Category: NHL

It appears that one of the top prospects for the Pittsburgh Penguins will see his first game as a healthy scratch Tuesday.

Head coach Dan Muse said that 19-year-old defenseman Harrison Brunicke will not play against the Anaheim Ducks Tuesday as part of the development plan the team has laid out for him. 

Muse mentioned that these planned scratches are part of the team's process for both Brunicke and fellow teenage rookie Ben Kindel, who is just 18 years old and was drafted 11th overall by the Penguins this summer. 

"We're looking at what's best for him and his development," Muse said. "It's all part of a plan for them laid out by management and the coaching staff. They're in a different position because of their age, and we want to put them in the best position to succeed."

It's Only Been Three Games. But Kindel And Brunicke Should Be In Pittsburgh To Stay.Going into Pittsburgh Penguins' training camp this season, it's safe to say that most folks did not have 2025 11th overall pick Ben Kindel making the NHL roster out of the gate.

Brunicke registered his first NHL goal on Thursday in a 4-3 win against the New York Islanders and has one point in three NHL games to start his career. Kindel has the same exact stat line, as he scored his first NHL goal Saturday against the New York Rangers, which is his lone point on the season so far.

In the first three games this season, Brunicke worked on the third defensive pairing with Caleb Jones, and Kindel has been centering the third line. Kindel is expected to play against Anaheim.

Penguins At Ducks Preview: Penguins Looking To Bounce Back After Saturday's LossThe Pittsburgh Penguins will start their run through California on Tuesday night against the Anaheim Ducks. 

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Sometimes, an NHL team needs their goaltender to be the best player on the ice. For Detroit Red Wings goaltender Cam Talbot, that was exactly the case on Monday afternoon against the Toronto Maple Leafs. 

Talbot backstopped the Red Wings to their second consecutive victory over the Maple Leafs with a spectacular 38-save performance, singlehandedly keeping Detroit alive in their contest that saw Toronto largely dominate play. 

By the time everything was said and done, the Maple Leafs had a 40-15 advantage in shots, but it was the Red Wings who secured the two points in the standings thanks to a 3-2 final score. 

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“I felt good from the get-go," Talbot explained of his performance. "Made a couple big stops early and confidence grows, especially after last game. I’m just trying to make the saves I’m supposed to make and give our team a chance to win. I feel like I was able to do that tonight.”

Talbot made 20 saves on the 23 shots he faced as part of Detroit's 6-3 victory over the Maple Leafs at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday evening, which was his first start of the new campaign. 

He likely earned himself another start with his clutch play in both games.

The Red Wings struck first thanks to a first period power-play goal from Dylan Larkin, and later increased that lead to 2-0 in the third period thanks to a strong power move to the net by first-year Detroit forward James van Riemsdyk, who was making his Red Wings debut. 

While the Maple Leafs managed to pull even with goals from Matthew Knies and Calle Jarnkrok, the Red Wings stunned the crowd at Scotiabank Arena with the game-winner from another first-year Red Wings forward, Mason Appleton, with just 45 seconds left in regulation. 

It was Appleton who took teammate Lucas Raymond's spot on the top line after the latter departed the contest following a heavy hit into the boards from Toronto's Chris Tanev. 

"That's A Good Sign": Red Wings Find Positives In Win Despite Being Outshot Getting outshot by a 40-15 margin and constantly getting hemmed into their defensive zone wasn't the strategy for the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings">Detroit Red Wings </a>on Monday afternoon, and yet things still worked out for them thanks to a superhuman performance from goaltender Cam Talbot.&nbsp;

Talbot highlighted how other Detroit players stepped up in the absence of Raymond, which, combined with his 38 saves, resulted in Detroit's victory. 

“We’ve put together a couple good ones here, and we knew this was going to be a tough one and that we were going to need everybody," Talbot said. "You lose Ray at some point during the game, and other guys have to step up.

"You throw Apps on that top line, and he buries a big one for us with 45 seconds left. That’s how good teams win hockey games, and we had contributions from everyone tonight.”

"We gave up a two-goal lead and didn’t quit. It didn’t look like we were real polished, but we didn’t quit. That’s a good sign.”

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Oct 14, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Nashville Predators forward Michael McCarron (47) celebrates with forward Cole Smith (36) after scoring a goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second period at Scotiabank Arena. Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

After a 4-1 victory in Ottawa against the Senators Monday afternoon, the Nashville Predators faced their first test of finishing a back-to-back on the road.

