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T.J. Oshie

Snapshots: Oshie, Protas, Brodin, Gruden

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Before the puck drop in the team’s game tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Washington Capitals announced two injuries to their lineup. In the announcement, the Capitals stated that forward T.J. Oshie is out with an upper-body injury, and Aliaksei Protas is out with a lower-body injury.

Although both players were given a day-to-day injury designation, it is much of the same for Oshie this season. Oshie has only played in 43 of a possible 68 games for the Capitals this season, only managing 11 goals and 19 points in the process. With one more year remaining on his eight-year, $46MM contract after this year, the injury concern is certainly piling up for the veteran forward.

Protas, on the other hand, has sustained much more health than Oshie this season, skating in 65 games for Washington. Earning a five-year, $16.875MM contract extension in January, Protas has turned into quite the playmaker for the Capitals, scoring five goals and 28 points altogether.

Other snapshots:

  • Moving out West, the Minnesota Wild announced that defenseman Jonas Brodin would miss the team’s game tonight against the Los Angeles Kings with a lower-body injury. It will mark the 19th game that Brodin has missed this season with injury, as an upper-body injury, as well as another lower-body injury, have kept him out of the lineup for multiple games at a time. Nevertheless, Brodin is still the second-highest-scoring defenseman for the Wild this season, putting up seven goals and 23 points in 51 games.
  • After filling in for the injured Jeff Carter last night, Jonathan Gruden has been returned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins after being recalled on an emergency loan. Gruden will return to a situation in WBS where he has been largely successful this year, scoring 13 goals and 24 points in 43 games at the AHL level.

East Notes: Teräväinen, Oshie, Jeannot

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Hurricanes winger Teuvo Teräväinen didn’t travel with the team on their road trip and will be out for Saturday’s contest against the Maple Leafs, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet said. He’s listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

The playmaking winger didn’t appear to sustain anything serious during his last showing, a win over the Panthers on Thursday. He logged a +1 rating and three shots on goal in the game, playing 16:01 – normal usage for the top-six fixture. A pending UFA nearing completion of his five-year, $27MM extension signed with the Canes in 2019, Teräväinen has reached the 20-goal plateau for the fourth time in his career and has 47 points in 66 games on the season, right around his career-average pace. He’s back on the upswing after a 2022-23 season where he struggled to produce, recording 12 goals and 25 assists for 37 points in 68 games. It was his worst scoring pace since the 2016-17 campaign, his first in Carolina.

With Teräväinen sidelined, Jesper Fast took line rushes in a first-line role alongside Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov and will likely occupy that role tonight with youngster Jack Drury also dealing with a lower-body injury. Fast, 32, has six goals and 17 points in 63 games this season and still carries solid value as a competent defensive winger.

Elsewhere out East:

  • Capitals veteran T.J. Oshie’s 1,000th game in the league may be on hold. The 37-year-old sustained an upper-body injury in practice on Saturday morning and will be a game-time decision tonight against the Canucks, head coach Spencer Carbery said (via Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post). The 2018 Stanley Cup champion has been plagued by injuries this season, missing 24 of Washington’s 65 games with lower and upper-body injuries. When in the lineup, they’ve dragged down his ability to contribute on the scoresheet. His 11 goals and 19 points in 41 games work out to 0.46 points per game, the lowest rate of his remarkably consistent 16-year career. Possession control has been an issue this season as well – his 46.4 CF% at even strength is also a career-low. Despite that, he’s still logging consistent top-six usage, averaging 16:33 per game.
  • The Lightning will again be without Tanner Jeannot as they exercise caution in his return from a lower-body injury that’s kept him out for most of the last two months, head coach Jon Cooper said (via Chris Krenn of the team’s official site). Indications pointed toward Jeannot returning from his absence earlier this week, but his return has now been delayed twice ahead of a rivalry matchup with the Panthers tonight. Cooper said they’re aiming for Jeannot to return at some point over their West Coast road trip, meaning there’s no guarantee he’ll be ready for Tuesday’s matchup in Vegas, either. Jeannot attempted to return from the injury, which he sustained early in January, during a Feb. 13 contest against the Bruins but played less than six minutes before sustaining an aggravation. When in the lineup, the 26-year-old has been limited to six goals and 12 points in 42 games with a -11 rating.

