NHL Player News

Olivier notched an assist, two shots on goal, three hits, four blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Thursday's 4-2 win over the Devils.

Olivier led the Blue Jackets' forwards with 20:23 of ice time Thursday, which was easily a season high. The 27-year-old winger has been a key part of Columbus' depth, playing mainly on the third line. He's earned three points, 13 PIM and 34 hits over his last eight games. For the season, he's at 13 points, 40 shots, 60 PIM, 118 hits, 37 blocked shots and a minus-2 rating over 33 appearances.

Aston-Reese logged an assist, two shots on goal and two blocked shots in Thursday's 4-2 win over the Devils.

Aston-Reese has three helpers over his last eight contests. The 30-year-old doesn't stand out in many ways, but he's been steady enough to play on the third line for much of the campaign. He's now at 11 points, 48 shots on net, 76 hits, 24 blocked shots and a minus-1 rating over 32 appearances.

Cotter picked up an assist, two shots on goal, two hits and two blocked shots in Thursday's 4-2 loss to the Blue Jackets.

Cotter ended a 15-game point drought when he set up a Luke Hughes tally in the third period. The slump took the shine off of a strong start to the season for Cotter, who has been a regular on the Devils' third line throughout 2024-25. He's still on pace for a career year with 13 points, 45 shots on net, 113 hits, 26 PIM and a minus-3 rating over 35 appearances, but it's unlikely he'll get much power-play time to raise his floor on offense.

Faksa (lower body) is considered a game-time decision for Friday's game against the Panthers, Lou Korac of The Hockey News reports.

Faksa has missed the last five games due to a lower-body injury, and although the team initially expressed optimism that he'd be available in the second half of a back-to-back set Friday, the Blues apparently want to see how he feels in the hours leading up to the game. Over 29 appearances this season, Faksa has logged two goals, five assists, 46 hits, 20 blocked shots and 14 PIM while averaging 13:02 of ice time.

Trenin (upper body) has been participating in team skates recently and is making progress in his recovery, Jessi Pierce of NHL.com reports Friday.

Trenin has missed three consecutive games due to an upper-body injury, and he was placed on injured reserve Thursday. While he'll be sidelined Friday against Utah and will likely be unavailable for Saturday's game against Winnipeg, it seems as though he's closer to day-to-day than week-to-week. However, it's not yet clear whether he'll be able to return before the NHL's Christmas break.

Head coach John Hynes said Friday that Eriksson Ek (lower body) has been skating with the team and is waiting to see how he responds, Jessi Pierce of NHL.com reports.

Eriksson Ek has been out of the lineup since Dec. 3. He will miss his eighth consecutive game Friday against Utah, but he could be getting close to a return to action. Eriksson Ek has five goals and eight assists over 22 appearances this season after a huge 2023-24 campaign in which he had 30 goals and 34 assists across 77 regular-season games.

Geekie logged an assist in Thursday's 3-1 win over the Blues.

Geekie has picked up four points over his last seven contests. The 20-year-old rookie is up to 10 points, 38 shots on net, 48 hits and a plus-5 rating through 30 games. He's not producing at a particularly high level, but it's still worth keeping an eye on his performance -- he's in a second-line role at even strength and playing on the second power-play unit. Geekie could grow his offense as the season progresses.

The Blackhawks put Smith (back) on injured reserve Friday, retroactive to Dec. 12, according to Charlie Roumeliotis of WGN Radio.

Smith has missed the last four games with the injury. He has six goals and 10 points in 26 games with Chicago this season. Consider Smith day-to-day at this time since he's already missed the required number of games to be activated whenever cleared to play.

Kopitar scored two goals in Thursday's 7-3 win over the Flyers.

The Kings' long-time captain tied the score at 3-3 inside the final minute of the second period, then got in on the fun as the team blew the game open in the third. It's Kopitar's sixth multi-point performance in the last 12 contests, a stretch in which he's erupted for five goals and 16 points with a plus-12 rating. The 37-year-old is up to 10 goals and 37 points in 37 appearances this season, putting him on pace for his first 90-point campaign since 2017-18.

Eller was placed on injured reserve Friday, retroactive to Dec. 17, due to an illness, Tom Gulitti of NHL.com reports.

Head coach Spencer Carbery said that Eller saw a doctor Thursday who revealed that the 35-year-old is dealing with an illness that will force him to miss some time. Eller will be sidelined for the Capitals' final three games before the league's Christmas break, and it's unclear whether he'll be able to return before the end of the calendar year. Over 33 appearances between Pittsburgh and Washington this year, Eller has totaled six goals, seven assists, 27 hits and 20 PIM while averaging 14:56 of ice time.