Tuesday night, the Preds traveled to Toronto for the second of a four-game swing through Canada. They fought hard, but came up short in a 7-4 loss to the Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena.

Jake McCabe, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, John Tavares, Bobby McMann, Auston Matthews (2) and William Nylander scored for the Maple Leafs.

Michael Bunting, Erik Haula, Roman Josi and Nick Perbix tallied the Preds' goals.

HAULLLLAAAAAAAA pic.twitter.com/HEhtxpURC7

— Nashville Predators (@PredsNHL) October 15, 2025

The Maple Leafs were coming off two consecutive losses to the Detroit Red Wings, and took out their frustrations on the Predators. They built a 2-0 lead before the Preds roared back early in the second with two goals in 44 seconds to tie the score.

The Leafs answered with three goals of their own and staved off a spirited comeback by the Predators, who suffered their first loss in regulation and fall to 2-1-1 for the season.

Preds head coach Andrew Brunette scratched Brady Martin for the second game in a row. He told reporters earlier in the day this was part of Martin’s development plan.

With Martin sitting, Tyson Jost skated on a line with Filip Forsberg and Ryan O’Reilly. Ozzy Wiesblatt made his season debut and collected two assists on the night.

Here are three takeaways from the game.

The Preds Showed A Lot Of Heart

Toronto was desperate to play well in front of the home crowd, and showed it in the opening period.

The Preds couldn’t register a shot through the first six minutes, but finally began narrowing the gap and ended the frame with eight shots to Toronto’s nine. Problem was, two of the Leafs’ shots went into the net, and built a 2-0 lead.

The second period saw the Preds outshoot the Leafs 14-6, with McCarron and Haula bringing them even 2-2 with goals just 44 seconds apart.

Once again, Toronto refused to give in, and the Preds found themselves sinking in quicksand despite showing grit throughout the game.

The two teams traded a total of four goals in the final four minutes of the game. The Preds tallied eight goals in their first two road games, twice the number they scored in the first two home games combined. They left Toronto without a win, but didn't allow the Leafs to run away from them.

Big Juice Was Outdueled

It was a battle of the backup goalies, with Justus Annunen getting his first start of the young season. Cayden Primeau was in net for the Leafs.

It was Primeau who came out on top, stopping 22 of 26 shots. Annunen saved 18 of 23 Leafs shots.

While Annunen kept the game from getting completely out of hand, he was out of position on McMann’s goal after Brady Skjei made a great defensive play on the initial shot. That gave the Leafs their two-goal lead back after the Predators had worked hard to get back in the game.

Juuse Saros has been virtually unstoppable through his first three games, posting a 2-0-1 with a 1.64 goals-against average and .947 save percentage. No one is expecting Annunen to be Saros's equal, and the No. 1 guy has to be rested once in a while.

One game is too small a sample size to judge, but Big Juice will need to have some big games to keep hopes of a turnaround season alive for the Preds.

The Power Play Has Lost Power

Stop us if you’ve read this before: the Preds’ power play was stalled again.

The unit seems to be more inclined to pass rather than take a shoot-first approach. They’re failing to get penetration and find consistent chances to score.

Nashville came into the game a paltry 1-for-15 with the man advantage, an Tuesday did nothing to raise that percentage. They didn't have as many opportunities as they did against the Sens the day before, but failed in both their tries against the Leafs.

The penalty-kill unit didn’t have to work as hard, either, compared to the penalty fest in Ottawa. They successfully killed off both penalties and are now 11-of-12 through four games.

Their only blemish on the young season came Monday against Ottawa, when they gave up an empty-net goal on a 6-on-4. Otherwise, they are perfect in 5-on-4.

While it may seem a little much to pronounce an NHL team's fourth game of the season a must-win game, considering the start the Buffalo Sabres have gotten out to this season -- losing all three games and generating only two goals in that span -- it's safe to say the Sabres desperately need a win when they take on the Ottawa Senators Wednesday in Buffalo.

That said, the Senators also need a win in a bad way. Ottawa has dropped its past two games, losing to the Florida Panthers and Nashville Predators.  So if the Sabres think the Sens will be a soft touch for them, they should think again. The injury-rattled Senators still could put a-hurtin' on the Sabres, and if that's what happens, Buffalo will be pointless in the first five percent of the season. And at that point, the vultures will start to stretch their muscles and prepare to encircle the Sabres.