Capitals Activate T.J. Oshie Off Injured Reserve

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The Capitals welcomed back a veteran winger to their lineup tonight as Sammi Silber of The Hockey News relayed that T.J. Oshie was taken off injured reserve.  He took the place of winger Tom Wilson in the lineup with the team announcing (Twitter link) that Wilson was out due to an upper-body injury.

Oshie had missed nearly three weeks due to a non-contact upper-body injury.  While his numbers on the season (ten goals and eight assists in 38 games) are a bit underwhelming for someone who is used to being a key secondary scorer, the 37-year-old has been much more productive as of late.  Since the calendar turned to 2024, Oshie has tallied eight goals and six assists in 17 contests, way closer to the level of output that Washington needs and expects from the veteran.

As for Wilson, he is in the middle of a down year offensively as well.  Through 61 games, he has 15 goals and 13 assists while once again being among the league leaders in penalty minutes.  However, his 0.46 points-per-game average is his lowest since the 2017-18 campaign.  That’s not what the Capitals were hoping for when they signed him to a seven-year, $45.5MM contract extension back in August.  Oshie will take Wilson’s place on Washington’s second line.

While center Nic Dowd and defenseman Martin Fehervary have been cleared for contact in recent days, they both have not yet been activated off injured reserve.  When that time comes, the Capitals will be back up to 23 skaters on their active roster after carrying the minimum in recent days.

Metropolitan Notes: Capitals, Konecny, Palat, Greaves

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Taking the ice for practice this morning, Tarik El-Bashir of Monumental Sports Network provided several updates to injured members of the Washington Capitals. He reports that forward T.J. Oshie skated once again, but is still considered week-to-week, while Nic Dowd and Martin Fehervary both skated in non-contact jerseys and are confirmed to miss the team’s next game against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

All three players currently find themselves on the team’s injured reserve and have limited Washington’s depth up and down the lineup. However, even with all three members having been out since at least February 22nd, the Capitals have earned a 2-2-1 record in that stretch, maintaining their position near the Eastern Conference wild-card spot.

The largest concern will surround Oshie, who has only managed to suit up in 38 games for Washington this season. Dealing with injuries in the past, Oshie still has another year left on his contract after this season for $5.75MM. In those 38 games, his production continues to tail off towards the end of his career, as he has only managed 10 goals and 18 points up to this point.

Other Metro notes:

  • Philadelphia Flyers forward Travis Konecny could return to the lineup as soon as Thursday after Sam Carchidi of Philly Hockey Now reports Konecny was a full participant in practice this morning. Konecny, who has missed the last six games for the Flyers, will be as important a return as any to Philadelphia’s lineup, as he still leads the team in scoring even after having missed time. Still thriving under head coach John Tortorella, Konecny has scored 27 goals and 54 points for the Flyers this season, leading the team in the latter category by a margin of nine points.
  • Missing last night’s game with a lower-body injury, team reporter Amanda Stein is reporting that New Jersey Devils forward Ondrej Palat was also absent from the team’s practice this morning. Currently on a three-game losing streak, the loss of Palat will do nothing to help the Devils’ hopes of qualifying for the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs. In 51 games for New Jersey this season, Palat has scored nine goals and 24 points, which is a similar pace to his production last year.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have sent down goaltender Jet Greaves to their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters, per a team announcement. Greaves was able to play in one game for the Blue Jackets after being recalled on March 4th, stopping 26 of 31 shots in the team’s loss against the Penguins last night.

Metropolitan Notes: Capitals, Fehérváry, Toffoli, Palát, Islanders

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The Capitals had multiple injury updates from Tuesday morning’s practice, per Tarik El-Bashir of Monumental Sports Network. Namely, winger T.J. Oshie skated for the first time since sustaining a non-contact upper-body injury on Feb. 22 against the Lightning. The 37-year-old has missed five games and remains week to week, but signs are pointing toward the 2018 Stanley Cup champ coming off injured reserve before the end of the regular season.

