With the 18th overall pick of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, the Chicago Blackhawks selected forward Sacha Boisvert. Since then, the 19-year-old forward has been among the Blackhawks' most promising young players.

Now, Boisvert has gotten some big-time praise, as he has made Ryan Kennedy's top players 21 years old or younger list for The Hockey News. Boisvert picked up the No. 73 spot on Kennedy's list.

When looking at how Boisvert has played early on in his collegiate career, it is understandable that he has made this list. The young forward had a strong freshman year with the University of North Dakota in 2024-25, as he posted 18 goals and 32 points in 37 games. He is also now having a good start to the 2025-26 season with Boston University, as he has recorded one goal and nine points in nine games thus far.

With numbers like these, it is hard not to be impressed with Boisvert. The young forward has the tools to blossom into an impactful NHL player and could very well be a big part of the Blackhawks' future as they continue to trend in the right direction.

The St. Louis Blues and Springfield Thunderbirds announced they have released forward Milan Lucic from his AHL professional tryout (PTO).

Lucic signed a PTO with the Blues in training camp and recorded two points in four pre-season games before suffering an injury.

The 37-year-old joined the Thunderbirds on another PTO and recorded one assist in five AHL games before

Originally a second round selection of the Boston Bruins in 2006, Lucic has 233 goals and 586 points in 1177games. He won the 2011 Stanley Cup with the Bruins and the gold medal at the 2023 World Championship with Team Canada.

Milan Lucic has been released from his AHL tryout with the @ThunderbirdsAHL. https://t.co/nsE9LH4qGS#stlblues

— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) November 25, 2025

He last played in the NHL in Oct. 2023 before taking an indefinite leave to enter the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. Lucic was arrested in Nov. 2023 and had a domestic violence charge dropped in Feb. 2024.

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It appears as though the Vancouver Canucks are in the initial stages of preparing to sell off assets as they've slogged through yet another subpar start to their season, and the Detroit Red Wings could be in prime position to right a wrong from 2018. 

As you may recall, the Red Wings selected forward Filip Zadina with the sixth overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft. The Canucks followed by selecting Hughes, who was bred in the nearby suburb of Ann Arbor by playing for the University of Michigan Wolverines.

As a freshman, he set a school record with 24 assists, the most ever by a first-year defenseman, and earned selections on both the Big Ten All-Freshman Team and the All-Big Ten Second Team.

Hughes also played for the U.S. National Team Development Program, based in Plymouth. 

While Detroit's selection of Zadina seemed like a steal at the time, both players could not have gone in more opposite directions during their respective NHL careers. 

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Zadina never panned out as expected and ultimately finished his time with the Red Wings having scored just 28 goals in 190 games. He played a lone season with the San Jose Sharks in 2023-24, scoring 13 goals in 72 games before returning overseas, where he now plays in Switzerland with Davos HC. 

Meanwhile, Hughes has blossomed into not only the best defenseman in Canucks history, but also one of the most talented blue liners in recent NHL memory. He has already become the franchise’s all-time leader in both assists and total points by a defenseman, and set a new NHL record for a defenseman by reaching 300 career assists in just 376 games.

Most points by a defenceman, #Canucks history

Quinn Hughes 410
Alex Edler 409
Mattias Ohlund 325 pic.twitter.com/eRhlv3Jsji

— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) October 12, 2025

He also won the Norris Trophy as the NHL's best defenseman in 2024. 

Hughes, who is under contract for one more season at a reasonable $7.85 million cap hit, was linked to the Red Wings amid the uncertainty facing the Canucks. The speculation came from Insider Tyler Yaremchuk during a Daily Faceoff Live segment with fellow Insider and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton.

Yaremchuk said the following: 

"If you were to go get Quinn Hughes in the middle of this season, maybe a team like Detroit would be willing to pay a lot for him, going, 'You know what? We're going to be ablde to get him in our organization for a year and a half. Even if he walks at the end of it, we get two playoff runs out of him, or we have 18 months to convince this guy to stay and show we're serious about contending.'" 

It’s open for business in Vancouver, as the Canucks have announced they’ll be listening to offers on several veterans.

While they aren’t looking to move Quinn Hughes at the moment, is it more a question of when than if they move on from their captain?

Daily Faceoff Live -… pic.twitter.com/1IYHNv4tGW

— Daily Faceoff (@DailyFaceoff) November 25, 2025

The Red Wings, who have not played beyond the 82nd game of the regular season since 2016, would benefit significantly from Hughes’ presence on their blue line. His ties to the metro-Detroit area could make a potential move appealing to him, and his addition could provide the substantial boost needed to push the club over the top in its pursuit of a playoff berth.

Detroit also has ample salary-cap space to facilitate not only a trade for Hughes, but also a contract extension for him ahead of the 2027-28 season. That, combined with the expected rise in the salary cap and several contracts set to come off Detroit’s books by then, makes the scenario all the more feasible. 

However, it would be contingent on what kind of package the Canucks would request in return, which could potentially include rookie defenseman Axel Sandin-Pellikka. 

While Sandin-Pellikka has the potential to become a top-pairing defenseman later in his career, Hughes has already established himself as one of the best players at the position in the NHL today.

The Red Wings are likely keeping close tabs on the situation in Vancouver, and acquiring Hughes would be the crown jewel of GM Steve Yzerman’s NHL player-acquisition repertoire.