There has to be a legitimate change for the Sabres -- an urgency -- or it won't matter who's next up in their schedule. The results are going to remain the same, and the anger of Buffalo fans is going to surge. You can only listen to the same skipping record before madness sets in, and that's where Sabres fans are at right now.

It's fine and dandy if you're part of a moderately-successful NHL team and you're asking fans for their patience as the team navigates through a tough stretch. But when it's been nothing but tough stretches for the past 14 years when there's been not a single Stanley Cup playoff game that included the Sabres, you'll have to forgive Buffalo fans if they're testy with the organization.

More Misery For Sabres As Buffalo Loses Third Straight Game To Start New SeasonAny way you want to frame it, losing three straight games to start the season is a disaster for the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres' third straight defeat came Monday at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche -- a legitimate Stanley Cup frontrunner -- and once again, offense was a problem for Buffalo.

The Sabres are in show-don't-tell territory, and they'll be in that territory until they string together not just a solid week, and not just a solid month or two, bu rather a solid season. Until then, fans and pundits will be in the right to question their direction. 

You can't spell goodwill without "will", and Buffalo has run out of goodwill as they've shown they don't have the will to deliver a playoff season to Western New York. Well, maybe talent also has something to do with that result. But no amount of excuses will change the mood around the Sabres if they can't pull out of this early tailspin. They have to come through with some wins, or deal with the consequences.

Injury-Plagued Sabres Having Worst-Case-Scenario Start To SeasonThe news from Buffalo Sabres coach Lindy Ruff was about as bad as it can get for a hockey team -- Buffalo's first-line center, Josh Norris, will be on the sidelines for the foreseeable future after being injured in the Sabres' first game of the season Thursday.

Only sustained success from now through mid-April will keep the buzzards at bay in Buffalo. If not, it's going to make the '25-26 season agonizingly-long for the Sabres.

Adrian Kempe, who is one of the biggest names to be a UFA at the end of this season, is still without a contract extension.

Kempe currently earns a $5.5-million cap hit, but it’s expected that the Swedish right winger will receive a healthy increase in salary on his next deal. This is his final season of his four-year, $5.5-million contract that he signed in the 2022 off-season.

The Los Angeles Kings and GM Ken Holland are under some pressure to bang out a new contract for Kempe, the team’s leading scorer after the first four games of the season.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman provided the latest reports during The Fan hockey Show about the negotiations between the Kings’ front office and Kempe’s representation.

Friedman said that there was a pause in negotiations between the two parties, but talks should start up again soon.

According to the Sportsnet insider, there was a bit of a gap between Kempe and the Kings. In terms of money and average annual value, it seemed that Los Angeles was at the $9 million AAV mark, while the player was around the $10 million AAV area.

However, since then, the Winnipeg Jets signed left winger Kyle Connor, the Edmonton Oilers signed center Connor McDavid, and the Minnesota Wild signed Kirill Kaprizov to the richest contract in NHL history.

With all that to consider, it’s understandable that the asking price has gone up in the meantime. 

Furthermore, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported earlier in the month that Toronto Maple Leafs right winger William Nylander is a contract comparable to Kempe’s situation.

Nylander currently earns $11.5 million against the salary cap, and that will continue for the next seven seasons, including this campaign.

Despite the current gap between the team and player, Friedman said he believes that Kempe wants to remain a member of the Kings.

Kings 2025-26 Player Preview: Adrian KempeAs the 2025-26 season approaches, one thing that will continue to follow the Los Angeles Kings around, until it is completed, is the pending contract situation for star forward, Adrian Kempe.

With that said, Kempe holds all the leverage in these negotiations as one of the most important players on the Kings’ roster. 

The 29-year-old has led Los Angeles in scoring for the last two seasons. In addition, he’s scored 35-plus goals in three of the last four campaigns, including a 41-goal season in 2022-23.

It’s tough to say that the Kings are a better team without Kempe in the lineup, and that leads Friedman to believe that it’s in Holland’s best interest to get this deal done on the first chance he gets.

With the return of Tyler Kleven on Monday afternoon, the Ottawa Senators suddenly found themselves carrying eight defensemen on their NHL roster, and that was one too many for their liking. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the team has opted to place Donovan Sebrango on waivers as of Tuesday.

Sebrango had served as Kleven’s direct replacement in the Senators’ first two games down in Florida, but with Kleven now healthy, it appears the Sens have decided to send Sebrango back to Belleville of the American Hockey League, where he’s spent most of the past two seasons. His two games with Ottawa over the past week have now doubled his career games played total at the NHL level. He made his NHL debut with the Sens back in January.