Depth center Nic Dowd, who’s likely to be in play at Friday’s trade deadline if the Caps drop a key matchup against the Penguins in their pursuit of a wild-card spot on Thursday, also took a step forward in his recovery from an upper-body injury. While still wearing a no-contact jersey, El-Bashir says he “looked full-go” and could return against Pittsburgh. The 33-year-old is regarded as one of the better fourth-line centers in the league, consistently boasting above-average possession impacts with the ability to add some tertiary scoring. He’s got eight goals and 16 points in 45 games on the season, being elevated in the lineup at times and averaging a career-high 15:27 per game.

Defenseman Martin Fehérváry also skated in a no-contact jersey but didn’t look close to returning, El-Bashir said. The 24-year-old hasn’t played since sustaining a lower-body injury on Feb. 17 against the Canadiens and has now missed Washington’s last seven games. The 2018 second-round pick has again logged top-four usage this year, recording 12 points in 47 games with a -6 rating while averaging 18:45 per game. His absence has been a silver lining for the younger Rasmus Sandin, who’s regained some confidence in a top-pairing role alongside John Carlson and is now up to 20 points in 52 games while logging 21:19 per game.

Other updates from Metropolitan Division teams mired in the wild-card race:

  • The Devils made it known earlier this week they’d prefer to keep winger Tyler Toffoli past the trade deadline and continue working on an extension. Today, GM Tom Fitzgerald said the two sides are close on salary but still have a gap to bridge regarding contract length (via Amanda Stein of the Devils’ official site). It’s not clear which side prefers a longer-term deal than the other, however. Toffoli leads the Devils in goals with 26 in 60 games and is wrapping up a four-year, $17MM deal signed with Montreal in 2020.
  • New Jersey will also be without winger Ondřej Palát due to a lower-body injury as they aim to get back in the playoff race tonight against the conference-leading Panthers, interim head coach Travis Green said (via Stein). Palát has had a middling second year with the Devils, recording nine goals and 24 points in 51 games, but the two-time Cup champ with the Lightning has always been regarded for his playoff production rather than regular season point totals. Veteran center Chris Tierney, who’s averaged just 9:06 per game this year, will slide into a third-line role alongside Curtis Lazar and Dawson Mercer in Green’s debut leading the New Jersey bench.
  • Sticking in the Tri-State Area, Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello issued a handful of injury updates during his media availability Tuesday morning (via Arthur Staple of The Athletic). Depth blue-liner Robert Bortuzzo, who remains on LTIR with a lower-body injury, should return within a week. He put up a -3 rating in 11 games for the Isles after a mid-season trade from St. Louis before exiting the lineup in early January, now missing over two months with the ailment. He’ll give them a more experienced option to slot into the lineup as they stay in the race for a playoff spot and look to add some help before Friday’s deadline. Lamoriello added that veteran enforcer Matt Martin, who left Saturday’s win over the Bruins early, is cleared to play tonight against the Blues. The 34-year-old has three points and 31 PIMs in 38 games in what could be his final season with the team.

Washington Capitals Share Multiple Injury Updates

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Washington Capitals team reporter Tarik El-Bashir with the Monumental Sports Network has shared a string of injury updates following the team’s Thursday morning skate. Per El-Bashir, Nick Jensen and Sonny Milano are expected to return to the lineup, recovering from a lower-body injury and illness respectively. The team also saw progress in Nic Dowd’s return from an upper-body injury and Martin Fehervary’s lower-body injury, though both players are set to remain out – as is veteran T.J. Oshie. Finally, Tom Wilson’s return is still undetermined, as he deals to personal matters. Washington’s next game is on Friday when they’ll host the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Capitals are being forced to stay flexible with their forward group while they grapple with the absences of four different players. This has given Michael Sgarbossa an extended look in the lineup, scoring four points in 11 games as a de facto injury fill-in. It’s the most Sgarbossa has played in the NHL since the 2016-17 season when he appeared in 29 games and scored seven points with the Florida Panthers. Sgarbossa has instead spent much of his career as a top AHL option, totaling 436 points in 574 career games. That includes six seasons and 262 games with the Hershey Bears.