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DOVE VALLEY — As The Hockey News reported on Sunday, Joel Kiviranta appeared to be progressing well from his lower-body injury. Well, that’s because he has.

Coach Jared Bednar confirmed to reporters on Tuesday that Kiviranta is ready to go and will return to action Wednesday night when the NHL-leading Colorado Avalanche take on the San Jose Sharks at Ball Arena.

I reckon Kivi should be good to go by the next home stand.#goavsgo#avs@TheHockeyNewspic.twitter.com/3h8zYjZ7AF

— Ryan O'Hara (@OHaraSports) November 23, 2025

One of the Avalanche’s three remaining injured forwards was on the ice at Tuesday’s practice. Valeri Nichushkin skated ahead of the group in a red non-contact sweater, working through skill drills before staying out for the start of the session. He looked sharper than he has in recent appearances, though there were still moments where he appeared hesitant to put full weight on his lower body. However, Bednar said he is progressing.

Gavin Brindley/Logan O’Connor

As The Hockey News noted on Sunday, Gavin Brindley joined the injured-skate session alongside Kiviranta but did not participate. Wearing tennis shoes, he stepped onto the ice briefly to work through light stickhandling and a few casual shots, offering encouragement to Kiviranta before heading back to the locker room. It was a welcome show of support from the rookie, but Brindley remains far from a return to game action.

“Still ways away. No update,” Bednar said when asked about Brindley.

The 21-year-old has recorded four goals and three assists in 18 games for the Avalanche this season. He suffered his lower-body injury in the first period of Colorado’s 6-3 win over the New York Rangers on November 20. 

The 21-year-old has posted four goals and three assists through 18 games for the Avalanche this season. He sustained the lower-body injury in the first period of Colorado’s 6–3 win over the New York Rangers on November 20.

Logan O’Connor underwent a second hip surgery in the offseason and was on track for an early November return, but recently suffered a setback and has not been on the ice lately. Like Brindley, O’Connor won’t be back for some period of time. 

Sharks vs. Avalanche 

With Kiviranta returning, the Avalanche will require only one call-up for Wednesday’s game. Tristen Nielsen and Jason Polin both dressed over the weekend, so that could potentially mean another start for Taylor Makar, who has already made three NHL starts this season, but has played well.

Kiviranta is expected to slot into one of the wing positions on the fourth line alongside rookie center Zakhar Bardakov. Meanwhile, Parker Kelly has been elevated to the third line with center Jack Drury and winger Victor Olofsson. This move was made to fill Landeskog’s spot as he was forced to move to the second line to fill in for Brindley, who was initially elevated from the fourth line to the second to replace Nichushkin. With both men hurt, it’s been the hockey edition of musical chairs.

The Avalanche (16-1-5) take on the Sharks (11-9-3) Wednesday night at Ball Arena. Coverage kicks off at 7 p.m. local time. 

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The Buffalo Sabres have won four of their past five games, and they’re finally out of the Atlantic Division basements. And by the sounds of it, the Sabres are going to get some more good news, as veteran center Josh Norris is nearing a return to action after missing every Sabres game since being injured in Buffalo’s first game of the season, missing the next 21 games.

But let’s be real here – given Norris’ unfortunate history of injuries, you can’t rely on Norris until such time as he proves he can stay healthy for long stretches of time. And even then, considering that Norris has only played as many as 66 games just one time in his NHL career, there are going to be skeptics he can do that. (And he won’t do that this season.)

“It’s never easy being out, and there’s only so much you can control,” Norris told media Tuesday. “You just come to the rink every day and do the things you can do, and stay on top of things that come up and just be a pro. Unfortunately, I’ve been on the wrong side of it for a little bit now, so that’s really frustrating personally.”

If it’s frustrating being Norris right now, imagine how tough it is for Sabres fans right now. They’ve been hopeful the moves Sabres GM Kevyn Adams were going to pan out, but the final judgement has yet to be made on the Norris trade that sent Dylan Cozens to the Ottawa Senators. Cozens is thriving as a Senator, with eight goals and 16 points in 22 games. 

Despite Sabres' Surge, Buffalo Faces Long Road Back To RelevancyThe Buffalo Sabres' playoff drought looks like it will extend for another year. But Sabres fans want more from the team than that. No more promises. Every game now dictates their fight for survival.

Norris is always going to be measured against Cozens, and at the moment, and while things can change, as it stands right now, you’d have to say that Ottawa is the winner of that trade.

That said, if Buffalo does get Norris back this coming weekend, the Sabres are clearly going to be a better team. Buffalo’s strength down the middle wasn’t great even with Norris in the lineup, but without him, the Sabres’ lack of depth at center was exposed. And there was no way Adams was going to be able to acquire a proven pivot of a high-end caliber. 

Sabres Win Again, But Buffalo Fans Need To See Many More Wins Before Getting ExcitedThe Buffalo Sabres' recent win streak is a spark, but a long, tough schedule demands sustained excellence to truly ignite their playoff hopes.

We should remember that Norris has played exactly four games with the Sabres. With expectations that are managed for him, he can be an effective player for Buffalo. But the durability question is always going to linger for Norris, and the Sabres desperately need him to be a difference-maker and needle-mover – and above all else, to stay in the lineup. 

If he can do that, all this waiting around for Norris will be worth it.