Behind Jake Sanderson, Thomas Chabot, and Kleven, Sebrango is generally seen as the next man up on the left side of the organization's depth chart. That much was made clear in the first two games of the season.

But he may soon have some competition. The Sens recently strengthened the left side of the B-Sens blue line by signing free agent Scott Harrington to a two-year AHL deal. Harrington brings more than 250 games of NHL experience. Everyone else on the left side in Belleville, and we'll include Sebrango's four games of NHL experience, have combined for four games of NHL experience.

If Sebrango clears waivers and reports to Belleville, head coach David Bell will suddenly have his own left side surplus on the back end. In Ottawa, the Sens appear to favour one extra defenseman and one extra forward.

Drake Batherson is set to be activated from injured reserve in time for Wednesday night’s road game against the Buffalo Sabres. So he'll likely be replaced on the IR by Brady Tkachuk after the captain suffered a right-hand or wrist injury during Monday’s home opener. The Sens are saying Tkachuk might be out for a month or more and haven't ruled out surgery.

Senators Captain Brady Tkachuk Likely To Miss A Month Of Action (At Least)Following an uninspiring 6-2 drubbing at the hands of the two-time defending Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers on Saturday, Ottawa Senators fans were hoping for an inspiring bounce-back performance in the team's home opener on Monday afternoon.

Sebrango was acquired by the Senators in July 2023 as part of the Alex DeBrincat trade. DeBrincat was dealt to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Sebrango, Dominik Kubalik, a conditional first-round pick, and Detroit’s 2024 fourth-round selection. That first-round pick was later part of the trade package sent to Boston for goalie Linus Ullmark.

Still just 23, Sebrango—a former World Junior player with Team Canada—could draw interest from other NHL teams on the waiver wire. The Ottawa-born defenseman likely has a soft spot for his hometown club, but with three quality left-shot defensemen under contract for at least the next two seasons, his path to full-time NHL status appears blocked for the foreseeable future.

More Sens Headlines at The Hockey News Ottawa Senators Site:
Tkachuk Injured As Senators Drop Home Opener To Nashville
Another Tough Break For Former Senator Josh Norris
Senators Injuries: Kleven And Batherson Provide Health Updates
Yakemchuk Reflects On Playing First Pro Game Saturday
Senators Mauled By Florida 6-2, Penalty Killing Struggles Continue
Jordan Spence: A Healthy Scratch For Sens Season Opener

The Montreal Canadiens have had a solid start to the 2025-26 season. After losing their season opener to the Toronto Maple Leafs by a 5-2 final score, they have followed that up with wins against the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks in their last two games. Now, they will be looking to keep their winning streak going against the Seattle Kraken on Oct. 14. 

One reason for the Canadiens' success early on this season has been the impressive play of new forward Zack Bolduc. The 22-year-old has had a very hot start to the new campaign, as he has scored a goal in each of his first three games with the Canadiens. He also had his first multi-point game as a Canadien during their Oct. 11 matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks, as he not only kept his goal streak going, but also recorded an assist. 

With his great start to the season, Bolduc currently leads the Canadiens in goals with three. His four points are also second on the Canadiens, as captain Nick Suzuki currently leads the club with five points. With this, Bolduc has certainly been feeling it early on offensively. 

While the season is young, it is hard not to feel excited about the way Bolduc is playing right now.  The 2021 first-round pick could very well be on the way to having a breakout season for the Canadiens, and it will be interesting to see if he can this kind of play up from here. 

In 72 games last season with the St. Louis Blues, Bolduc posted career highs with 19 goals, 17 assists, and 36 points. Yet, with the way he is playing now, it would not be necessarily surprising if he gets even better numbers with the Canadiens this season. 

Once a reliable bottom-six grinder, Morgan Barron is rewriting his story with the Jets, opening the 2025–26 season with four points in three games and hinting at a potential breakout year. 

Morgan Barron is off to the strongest start of his NHL career. Through three games of the 2025–26 season, the Winnipeg Jets forward has recorded two goals and two assists for four points, establishing himself as one of the early bright spots in Winnipeg’s lineup.

Known primarily as a bottom line forward, Barron’s sudden scoring surge hopefully signals a potential evolution in his role. His four points give him an average of 1.33 points per game, very far above his 2024–25 pace, when he produced 15 points (8 goals, 7 assists) in 74 games. 