Sonny Milano is also benefiting from an open lineup, likely set to take on a notable role quickly after his return. The 27-year-old winger has played in just 27 games this season, scoring 11 points. He missed nearly two months of action with an upper-body injury sustained in early December and has also lost games to being a healthy scratch at multiple points this season. Milano will battle with Aliaksei Protas and Beck Malenstyn for a role in the team’s top six, if they remain without Oshie on Friday.

Capitals Place T.J. Oshie On IR, Out Week To Week

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Capitals winger T.J. Oshie has been placed on injured reserve and is out week-to-week with an upper-body injury, Tom Gulitti of NHL.com reports. The move opens up the necessary roster spot to recall winger Ivan Miroshnichenko from AHL Hershey, which was announced by the team earlier Monday.

Oshie, 37, left Thursday’s game against the Lightning after a non-contact injury late in the third period. Initially suspected as a lower-body injury based on the way he fell, his injury designation has changed to upper-body, generating some concern the ailment could be related to the back issues that have hampered him over the past few years. While he’s only been ruled out of Washington’s next two contests, he’ll likely miss a significant chunk of time.

The Capitals have kept Oshie in a top-six role this season, but age is catching up to the veteran winger, and his production has dipped as a result. He was on a tear before the injury, with six points in his last six games, but that rush only brought him up to 10 goals and 18 points in 38 games on the season. He’s bounced around various line combinations this season, recording a middling CF% of 47.2 at even strength. However, he hasn’t graded out as a particularly strong possession player for a few years.

It’s still a tough break for the Capitals, who need all the help they can get to make up ground in the Eastern Conference playoff race. It’s even more concerning for Oshie’s long-term health, as he’s already missed two significant chunks of the season with upper- and lower-body injuries. The 2005 first-round pick of the Blues is four games short of 1,000 in his career and has one season remaining on his eight-year, $46MM extension signed with the Caps in 2017.

The Caps are eight points behind the Lightning with four games in hand for the last wild-card spot in the East, although they’ve only won four of their last 10 games. Their -31 goal differential is also third-worst in the conference, only ahead of the Canadiens and Blue Jackets.

Capitals Activate T.J. Oshie

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The Capitals activated veteran winger T.J. Oshie from injured reserve Thursday, The Washington Post’s Bailey Johnson reports. To stay under the 23-player roster limit, the team moved defenseman Rasmus Sandin to IR retroactive to January 3 with an upper-body injury.

Oshie will re-enter the Capitals lineup tonight against the Kraken on a throwback line with former All-Stars Evgeny Kuznetsov and Max Pacioretty. It will be the 37-year-old’s first game since December 16, subsequently missing 11 games with a lower-body injury. This was his second multi-game absence of the season – Oshie also missed six games with an upper-body injury in late November and early December.

It’s been a trying year for the six-time 20-goal scorer, who has one season remaining after this on a deal carrying a $5.75MM cap hit. He’s scored only twice in 21 games, adding two assists for four points. His ice time has dipped slightly to 16:34 per game; the fifth straight year that it’s decreased. It’s the lowest average of his 16-year, 979-game NHL career.

On a team receiving better production from less-used wingers, Anthony Mantha and Aliaksei Protas, it’s surprising Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery hasn’t reduced Oshie’s ice time further. Oshie isn’t a complete defensive liability, but he’s far from a shutdown specialist – he’s posted a negative expected plus-minus rating in four of the last five seasons, including this one.

Meanwhile, Sandin lands on IR to give the Capitals some short-term roster flexibility. He’s already satisfied the minimum seven-day absence requirement and can be activated at any time. The 23-year-old likely won’t be out much longer, as he’s still listed as day-to-day.

