight against the Philadelphia Flyers, while the Blues’ leading scorer on a point-per-game basis, Pavel Buchnevich, remains out. Both Thomas and Buchnevich have not played since the Blues’ March 28th overtime victory over the Vancouver Canucks, and in their absence St. Louis has lost two of three games, with their sole victory coming over the last-place Chicago Blackhawks.
  • Calgary Flames head coach Darryl Sutter told the media today, including TSN Sports’ Salim Nadim Valji, that veteran defensive defenseman Chris Tanev is a game-time decision tonight against the Blackhawks. Tanev hasn’t played since March 20th, when the Flames suffered a miserable 8-2 loss in Los Angeles. With the Flames on a four-game winning streak and mounting a serious challenge to the Winnipeg Jets, getting Tanev back into the lineup would give his team a major boost. Tanev is the Flames’ leading penalty-killer by a wide margin and the experience, defensive prowess, and 20 rock-solid minutes a night he brings to the table could be just what the Calgary needs to push themselves past the Jets for the final Wild Card spot.
  • Carolina Hurricanes star forward Teuvo Teravainen remains out of the lineup for tonight’s matchup against the Ottawa Senators, marking the fourth straight game he has missed. The 28-year-old Finn has undoubtedly had a down season by his standards (just 12 goals and 36 points in 63 games played) but with both Max Pacioretty and Andrei Svechnikov out for the season, he’ll need to get back to full health and shoulder a greater offensive workload in order for the Hurricanes to stand the best chance of making a deep playoff run.

Injury Notes: Buchnevich, Thomas, Chabot, Cole

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The St. Louis Blues will be without top forward Robert Thomas tonight against the Chicago Blackhawks with an upper-body injury, the team announced Wednesday. Thomas scored a goal in the Blues win over the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday, and has had a strong season, with 17 goals and 46 assists for 63 points in 70 games. Thomas is now one of the core pieces up front for the Blues, and is set to begin an eight-year contract with an AAV of $8.125MM, which could soon be a bargain for a player of Thomas’ caliber. Thomas is third on the Blues in points this season.

 

  • Sticking with the Blues, they will also be without winger Pavel Buchnevich tonight against Chicago. The winger will miss the game with an upper-body injury. He had a goal and an assist against Vancouver on Tuesday, and is second on the Blues in scoring with 25 goals and 41 assists for 66 points in 59 games. Buchnevich scored 57 goals in his final three seasons with the New York Rangers, but has 55 goals for the Blues in the past two seasons, making the acquisition look like a boon for the Blues.
  • Ottawa Senators defensemen Thomas Chabot will not play tonight against the Philadelphia Flyers, according to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. Chabot played on Monday for the Sens, recording an assist in the 5-2 win over the Florida Panthers. As the Sens try to make a late playoff push, losing Chabot on the blueline won’t help matters. He has 11 goals and 30 assists this season in 68 games.
  • Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Ian Cole will return to the lineup as the team hosts the Washington Capitals, according to Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times. The veteran defenseman missed Tuesday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes and returns as the Bolts are set to host the Washington Capitals tonight.

Injury Notes: Jarry, Thomas, Deslauriers

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Rob Rossi of The Athletic reports the Pittsburgh Penguins are dealing with another goaltender injury. Tristan Jarry has a lower-body injury and will not play this evening when the Penguing travel west to take on the Dallas Stars. Jarry missed about a month in late January and into February with a lower-body injury and it appears he may be dealing with something similar yet again. There is no timeline for his return at this point.

Jarry is not having his best season to date. He has put up a 2.98 GAA and a .908 SV% in 40 games played. The 27 year old was much better last season when he posted a 2.42 GAA and a .919 SV% along with a 34-18-6 record. The Penguins could use that version of Jarry down the stretch as they try to hang on to a playoff spot. They are currently one point ahead of the Florida Panthers for the final wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference.

  • Eyebrows were raised St. Louis when Robert Thomas of the Blues was made a late scratch. However, the team announced he was going to be held out of tonight’s contest with an illness. Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Logan Brown took the spot in the lineup after Thomas completed pregame warmups so it was a last-minute decision of the team. It does not appear to be something that will keep the star forward out of the lineup for long. The 23-year-old center has 16 goals and 60 points in 67 games this season.
  • Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic reports Nicolas Deslauriers was held out of the Philadelphia Flyers lineup with an upper-body injury. Deslauriers is in the first season of a four-year contract that pays him $1.75MM per year. The gritty winger has scored five goals and 11 points in 70 games for the Flyers this season.

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