Barron, 26, was selected by the New York Rangers in the sixth round (174th overall) of the 2017 NHL Draft. The Halifax, Nova Scotia native played three seasons at Cornell University from 2017 to 2020, where he developed into a standout forward and earned ECAC Hockey Player of the Year honors in his junior season. After signing his entry-level contract with the Rangers in 2020, Barron made his NHL debut during the 2020–21 season but was eventually traded to the Winnipeg Jets as part of the deal that sent forward Andrew Copp to New York.

BEARY pretty 🤩 🤭 pic.twitter.com/4x2qhrTIMa

— Winnipeg Jets (@NHLJets) October 13, 2025

Since joining the Jets, Barron has steadily carved out a role as a dependable bottom-six forward, combining physicality with steady two-way play. His continued development led to a two-year, $3.7 million contract extension in July 2025.

Entering this season, Barron has quietly become a fan favorite with the Jets, tallying 62 points in 241 games across five seasons. The hope is his early season success can help Winnipeg when they really need depth scoring as Barron's four points is more than the season totals of Jonathan Toews, Gustav Nyquist and Vladislav Namestnikov combined. For a player long regarded as a depth option, this could be the beginning of a defining chapter in his NHL career as Barron may finally be able to tap into the first round upside that the Rangers saw in him back in 2017. 

Jets Riding Early Momentum, But Veteran Forwards Still Searching For Their StrideWhile <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/winnipeg-jets">Winnipeg</a>’s top line continues to shine, the team’s veteran additions are struggling to generate offense with advanced stats showing concerning trends.

After exactly one week of regular-season NHL action, the seven Canadian teams are spread out throughout the standings already.

From the first impressions to the early trends from the start of this season, each Canadian squad looks different. Let's dive in.

Calgary Flames

After three games, the Calgary Flames have a 1-2-0 record and are tied for last in the Western Conference. Their only win came in overtime against their provincial rivals, the Edmonton Oilers, in the season opener.

Going into this season, The Hockey News’ Yearbook predicted the Flames to be a ‘mushy middle’ team, finishing sixth in the Pacific Division. Following that prediction, Calgary seems to be on the right path to being the team that most expected them to be.

One storyline to watch is the play of Dustin Wolf. The 24-year-old sophomore is the bona fide starter, but he's allowed 12 goals in three games with a .865 save percentage and minus-3.9 goals saved above expected, according to moneypuck.com. Only the Ottawa Senators' Linus Ullmark has a worse GSAE rating at minus-5.4, but more on that later.

Flames Must Accomplish The Opposite Of Last Season To Avoid 'Mushy Middle'The Calgary Flames were a surprising team last season. While they didn’t make the Stanley Cup playoffs – that part was expected of them – the St. Louis Blues beat them out on a tie-breaker after the two teams levelled on points for the last wild-card spot in the Western Conference. 

Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers' goal is clearly the Stanley Cup or bust. After two straight Cup final losses to the Florida Panthers and a short-term extension for Connor McDavid, the Oilers, specifically management, have a ton of pressure.

After some mediocre starts to the last two seasons, including a 5-12-1 run in 2023-24 that cost coach Jay Woodcroft his job, the Oilers would benefit from starting strong this time around.

In the pair of contests Edmonton has played, the star players ran the show. McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins have three points each.

It’s a small sample size, but the Oilers appear to be right on track to get to where everyone believes they belong, with a 1-0-1 record. Their 1.94 expected goals against per 60 minutes is the best rate in the NHL, according to naturalstattrick.com.

Montreal Canadiens

Despite being the youngest team in the NHL, according to eliteprospects.com, the Montreal Canadiens have been a force to start this season.

They dropped their first game last Wednesday, but even in that loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs and the two wins that followed, the Habs have been a fast and exciting team. Their 75 speed bursts of between 20 and 22 miles per hour are the sixth-most in the league, according to NHL Edge.

Off-season acquisition Zachary Bolduc has had a hot start to his Montreal tenure. He’s scored three goals and four points in three games. Captain Nick Suzuki leads the team in scoring with five points, all assists.

GM Kent Hughes also locked up defenseman Lane Hutson to a tidy eight-year contract worth $8.85 million annually on Monday. 

While they’re still a young team, the Canadiens will take a lot of points away from teams throughout this campaign and will be hunting for a second straight playoff berth.