Tonight’s tilt against the Kraken will be his first missed with this specific upper-body injury, though. Sandin, who the Capitals acquired in a trade with the Maple Leafs before last season’s deadline, had missed two prior games with an illness. Now in his first full season as a Capital, the 2018 first-round pick ranks second on the team in average time on ice (22:05) and has 11 assists in 36 games.

Metropolitan Notes: Kakko, Trouba, Pelech, Oshie

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Although there has been some recent speculation that New York Rangers’ forward, Kaapo Kakko, could be making his return soon, Larry Brooks of the New York Post states that is not the case. Unfortunately, Brooks notes that Kakko has still not been cleared to return to play, meaning the Rangers will have to call up a forward from their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, before their game on Thursday.

Suffering from a lower-body injury in late November, Kakko has been on the team’s long-term injured reserve since November 28th. Although he has satisfied the LTIR requirements to return by a healthy amount, team doctors clearly do not think he is ready to return.  In what is shaping up to be yet another disappointing season for Kakko, he has skated in 20 games for the Rangers up to this point in the season, scoring two goals and three points all while averaging about 13 and a half minutes a night.

At the very least, Kakko is back on the ice skating, as Arthur Staple of The Athletic pointed out that Kakko was present at practice this morning in a non-contact jersey. Unfortunately, in a side note on the initial report, Staple indicated that New York captain, Jacob Trouba, was not at practice this morning due to personal reasons. The expectation is that Trouba will be available to the team as they take on the St.Louis Blues in a few days, depending on the severity of the personal reason keeping him out this morning.

Other Metropolitan notes:

  •  Heading a few miles east of the Rangers, the New York Islanders will see the reinforcement of Adam Pelech tonight, as Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News reports that the defenseman will make his return to the ice after missing the last 20 games. With additional injuries on the blue line, the addition of Pelech back into the lineup should give a major boost to the Islanders’ defensive core, as he has historically been one of the best defenders in the organization. Through 16 games so far this season, Pelech has tallied three assists, averaging nearly 20 minutes of ice time per game.
  • Sammi Silber of The Hockey News reports that veteran forward for the Washington Capitals, T.J. Oshie, was back at practice this morning skating in a full-contact jersey. The entirety of the 2023-24 season up to this point has been mired by injuries for Oshie, who is currently experiencing one of the least productive seasons of his long career. In 21 games so far, he has scored two goals and four points, missing time in November, December, and now in January.

Capitals Notes: Sandin, Oshie, Lindgren

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Tom Gulitti of NHL.com is reporting that Washington Capitals defenseman Rasmus Sandin missed practice this morning and won’t play tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes. The team told reporters that Sandin was out with an illness, and it is not known how long he will remain out of the lineup, but they will reassess how he is feeling tomorrow before deciding on whether he will play on Sunday. Recently signed Ethan Bear took Sandin’s spot in the top 4.

The 23-year-old is in his first full season with the Capitals after he was acquired in February 2023. He started slowly this season but has picked up his game in recent weeks and has five assists in his last five games. The Uppsala, Sweden native has seen a massive increase in his ice time this season as he is playing over 22 minutes a night for Washington after averaging between 17-19 minutes a game in previous seasons while he was a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

In other Capitals notes:

    • Gulitti is also reporting that Capitals forward T.J. Oshie has gone back home to Minnesota to undergo treatment as he continues to deal with an upper-body injury. The 37-year-old hasn’t played since December 16th in Nashville and has been largely ineffective this year with just two goals and two assists in 21 games. The Capitals haven’t offered a timeline on Oshie’s return as of yet.
    • Gulitti tweeted today that Capitals goaltender Charlie Lindgren skated with the team this morning and is eligible to come off the injured reserve and serve as a backup on Sunday when Washington takes on the Los Angeles Kings. Still, the team is going to take a wait-and-see approach to get a better idea of his health before they re-insert him into the lineup. Lindgren suffered an upper-body injury last Friday and has not played since, he has been unbelievable this year for the Capitals posting a 7-3-3 record with a .928 save percentage and a 2.27 goals-against average.

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