Ottawa Senators

The Senators have some positives and a few concerns after one week.

Center Shane Pinto leads the team in points with four goals and five points in the first three games. Defensemen Artem Zub and Jake Sanderson and captain Brady Tkachuk have three points each.

Their strength is their forward depth. However, the Sens would like to have more consistent goaltending as Linus Ullmark has a 4.07 goals-against average and .842 save percentage in the first three contests.

The potential greater concern for Ottawa is Tkachuk's injury he suffered in Monday's game against the Nashville Predators. He's expected to be out for at least four weeks, maybe longer.

The expectation for Ottawa is to make the playoffs, and that’s no easy task in the mighty Atlantic Division.

Toronto Maple Leafs

The Maple Leafs are without Mitch Marner for the first time since his rookie season in 2016-17, in case you forgot. He provided much of Toronto’s offense last year, with 102 points.

The Leafs will need to make up for all the lost scoring, which is even tougher considering Craig Berube’s north-south and dump-and-chase style of play.

Toronto went 1-2-0 in the first seven days, losing twice to the Detroit Red Wings. Despite outshooting Detroit 40-15 on Monday, the Wings eked out a 3-2 win.

They're also 0-for-6 on the power play.

With a major loss to their scoring touch, only time will tell if they’ll be able to survive.

'He Always Has Good Feedback': Maple Leafs' Craig Berube Details What Conversations Are Like With William NylanderIf there's anyone on the Toronto Maple Leafs who can come out on the good side of adversity, it's William Nylander.

Vancouver Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks and a few individuals on the team are looking for a major bounce-back year. After shockingly missing the playoffs last season, Vancouver is expected to get back into the post-season, and a lot of that falls on center Elias Pettersson.

Pettersson only scored 15 goals and 45 points in 64 games last season, despite scoring 89 and 102 points in the two campaigns before that. So far this season, he has one assist in three games as the Canucks are 1-2-0 to start the 2025-26 campaign.

Pettersson has a lot of say in how far Adam Foote’s Canucks go this year. In the meantime, Kiefer Sherwood leads the way with three goals, and Thatcher Demko has a 1.54 GAA and .944 SP in two starts.

Winnipeg Jets

After winning the Presidents’ Trophy last season, no one expects anything less of another excellent regular season for the Winnipeg Jets. They're 2-1-0 so far.

Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor each have three goals in three games. The two of them were particularly strong in Winnipeg’s only loss this season against the Dallas Stars.

It was the season opener, and Connor netted himself a hat trick with Scheifele providing primary assists on all three of his goals. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough as Dallas took it 5-4, but the Jets showed signs that they aren’t much different from last year.

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The Buffalo Sabres are hoping to get some of their injured players back on the ice. At practice at KeyBank Center on Tuesday, wingers Zach Benson, Jordan Greenway, and goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen took part, but defenseman Mattias Samuelsson did not participate. Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff also provided an update on blueliner Michael Kesselring.  

Benson, who suffered a nasty gash to his left cheek during practice last Wednesday, wore a full face, and skated with Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch. According to Ruff, the diminutive winger could play on Wednesday against the Ottawa Senators.

"I just went and got stitches and kind of kept blowing up on me." Benson said.  "(It) got to a point where I thought it'd be best (to go to) the emergency room, and thankfully I did. I had to get some some blood removed on my face." 

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Greenway practiced for the first time since having a second surgery to repair a mid-body injury, and said that a followup procedure was necessary after there was still some lingering discomfort. Luukkonen, who missed the start of training camp and played one period in the Sabres home preseason finale against Pittsburgh before encountering some discomfort, which is no longer present. Ruff did not rule out the possibility that he could go down to AHL Rochester for a rehab assignment. 

Ruff said that Samuelsson’s injury was not as series as thought and he was day-to-day, but the defenseman was not on the ice on Tuesday, which puts his status for Wednesday’s contest against the Sens in question. Kesselring, who is on injured reserve with an unspecified injury, is progressing according to Ruff. 

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While we already discussed Montreal Canadiens prospect Michael Hage last weekend after another standout offensive performance with the Michigan Wolverines, Marco D’Amico published an article on Research Ground yesterday that is highly interesting. In an exclusive interview with the prospect, D'Amico was told in no uncertain terms that the Canadiens are grooming Hage to be a pivot in the NHL.

For those who had their doubts, the 6-foot-1, 190-pound center told RG that he has worked hard this offseason to build himself into a player who can cope with the strain of playing down the middle in the NHL. That’s not all he’s worked on, though. The way he speaks about the importance of playing a two-way game sounds like he’s already a member of the Canadiens.

Canadiens: More Than Just A Contract
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His outlook on the game and the fact that he needs to play defense at both ends of the ice when he doesn’t have the puck sounds like a page right out of Martin St-Louis’ book, a true testament to the fact that all parts of the organization Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton are building are communicating with each other like a well-oiled machine.. While it’s not always easy to “reprogram” players to play that way, the bench boss will certainly be grateful if Hage joins the Canadiens and has already mastered the art of 200-foot defense.

The piece also mentions that former Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty is now part of the Michigan coaching staff and is playing a mentoring role with the 19-year-old. While Pacioretty came up a bit short when it came to being the Canadiens’ captain, he never did as a hockey player. He was an excellent scorer, a hard worker, and had remarkable longevity, skating for 17 years in the NHL (939 games). Had it not been for the numerous injuries he had to deal with, especially at the later stage of his career, he would have played over a thousand games.

Pacioretty spent 10 years in Montreal, and in that sense, he can be an excellent resource for Hage, but the youngster doesn’t want to fast forward to the pros and playing for the Canadiens; he’s focused on winning a national championship for Michigan, an experience that would also be beneficial as he matures into a complete hockey player.

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The Vancouver Canucks will be making two roster moves ahead of their upcoming five-game road trip. Vancouver will be reassigning forward Braeden Cootes to the Seattle Thunderbirds of the WHL while recalling forward Max Sasson from the Abbotsford Canucks. Head Coach Adam Foote also confirmed that forward Teddy Blueger and defenceman Pierre-Oliver Joseph, who are both injured, will join the team on the road.

"After practice, we had a discussion with the staff, and we're going to reassign Cootsy to Seattle today," said Foote. "So he will not be on the road trip with us, but we're proud of what he's done. It's not been his play at all. He's a smart hockey player. We just think it's the right thing for his development. You know, this is going to be condensed, long, heavy season. He's a guy that's really good with touch pucks, touches with the puck. We have a young team. So it's hard to have a lot of support around them for his age at this moment. So I think it's the right thing for his development."

This season, Cootes played in all three games for the Canucks. He went five for 13 in the faceoff dot while averaging 10:47 of ice time. For fans who want to watch Cootes live, the next time he will be playing close to Vancouver is when the Thunderbirds take on the Vancouver Giants at the Langley Events Centre on February 16, 2026. 

The Canucks kick off their five-game road trip on Thursday when they battle the Dallas Stars. During the road trip, Vancouver will face the Chicago Blackhawks, Washington Capitals, Pittsburgh Penguins and Nashville Predators. Game time for Thursday is scheduled for 5:00 pm PT and will be broadcast on Sportsnet. 

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The Wraparound is here with more NHL and hockey topics in rapid-fire segments.

Will The Bruins Or Penguins Defy Expectations? by The Wraparoundundefined

Here's what Emma Lingan, Michael Augello and Stephen Kerr discussed in this episode:

0:00: Was the Lane Hutson extension a huge win for the Montreal Canadiens?

4:25: Could Pavel Dorofeyev be one of the league’s next best goal-scorers?

8:29: Should the Colorado Avalanche be concerned about how much they might have to end up paying Martin Necas?

12:55: How will Aleksander Barkov’s LTIR placement impact the Florida Panthers’ season-long plans?

16:04: Do the Boston Bruins or Pittsburgh Penguins have a better chance of defying expectations this season?

18:55: Will the Washington Capitals end up keeping John Carlson beyond this season?

21:45: Has Juuse Saros shown early signs of a potential resurgence with the Nashville Predators?

27:15: Can the Ottawa Senators stay afloat without Brady Tkachuk in their lineup for at least the next four weeks?

See below for where to subscribe to the show for future episodes.

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New York Islanders' No. 1 pick Matthew Schaefer stars in the NHL's "Welcome To The NHL' Part 2, which premieres this Friday on the league's YouTube channel.

This episode highlights Schaefer’s journey to the NHL, from draft day to development camp and his NHL debut against the Pittsburgh Penguins. 

Islanders fans also get a look at No. 17 pick Kashawn Aitcheson as well, as he's a character that fans are going to fall in love with, if they haven't already.

Enjoy the trailer and be sure to check out the episode in a few days.